Week 14 readings

So first off, I'm writing this from my neighborhood Starbucks. This weeks series of reading should make me outraged and appalled at the lack of privacy in our digital 21st century lives. But admittedly I crave convenience.  I'm not here because I need to be hyped up and connected 24/7- but rather, I'm a middle aged mom who finds writing her blog with three kids pining for her attention and Spongebob in the background a bit on the distracting side.  Alas, this leaves me exposed and and vulnerable.  My online activity is foot printed constantly.  Whether is be at home or at the Starbucks.   Every time I log on to itunes my preference for Thepainoguys and the crazy covers of pop songs with piano and cello is being profiled for future "we think you'd like to buy....".  But what is the fine line before the Oz behind the Curtain doing amazing things across the Ethernet and turning my rights over to a distopic government.  There is an excellent BBC movie staring Benedict Cumberbatch called The last enemy, that talks about this.  Actually, the movie almost a what it scenario if the US senate hadn't woken up to the risks of Poindexter and the TIA plan.  The ease in which we trade privacy for safety and in which those in leadership are equally willing to trade our freedom for control all in the name of security. 
Access to private data to mine for threatening activity might seem justifiable in the heated moment, but presence then occurs although terrorism is the issue dejour, who or what is to say what will the risk behavior of tomorrow or the out group yet to be named.  Take for example what a slippery slope will occur if the French bill just purposed in the French senate state that if the state notices you going to suspected terrorist websites too many times (the too many times or the suspected sites is left ambiguous) is a federal offense under french law. In name the law means to be good, but how easily it could be abused is such a short time and to such a huge extent is amazing to me. This such the case of the TIA case.  The connection between the monitoring me writing this at the Starbucks and the mining of it later for "risk" factors.  For now we will have to keep faith that like in the TIA case, those we elect to have good common sense will remain to do so. At least in this case.  Too much is at risk.