So I read an article on aol.com this afternoon about corporations planting microchips in people, something that has been happening with animals and certain people since 1998. I was shocked, surprised and appalled, of course.
Apparently, the chips can be used to "store personal ID and health information." It has been acknowledged that this technology can be expanded to be used to track people that have this chip implanted in them, so that those that implant them in your head or hand will know where you are at all times.
A little disturbing. Fortunately, our senators have come out against this chip, and are looking to pass a ban on it. That's good, and surprising, considering the leaders in this controversy are Republicans Mark Cole (Virginia), Susan Lynn (Tennessee), and Chip Pearson and Chip Rogers (Georgia).
Such a refreshing move towards Civil Liberties protection from the G.O.P.
"My understanding -- I'm not a theologian -- but there's a prophecy in the Bible that says you'll have to receive a mark, or you can neither buy nor sell things in end times," Cole explained to the (Washington) Post. "Some people think these computer chips might be that mark."
Shit.
They don't care about us anymore than previously thought; they've actually just gotten crazier. This isn't a priest, preacher, pope or cartoon charicature of the Jesus we're talking about here; these are people that have been elected by the people of their state to represent them. I now find that while our reasoning is much, much different, I agree with these people on the ultimate outcome. It's the battle of keeping church and state separate intersecting with maintaining some sense of personal freedom.
I don't know what to think anymore.
Any thoughts.
A link to the stated article can be found below.
http://www.aolnews.com/the-point/article/apocalyptic-talk-stokes-debate-over-microchip-implants-for-humans/19354099
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Oh no no, double no. My employer should not have any control over my body like that, I agree with the VA State House... but why? Why must religion (specifically Catholicism) be brought into every political debate? Has everyone in office conveniently forgotten "separation of church and state"?
ReplyDeleteMakes me think of this article, which to be honest I did not read entirely, but the jist of it is about "Conservative activists on the Texas Board of Education say that the authors of the Constitution intended the United States to be a Christian nation. And they want America’s history textbooks to say so, too." What the what? Many of the comments in the article are quick to point out that Franklin & Jefferson were Humanist, and as close to atheists as you could get in the 1700's. You can not rewrite history. We'd all like to... http://www.nytimes.com/2010/02/14/magazine/14texbooks-t.html?ref=magazine
While we're on the topic of microchips and tracking people... now that you're a father, have you given thought about how easy it is to track a person, specifically your child? I have read many articles about parents who program their children's cell phones so they can look on a website and know exactly where their child is at all times. I find this so distrusting and intrusive personally. But technology is tempting. What do you think?
Track Rocco by phone? No. I wasn't tracked. I was allowed to do what I wanted, and everything turned out fine.
ReplyDeleteOh and the Bush Administration officially did away the Separation of Church and State.
glad to hear you'll let him live his life. who knows what tech will have in 16 yrs though.
ReplyDeleteoh right. i forgot. i have 1st decade of the 21st century amnesia too...
I'm not advocating going all big brother on your child, but a traceable child doesn't stay lost or abducted for long.
ReplyDeleteTracking technologies, like any other tech are only as evil as the person using them. If your child carries a device that allows you to track them, and you spend all day staring at the map to see where they are, then you're being an intrusive parent. If you don't look at that map until a time of need arises, (and hopefully it wouldn't), then you're using the tech responsibly.
To be clear, I'm using the hypothetical "you" and not directly suggesting that you, Doodle, should track Rocco, rather just expressing my feelings on the broader topic of child tracking, and technology as a whole. We have a bad habit in this society of blaming the tech for it's misuse. The best example I can think of is the constant stream of stories in the news about how video games are to blame for children showing bad behavior, running away, or fighting in school. Kids did these things long before gaming, so the whole argument is founded on shaky ground, but many parents' groups still blame the violent video games. Guess what? They have ratings for a reason. Don't buy little Timmy GTA IV if you don't feel he's old enough to separate fantasy from reality. The game contains adult situations, and it says so right on the box. If a parent decides to ignore that warning, it's their fault, not the makers of the game. It's ultimately an issue of personal responsibility - people don't want to take responsibility for their misuse of a product, so they blame the product itself.
Oh, and one other thing - no, companies definitely shouldn't be allowed to chip their employees. That's just wrong.
ReplyDeleteYeah, the companies thing ... that was the original point.
ReplyDeleteHaha. Yeah, I get what you're saying about taking personal responsibility when it comes to using technology. And for the record, Olivia is all about tracking Rocco by cell phone. Without question.
I guess I just advocate personal responsibility for people when they leave the house, too. If he doesn't put himself in position to get into trouble, there's no need to track him at all.
Of course, there were a few teams we did stuff that could've ended with our demises, so ...
If I had a nickel for every time I did something that could have ended fatally I could retire to a life of hang gliding, sky diving, and base jumping.
ReplyDeleteSee? Now what if your parents had interrupted you because they were tracking you and knew what you were doing at all times? Ha! You fell for my trap.
ReplyDeleteExcellent ...
If they knew where I was, they would still have little idea of what I was doing.
ReplyDeleteTouche.
ReplyDelete