Cartoon 752: Ghetto

I think George Orwell would roll his eyes over how we willingly facilitate “Big Brother” today. We make it simple and easy for everything about us to be known. There is a popular saying we have only seven degrees of separation (links) to most anyone. If that is true, we must also have only seven degrees of separation from exposure of our deepest and darkest secrets. This is because of our online social networking.

People have been denied employment opportunities because of information contained in their social networks. People have been indicted because of information contained in their social networks. People have been ostracized because of information contained in their social networks. People can go to your social network and learn just about everything about you. A whole investigatory industry has grown up making use of ferreting out online activities. These “gum-shoes” operate from the comfort of their chair.

Where will all this end up? Data minding software will continue to improve (software that can access multiple sources and draw correlations). Perhaps the essence of the Tom Cruise movie, “Minority Report”, is our future. Predictions about your actions will literally become a near exact science. Politicians will know in advance how to make things resonate. Law enforcement will know who will act outside the law. 

The flip side is that they will know how to affect outcomes. Mind control will be a reality and all because you chose to create the opportunity with social networks.