One thing is to have financial information about individuals and their families scattered across multiple entities with defined boundaries and different search mechanisms -- it's another thing entirely to have the same financial info in one nice, convenient, easy-to-search, easy-to-abuse place.

A convenient central financial info database with intimate detail. What could *possibly* go wrong, right?

Now that I've had some time to chew on the news and my post, it occurs to me that this is also a profiling tool. Perhaps predictive uses could also be found for it?

The ranting will continue, by the way, by myself and others, until either we're dead, or a dramatic change of course happens to this country. And yes, I remember the ranting 30 years ago. Vividly. Along with images of Carter and Shah, Reagan and Ayatollah, Bush and Noriega, Bush II and Saddam, Obama and bin-Laden, brought to us by talking heads and punctuated by the nodding of a million muggles' heads.

No one. Fucking. Listened. Now we're playing the same songbook again, only the music is much more sinister, faster and more intense.

Wake the fuck up, people.

According to TFA:

Late car payment? It'll be recorded.

Late creditcard payment? Skipped a child support payment? Forgot to pay the water bill? It'll be recorded. Or so TFA says.

Really?! "high account balances?!"

The composition of your family? Feast your eyes on this little nugget FTFA:

Folks.. it *is* big brother. People are focusing on only the mortgage aspect, but if TFA is to be believed, it's a financial dragnet.

What the fuck are they looking for? People spending large sums on strange things?

It won't be for bureaucratic purposes. This will get tied in with law enforcement somehow. That's just my gut feeling, folks... but I do really think LEOs will want in on this.

"Mr Smith, we'd like to have a word with you.. every two weeks you withdraw $100 cash, then as you can see in these pictures, the city's automated license plate readers catch you visiting the address of a known marijuana dealer every time you make that withdrawal. Please step into the van, sir."

It's coming. Maybe not for a bag of sweet leaf, but surely for other things.

2001 was the year the US ended. We sold out to the Gov't and did so willingly; because Terrorism!, because Think of the Children, because War on Drugs! But mainly because Terrorism.

To hell with the federal government, might as well call it the Reich now.

but after much thinking I got an iPad Air instead. A full-out tablet sounds like what you want, actually.

So what if it was a lot more $ than I planned to spend (vs an e-ink reader) -- the "day" mode on iBooks can be set to a beautiful sepia / light creme (like fine paper), and the night mode is really cool. Not to mention the iPad runs apps that work better in a large screen (vs. a phone). Like realtime doppler radar and photo work.

iBooks will synch my books, bookmarks and notes so I can stop reading at home on the ipad, and pick up on the same page on my phone and have all my notes, etc. THen return home and resume on the ipad like it never happened.

I don't know if the Kindle app will do that. Frankly I'd rather give my book money to Apple instead of Amazon. Just like I go out of my way to find/buy books at a local mom/pop shop instead of B&N and Amazon.

At first I thought "Reading on an ipad is going to suck" but you know what? After countless hours, at home and in cars, I can read just fine without any ill effects like headaches, etc. The retina screen makes a book on it look almost like paper.. but not as convincingly as e-ink. If I had to quantify it, the ipad w retina is 99% of how nice an e-ink reader is.

I recognize e-ink has advantages, I've used my friend's Nook many times and the quality of the print never ceases to amaze me. I just don't see the need for it if one has a tablet with a bonkers screen.

This is how elections are won, too.

I already use cash if I can't eyeball the person swiping the card or swipe it myself.

Maybe we should go back to cash and checks.

I've been in IT since 1999 as a pro and 1982 as a hobbyist, and I give up -- The System cannot be trusted. NSA reading my crap, companies being negligent / careless / indifferent with private / financial data .. script kiddies and organized crims.. enough!

So we've been calling it "television" but it turns out the real name is Televisor, isn't it.

Future's so bright I need to wear shades, indeed.

As I get older and older, this world and all its craptacular descent into one big conglomerated surveillance-based government makes me feel more and more disconnected, displeased and dismayed.

I'm glad I won't have to put up with it for much longer. i suspect the time behind me is longer than the time ahead of me. This is quickly becoming a world i don't want a part of.

I think in the event of total collapse, enough paper books would exist and enough nerds will be around to read then, and make use of them to get back to where we are. Or some reasonable faximile.

So it's less about chosen profession, and more about hobbies. What a paradox.

You know, like all those people that nerd out on steam engines. They could prove useful, no?

You get the idea.

I just went from an Rx-8 to a Mini, both 6-spd manual boxes.

I find myself stepping on my clutch foot with my brake foot. That didn't happen with the 8. Disconcerting, to say the least.

I'm getting better after a month (2000 miles), but that does tell me there are differences between the two cars that my muscle memory is trying to overcome.

I'm not blaming the car, I'm changing how I drive.

Maybe that's what's going on here, except they're not changing how they drive?

Traffic in South Floriduh seems to be much worse than it was 2 or 3 years ago. Seems to be more people and more cars.

That spoonful of sugar can't mask the bitter taste of your own medicine, can it, fancy espionage agency?

The only way this could be useful is if it unleashes a finger of doom from a minigun to do away with the "motorist" causing the backup.

Although, I'll "settle" for having this scout go out, locate said "motorist" and send me back footage of why this one person is causing the 2 mile backup behind them.

My morbid sense of curiosity demands that I know who the fuck just backed up the turnpike.

Electronics that smoke themselves? Have had plenty of them.

They all spewed magic smoke shortly after warranty expiration. Coincidence? I THINK NOT! BWAHAHA!

Just like Slashdot will spew magic smoke when its bitch daddy Dice pulls the plug on classic. All that will remain is a box full of bad smells and no life.

That, sir, is probably the best Fuck Beta comment yet. Bravo. Bra-vo!

What TFS really means is that out of the suck generated by Beta, a new site will emerge, free from corporate cocksuckery.

Beta: Only slightly better than Facetwat.