True. You simply have to prove to the cat that it's being given the advantage by 'learning' the appropriate response. For instance, my cat will sit with (I hesitate to say 'command') the right suggestion and hand gesture. But I have to back the suggestion up with food or he gets disappointed I broke the agreement and the next time he will approach the 'sit' suggestion with wariness.

But he also trains me in return. He likes to drink from the tap, therefore he whines a particular meow until I go over and turn it on for him. I have also heard this baby-noise purr from him. He didn't do it at all until I had another cat, then he seemed to change his purr so I would notice him more. The other cat didn't do this though. Maybe because he was a feral kitten when I got him.

I think my intent got lost in translantion. I hadn't intended to rant or sound paranoid, but I do work in advertising, so I am well aware of how 'services' are offered to obtain data on its users which is then used to sell more product. Manipulation under the guise of 'great new thing!' is what my industry does best. I wasn't thumbing my nose at others who feel this kind of convenience was for them, I was voicing my trepidation at how everyone was going into detail of how this worked, but no one was approaching the subject of privacy whether (mechanics aside) the service itself was a good idea. Guess I'll do some more FAQ reading before attempting to voice my concerns again in the future.

could someone indicate how this works? are there privacy issues involved? can google 'monitor' my activity (cell use, numbers coming in and out)? can they sell the data? what about international laws? does my privacy fall under american law (google location) or my own country's law? seems to me people are too quick to embrace 'services' now without questioning what it is they are giving up in return.

okay, clearly because you stated #2, you are not aware of the second half of the human gender. let me help you out:
the person on the right in the photo is a g-i-r-l. but i think many /. posters refer to them as 'icky'.

can someone tell me what the difference is between a 'public performance' and sharing your playlist across a network on itunes?

because wouldn't this technically be a public performance? i am afterall, distrubuting the music to an 'audience', right?

and how does this affect something like podcasting?

manliness is not defined by objects, but by attitude and character.

skulls, heavy metal stickers, sports cars, and vulgar one-liners are all expressions of an attitude.
you have to decide what being a 'man' means to you.

from there, confidence is really your best accessory.