| > You live in a society. Your actions have consequences, and if you can ignore that to get your fat paycheck then I can certainly judge the shit out of you, without a very high chair. My actions don't involve the harm of others, outside of their fragile egos and obsession with what they think should be their rights. I couldn't possibly care less about your judgement. > The fact that you claim rational discourse has ended when people invoke the lessons of Nuremberg - “because Godwin’s law” - is a stain on, and reflection of your own character. The fact that you think an argument about a subject with a variety of opinions deserves comparison to one of the most horrible events in human history is a reflection on your character. > Godwin compares people to Nazis sometime himself you know, when there’s a call for it. When this many people are calling you on it, maybe you should be listening a little better.. It's valid when their behavior is something akin to Nazism. Not very many people are calling me on it... on the contrary, my post is getting upvoted. Because the reality of the situation is, targeted advertising is a topic that needs discussion but it has no place in a comparison with the death of millions of people because of their heritage/religion. It's pathetic hyperbole people use when they can't win an argument on its merits. |
Some countries had census data containing the religion of every family. People proudly declared themselves Jewish. When the Nazis invaded the countries, they grabbed the available data and instantly knew who to send to the camps. One reason why so many Jews died was the speed with which the situation evolved. Sometimes there were 2 weeks between 'nothing to wory' and the deportation.
The same principle holds for every big list of intrusive data. Yes, you are grabbing all the data you can only to target ads. Today. But that same data in other hands can block people's access to loan, deny them healthcare or make them look like terrorists.
The US democracy is eroding, fast. It is not that far fetched to see the data ending up with the government: 1) How many data has ended up in a FOIA request? You don't know, as you don't see them. 2) Snowden proved that Google already leaked data to the government without even realizing it 3) An executive order from the US president will give him any access to the data.
And that's just the US government. Businesses sell data to each other whenever they want. Today Google seems not to do it, but one CxO change or bad financial quarter can change a lot here, fast.
Basically, Google is playing with fire, in a political situation equivalent to a big gas leak. Be very carefull.