Comments on: When Everything Is Smart: RFID Chips Infiltrate Food, Towels, and Even People

By: Zehaas Sram

Zehaas Sram — Wed, 26 Sep 2012 06:04:34 +0000

Privacy killers like this are NEVER used for our good. They are used for our OWN good. The difference being where the control is. It will be SOLD as something healthy, but I GUARANTEE you anything that CAN be put to nefarious use by the bureaucracy WILL BE.

for example: the chips will calculate your calorie, fat and carb consumption, and funnel that data over to your healthcare provider under ObamaCare. THEN you will be denied coverage on the basis of your eating habits.

This is a totalitarian regime’s wet dream! — Zehaas Sram

By: Orion Blastar

Orion Blastar — Tue, 28 Feb 2012 02:23:21 +0000

They are developing a neurochip to put in brains. It will do far more than just track people. It will control people.

By: Peter Klein

Peter Klein — Sat, 08 Oct 2011 10:56:48 +0000

1. Wouldn’t being able to track calories easily, simply increase social pressure on people about their weight?
2. If a strange man was following your every move – recording what you eat and drink, when you go to the bathroom, what you buy, who your friends are, where you go, what you watch, who you call – wouldn’t you get him arrested for stalking you?
3. How easy would it be for a government to turn corrupt if they can track every political opponent, every citizen who rebels against them and to be able to identify those likely to rebel?
4. What if every person you meet could scan you and compare themselves with you, without saying a word? What if they could see all your wages, job title, convictions, marital status, address, interests?

Knowlege is power.

By: jc

jc — Sun, 31 Jul 2011 00:00:58 +0000

It just keeps coming and coming…in the end, this planet will operate like every horrifying science fiction movie ever made. Too late now.

@9 If you think your life is that boring, I’m sure it is. Now, go wait in line for the latest Xbox game at Walmart. Your job is Consumer.
Many of the rest of us do value our privacy, out of personal pride if nothing else.

By: Rayne

Rayne — Sun, 12 Jun 2011 18:41:23 +0000

I don’t see the correlation between an edible chip in a cupcake and human tracking. I’m assuming that if it is “edible” it is either broken down by stomach acid or passed, and just because something has a computer chip does not mean it can be “tracked” geographically. As far as your purchasing history, sorry, already recorded every time you go to the store.
On the other hand, the information given to a consumer would be of enormous benefit. Imagine if you knew the ethical practices and carbon footprint associated with your purchases in the grocery store. It would empower the consumer and force companies to be accountable for their actions.

By: Cassandra

Cassandra — Sun, 12 Jun 2011 10:43:33 +0000

You may not be worried, but consider what would happen if you were a protester in a repressive society. This technology won’t be confined to societies where civil rights are protected; it can be used and abused by those in power anywhere. I agree, this is a bad thing unless protections are put in place to prevent abuse.

By: Michael Berry

Michael Berry — Sat, 11 Jun 2011 15:03:20 +0000

Track me if you want, doesn’t bother me one bit. It’s not that I have nothing to hide, it’s just that I lead a very uninteresting life so the last thing I’m worried about is someone following my (admittedly poor) dietary habits and subsequent bowel movements. If you want to get me to eat a cupcake and then track my every movement throughout the day, you’re welcome to. You’ll get bored long before noon.

As Solitha said, there are plenty of ways “the powerful people” can keep tabs on you even without the use of RFID chips. Do you have a cell phone? If so, they can use your phone’s GPS signal to see where you’ve been over the last few months, or follow you in real-time. Do you have a computer? If so, they can find out everything you’ve ever looked at online, and that’s even more informative than your daily travels.

I’m not worried about any of these things, but I’m also not doing anything I would consider to be “below board.” I guess maybe if I were, I might be a bit more worried about covering my tracks. As it stands, my life is boring enough that I’m not really worth keeping tabs on anyway.

By: Sam

Sam — Fri, 10 Jun 2011 04:04:41 +0000

@Solitha: most people who make that argument don’t understand how powerful data mining is. It’s not about how interesting one person is, it’s about what you can do when you know almost everything about every single individual person in your society.

Then again, some people really are that interesting (to “those in powerful places”). Just because you’re not, doesn’t mean they should be tracked.

By: Michelle

Michelle — Fri, 10 Jun 2011 02:26:08 +0000

I’m not afraid of this technology because I think I’m interesting…I’m really afraid of health effects. I’ve already had cancer and have an auto-immune disease. Do I need to have my body exposed to more stuff that might cause illness?

By: ets_spoon

ets_spoon — Thu, 09 Jun 2011 17:14:17 +0000

All I can think about is a not-so-distant Super Bowl Sunday at half-time, when all those toilets flush – hold an RFID reader to the sewer main and read all about it! Maybe win a jet pack if your edible chip survies and is scanned. . .