Fighting For Privacy With Art and Words

HomeSkillet writes contributes this link to an interesting NYT feature on the recent works of privacy activist, wearables pioneer and artist Steve Mann. Mann has been mentioned here a few times before, but in light of current moves to scan, monitor and track your every move by subtle and unsubtle means, it's never been more relevant. Can anyone suggest a non-registration source for this story?

Comments

Its a thin line between

[pallex]

fighting for privacy, and wearing a silly hat!

while we're at it

[beanerspace]

As long as we're giving artist chances to exploit the slaughter of 6,000, while others selflessly put themselves at risk in hopes of a miracle, let's think of some other art forms that have yet to be employed:

Interpretive dance - imagine the havoc this would wreak on any form of motion/gps detection/tracking

Finger Painting - for all you Gulliani haters out there, I'm painting you a message with one of my fingers ... can't hear it ? here ... let me turn it up for you ...

Origami - oooh but hey, let's go one step further, instead of paper, let's use body parts as described in the linked article

Opera - as a recovering wagnerian baritone, it would be easy to enter a subway train, and threaten to continue bellowing until passengers meet my demands.

Certainly, we've got to be careful not to let our civil liberties become victims of the recent terrorist attacks. However, art forms that attract attention to the performer I think are more a narcissistic mockery of the madness than anything else.

BTW, yes, I have an undergrad degree in the liberal arts, so there is a sense of ascetics with this nerd ...

... so let's have some fun ... can you think of some others ? Let's hear'm

Re:Fighting for Privacy on the Internet.

[Pogue Mahone]

While today *some* Arabs may be our "enemies" (and Afgans aren't Arabs, BTW), yesterday Russians were the enemies and tomorrow it may be the Chinese.

That sounds even more like Orwell's 1984 than I'd like to think. (Hint: Oceania is in a permanent state of war with,... well, ... someone.)

Now lets see who profits from this disaster....

The US Govt of course:
1. They get a nice recession to knock down pay - can't let the proles get too rich now. Didn't you notice that Bush's little recession wasn't getting deep enough before this.
2. They get an excuse to bring in a whole load of privacy-invading surveillance legislation. Gotta get rid of that nasty encryption.
3. They get a nice little war to use up some of that munitions stockpile that's been gathering since Desert Storm blew over. Keeps the defence industry moguls sweet, too.
4. And if course it diverts attention from a whole load of other controversial stuff (SSSCA, DMCA, Dmitry Sklyarov, etc.) and adds a stack of points to Bush's popularity ratings.

Now, who else could benefit from this? Well, err... Ideas, anyone?

Sorry, I'm at just about my most paraniod at the moment. I don't really believe this. Or do I?

Re:Fighting for Privacy on the Internet.

[jbridge21]

You just don't get it, do you...

We are at war with the Arabs, we always have been at war with the Arabs, and we always will be at war with the Arabs.

[Humor-impaired moderators, please don't touch this one.]

Re:Scary Tech

[Nater]

I wouldn't want to look at walls in my own house and be shown advertisements.

Unless the glasses are surgically implanted onto your face, it's really not that big a deal.