[Industrialblog,
December 12, 2006]
Convenience and temptation
In the post below, I think I've left a misapprehension that I'm saying, "Gee, aren't people stupid?"
Actually, I think the benefits of a "tagged" population could be enormous. EZ Pass on steroids. Lots of things related to much lower costs and much greater personal convenience, especially about things like waiting in lines. Maybe in the future there will be no more waiting in lines, or at least long ones.
Remote monitoring of your behavior could mean regular, helpful reminders on a host of topics -- your car really will run better with regular maintenance, and your teeth really will last longer with regular checkups.
In fact, I will be tempted. After all, I got EZ Pass, and I swore I'd never do that, that it was a slippery slope from there to the Mark of the Beast.
But you know what? 10 minutes wait twice a day every day at the Mid-County Interchange was enough to convince me. I don't even stop anymore ... just slow down to 30 miles an hour through the special lanes set aside for EZ Passers.
It'll be all like that. You won't have to slow down. It'll all be automated. Tremendous benefits.
My hope is that they'll allow you to carry a card instead of having an implant. Retinal scans, or fingerprints could confirm. We'd avoid the Pale Rider.
But eventually, there could be a dark side. You may be allowed to purchase:
* only one alcoholic beverage an hour
* no more than four drinks in an evening
* one fast-food visit per week, and
* no ice cream if you're overweight.
Things of this nature.
Remember in Revelation, the prophecy is that the anti-Christ will offer an apparent solution to mankind's problems, at the cost of apostasy from the truth. So of course at some point the anti-Christ will get a hold of the system and demand we worship him as a god, after rebuilding the temple.
Or not. What do I know?
Actually, I think the benefits of a "tagged" population could be enormous. EZ Pass on steroids. Lots of things related to much lower costs and much greater personal convenience, especially about things like waiting in lines. Maybe in the future there will be no more waiting in lines, or at least long ones.
Remote monitoring of your behavior could mean regular, helpful reminders on a host of topics -- your car really will run better with regular maintenance, and your teeth really will last longer with regular checkups.
In fact, I will be tempted. After all, I got EZ Pass, and I swore I'd never do that, that it was a slippery slope from there to the Mark of the Beast.
But you know what? 10 minutes wait twice a day every day at the Mid-County Interchange was enough to convince me. I don't even stop anymore ... just slow down to 30 miles an hour through the special lanes set aside for EZ Passers.
It'll be all like that. You won't have to slow down. It'll all be automated. Tremendous benefits.
My hope is that they'll allow you to carry a card instead of having an implant. Retinal scans, or fingerprints could confirm. We'd avoid the Pale Rider.
But eventually, there could be a dark side. You may be allowed to purchase:
* only one alcoholic beverage an hour
* no more than four drinks in an evening
* one fast-food visit per week, and
* no ice cream if you're overweight.
Things of this nature.
Remember in Revelation, the prophecy is that the anti-Christ will offer an apparent solution to mankind's problems, at the cost of apostasy from the truth. So of course at some point the anti-Christ will get a hold of the system and demand we worship him as a god, after rebuilding the temple.
Or not. What do I know?
You do believe that the book of revelations is largely symbolic, right?
Something to bear in mind, though. I don't think that civilization is going to go down Mr Toilet just because the government gains the ability to track us half as well as people in small villages knew each others' every movements during most of human history.
(When you went to the village blacksmith and bought some horse shoes, it wasn't like there was anonymity because you weren't using a credit card. As I understand communities like that, the news that you have a new horse would spread around pretty fast.)
Do you mean the 1980 movie about pirates or the 2005 movie which appears to be a rip-off of Parts: The Clonus Horror?