| Even if this was built on retribution - which, as pointed out by the author of the website, it is not - I would still be glad it exists, even in spite of that rationale. It's not to harm you, the staffer who already knows everything you do is being tracked. Instead, I think it is to start conversations with less technically-inclined people about privacy. That the conversation can start with data from the offices of people who passed this legislation is important, because explaining it in a more broader sense can be difficult and, potentially, scary. It's good to hear you, as Congressional staff, know that your history is already tracked. GovTrack is doing nothing more than what you already expect. Just think if CNN started dumping this data for everyone in the country to start a conversation, though; that would be scarier and more of an invasion of privacy against unwitting citizens. Because GovTrack is only publishing your internet accesses of its site - rather than the much wider amount of information on Legistorm - this gives me a great way to inform people about what happens. I've already started a conversation with my friends and family about what tracking really happens on the internet. I have been surprised at the misunderstandings many of my friends have about what can and cannot be tracked by various actors online. The huge reach of Facebook and Google in tracking people and knowing what you like has confused many people about the difference between what those private companies know and what the ISP knows. I applaud GovTrack for providing this. Releasing it close to when the recent bill was passed by both houses of Congress is handy timing that will let that conversation continue with my less-tech-oriented friends and family. > It's a harder issue to solve, but the problem really is that business interests will almost always trump constituent concerns. And that's the conversation I can continue to have with my friends and family, thanks to this history readout on GovTrack. |