I'm scratching my head this morning, and it's not cuz of fleas or drandruff or anything like that. Last week, the big daily headline blitzing the nation's media concerned the discovery that the government was spying on some Americans. I think the story dealt with a list made up of Americans who made calls overseas which apparently didn't get deleted from the government's spy network.
Personally, I don't care much whether people are spying on me unless it's in the bathroom or the bedroom or when I've got my pants down in a honeybucket. The honeybucket surveillance did happen to me once at the Festival at Sandpoint, in fact, and I was pretty offended when I looked up to see two-snotty-nosed boys peering through a hole from the roof top as I was peeing through a hole at the bottom of the bucket.
By the time I jumped up, pulled up my pants and knocked open the door for a mean pursuit, they were long gone. Then, I made the mistake of reporting the invasion to my privacy to a man I had considered a trusted friend, Dr. John Snedden owner of Unicep Packaging here in Sandpoint (http://www.unicep.com). When I learned a few days later that he had, in turn, shared my honeybucket violation to the entire Sandpoint Rotary Club at their noon luncheon, I wondered what good it does to report such crimes.
Anyway, back to scratching my head. Congress is indignant about this reported spying. The main-stream news is loving it cuz they've got a new story to beat to death 25 hours a day, and I'm sure that all Al Qaeda folks, who live amongst us trying to find new ways to blow us up, are pretty peeved, to say the least. And, of course, all the do-good organizations that exist simply to feed off the folks who specialize in being offended will make hay of this revelation.
After reading this morning's Spokesman-Review, however, I think the Congressional investigations ought to take a wide sweep of ALL spying which is going on in this country. The morning paper was filled with stories of new developments designed for anyone who wants to spy on all anyone else and get away with it.
One article focused on newly-produced technology designed for the slowly but surely diminishing minds of us millions of baby boomers. For example, there's the medicine cabinet that yells at you and tells you it's time to take your diarrhetic pill and what color it is so you don't take the nitro glycerin tablets next to it. Or, how about that floor sensor which tracks your every move inside your house?
What's gonna happen, if you're a bit devilish like me and want to outwit the surveillance? So, you decide to fool the sensor by remaining immobile for hours on end while watching your TV game shows or talking on your phone with the screen which reminds you who you're talking to and when you last talked to them by flashing up a photo of them with name and date of last conversation? Will an army of uniformed EMTs suddenly come charging into your house with gurnies and foot-long needles to jab into your chest and bring you back to life? Just the thought of that foot-long needle scares me to death.
Then, there are the sneaky hi-tech game-boys for seniors, which make you think you're having fun, but they're really tracking your brain waves and nerve endings and determining, over the course of time, whether or not you're losing it. Well, I know how to combat that; I hate those games so I just won't play.
This information on all this new technology came from a White House-sponsored gathering where all this high-tech stuff is on display for potential do-gooder spies who want to save all of us baby boomers from ourselves and our dementia.
It's not just the seniors who are gonna suffer from this gross violation of personal privacy. Another article talked about GPS units. Well, my husband does use 'em extensively for geocaching, and the military has used 'em for a long time to decide just where to target bomb drops during war time. Now, however, the GPS is quickly becoming a parent's best friend and a teenager's worst enemy. Seems parents are thrilled these days cuz they can just track that sneaky kid anywhere he or she goes and at any time.
Last week I read another article about a techno-system that alerts parents constantly about Johnny and Susie and their homework or lack thereof. With this computerized spy network, parents will soon have no excuse at parent conferences to say they had no idea Johnny or Susie has been flunking P.E. since the very first day of school.
And, Johnny and Susie? Well, they're gonna have to find some new DNA if they think they're gonna get away with anything at school because "the eyes" are watching them---everywhere with closed circuit cameras and computer programs.
Yup, I think Congress has a big job ahead as it investigates internal spying in America. I hope it doesn't leave one micro chip unturned when it gets to the bottom of this situation.
No comments:
Post a Comment