‘Human barcode’ could make society more organized, but invades privacy, civil liberties

They ask this question. "Would you barcode your baby?"

Hey folks,

We already know that "Big Brother" is big. We already know that Big Brother, under an administration like this is real. We already know that Liberals see nothing wrong with the government keeping track of every thing you do in your private life. The Bible even talks about this sort of thing in Revelations.

¹⁶ And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads:

¹⁷ And that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name.


¹⁸ Here is wisdom. Let him that hath understanding count the number of the beast: for it is the number of a man; and his number is Six hundred threescore and six. 

Revelations 13

So this has been foretold to us. So this shall come as no surprise that some would actually see this as a good thing. Get this...

Science fiction author Elizabeth Moon last week rekindled the debate on whether it's a good idea to "barcode" infants at birth in an interview on a BBC radio program.

“I would insist on every individual having a unique ID permanently attached — a barcode if you will — an implanted chip to provide an easy, fast inexpensive way to identify individuals,” she said on The Forum, a weekly show that features "a global thinking" discussing a "radical, inspiring or controversial idea" for 60 seconds .

Moon believes the tools most commonly used for surveillance and identification — like video cameras and DNA testing — are slow, costly and often ineffective.

{Laughing} Big Brother is just having too hard a time keeping track of you. When you are in your own house, they can't tell what you are doing. If you pay cash. They can not see it. They want to keep an eye on you at all times, and this would make it a whole lot easier.

In her opinion, human barcoding would save a lot of time and money.
The proposal isn’t too far-fetched - it is already technically possible to "barcode" a human - but does it violate our rights to privacy?

Opponents argue that giving up anonymity would cultivate an “Orwellian” society where all citizens can be tracked.

“To have a record of everywhere you go and everything you do would be a frightening thing,” Stanley, senior policy analyst at the American Civil Liberties Union, told the Daily News.

He warned of a “check-point society” where everyone carries an internal passport and has to show their papers at every turn, he said.

“Once we let the government and businesses go down the road of nosing around in our lives...we’re going to quickly lose all our privacy,” said Stanley.

What privacy? We are too stupid to make the right choices for ourselves. As Bloomberg. Bloomy the nanny in NYC thinks you should not be allowed to order a 32 oz soda. You can order two 16 oz.s but not a 32. They government is just trying to help protect us from ourselves. If you are not doing anything wrong, what's the problem? Only government can come up with the best solutions for all of us. Be a good little citizen and fall in place. Let government take care of you cradle to the grave.

There are already, and increasingly, ways to electronically track people. Since 2006, new U.S. passports include radio frequency identification tags (RFID) that store all the information in the passport, plus a digital picture of the owner.

In 2002, an implantable ID chip called VeriChip was approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. The chip could be implanted in a person's arm, and when scanned, could pull up a 16 digit ID number containing information about the user.

It was discontinued in 2010 amid concerns about privacy and safety.

Still scientists and engineers have not given up on the idea.

A handful of enterprising companies have stepped into the void left by VeriChip, and are developing ways to integrate technology and man.

Biotech company MicroCHIPS has developed an implantable chip to deliver medicine to people on schedule and without injection. And technology company BIOPTid has patented a noninvasive method of identification called the “human barcode.”

Advocates say electronic verification could help parents or caregivers keep track of children and the elderly.Chips could be used to easily access medical information, and would make going through security points more convenient, reports say.

But there are also concerns about security breaches by hackers. If computers and social networks are already vulnerable to hacking and identify theft, imagine if someone could get access to your personal ID chip?

Stanley cautioned against throwing the baby out with the bathwater each time someone invents a new gadget.

“We can have security, we can have convenience, and we can have privacy,” he said. “We can have our cake and eat it too.”

No you can't. No matter how good you intentions may be, others will follow who may not be as pure in thought. You could open the door and let others walk right in and use your technology for reasons other than what was intended. It's human nature.

Sorry, but I agree with Benjamin Franklin - "They who can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety."
Peter

Sources:
NY Daily News - ‘Human barcode’ could make society more organized, but invades privacy, civil liberties By Meghan Neal / NEW YORK DAILY NEWS