[Oberon]

Originally Posted by Ducimus

Indeed. However relevant some quotations may be, like anything used too much, it starts to sound unoriginal, and in fact, starts to lose it's meaning.

Well, I disagree that we are a minority in our thoughts. I would submit that the current political division within the United states into "red" and "blue" states as evidence to the contrary. While i realize i'm generalizing, it is my thought residents of Blue states are more apt to trade liberty for security while those residing in red states are not.

It goes both ways and I think that politics don't really come into it as much as the sense of power that governing parties feel. After all, the Patriot act was put in through a red government and supported by red parties, so it's more of an individual thing than it is a political thing, after all I am sure that there were blues in favour of Patriot and reds against it.

As for facebook, or twitter, your right. I would never use such sites in any capacity. It has been my view since before the days of "geocities" and everyone was into making their personal web page or weblog, that putting too much personal information on the internet is a very bad idea. The reasons for that start on identity theft and branch outward from there. Suffice to say, "Homey don't play that".

I will confess that I am on both of the sites and indeed I did once have a geocities page (actually it was home-something to begin with before it went to geocities IIRC) but I am careful about what information I post. I once heard about a girl who posted everything she was doing on twitter, including when she was leaving for her holiday and then she was confused when someone broke into her house while she was on holiday.
Google Earth and Google Street view are another two examples of personal intrusions that weren't around ten or twenty years ago (although Earth probably was but only to military intelligence) and one has to wonder what the next stage will be, real time streaming Google Earth? I'd certainly enjoy looking at it, even if by doing so I am encouraging the loss of privacy of those I watched.

Maybe, maybe not. Thought I do find myself drawing a metaphor to the intention behind things like The Colosseum in ancient Rome. It's whole purpose was to keep the Plebians happy and their minds off their troubles, less they would get upset and do things the rulling class wouldn't like. I'm not saying that technology, internet, toys, games etc are designed with that in mind, but the net effect (pardon the pun), is the same.

Completely true, the bread and circuses effect is very prevalent in todays society, if you were to ask the average American or Brit something about politics, they'd either go on a rampage based upon what the biased media has told them or they'll claim ignorance and ask if you have watched 'America/Britain's got Talent'.
On the other hand, technology has radicalised some political beliefs, and increased the spread of them, organisations like the Tea Party or the UKIP would have struggled to have gained the base that they have had without the ease of access to communications. Of course, consequently the focus on these radical groups by either side of the political media has only served to further discourage the average public member from getting involved in a political spectrum that seems to be dominated by 'nutcases'

I have often wondered, were it not for computers, games, etc, diverting me, and any motivation and dedication i posses, what would I have accomplished? I have often thought back to wondering what it would be like in the before the advent of computers. (I grew up with computers, or is that, computers grew up with me? My first PC was an 8086 IBM clone). I think past generations accomplished much more with their lives without the diversions we have now. On a side note, have you seen It disgusted me the first moment I saw it. It's like peoples whole lives centered on, and revolving around, stupid little electronic boxes.

Also true, the amount of reading and drawing that I used to do back before 24/7 broadband and Steam is vastly higher than I do now.
But yes, the age of electronics is throughly here, and if a 'Revolution' style event occurred and all the power went out, well...I know I would certainly struggle at first, but I would hope that I would make it through, but it would be tough. A book worth reading is 'One Second After' which is realistic to the point of being quite depressing how society would cope if the power went out tomorrow...and that was written in 2009, we've gone even further down the road of electronic dependency now.

You have a point about convenience. My wife is a self admitted "whore to convenience". Although, I think along the way though, there will always be people raising concerns about legal, ethical, or moral boundries.

This is true, but at the end of the day it will be a King Cnut style affair.

Well, at the end of the day, we are all just dust and bones. When it comes to changes in our constitution, bill of rights, liberty, freedom, and everything that is important that makes up home to me, I will always resist. Not just for myself, but for my family. At the end of the day, I would rather go out fighting for what I believe in; at least then I can leave this world knowing I tried and did my best. To blatantly borrow Paton, "If a man does his best, what else is there?"

Well, America has made it thus far without becoming a police state, but I can understand the fear that it may unwittingly slide into one, a nation is only a few events short of it after all, however equally living a life paranoid of government intentions is equally self-destructive, not that I'm accusing you of such a thing, but there are people, as we both know, who are quite firmly in that camp and the rest of us can just shake our heads in disbelief in it. Still, a healthy mind that questions the decisions of government whilst not falling into the trap of paranoia is a good thing, sometimes governments do need a reality check...once upon a time they got that through voting, but I think that system has lost its effectiveness over the eras, but it's still better than the alternatives.