The Future Of Socialism Is Made Of Silicon

There is a dangerous hubris implicit in conservative political philosophy that eventually, free markets and conservative values will win out. It's easy to fall into that trap, because there is a huge amount of empirical evidence that free markets and restricted government are far better at generating wealth and protecting liberty than anything else. History is filled with the failures of socialist countries, and today we can see in real time how they inevitably devolve into rabid dictatorships fanatically fixated on their own survival at the expense of the people. And not just socialism...look at any Islamic country, and you will see authoritarian governments that have no interest in personal freedom, and are perfectly willing to conduct wholesale imprisonment or slaughter of their populations to preserve their positions. The death and destruction they wreak upon the world is unprecedented, and there is no reason to assume that they will moderate willingly.

So of course conservatives assume that the arc of history will move in freedom's direction...who would choose otherwise? Isn't the desire for freedom and liberty innate? Doesn't everyone want the bounty of free markets, personal freedom, and benign and small government?

Maybe! Or maybe not, but the advent of the comprehensive surveillance state driven by technology has made it far more difficult to create a resistance to those authoritarian structures. The GDR, otherwise known as East Germany, was a miasma of surveillance and informants and dungeons, and they did it with pen and paper and analog telephones. Poland and Romania weren't too far behind, yet these countries, along with their ruler the USSR fell quickly, driven by popular uprisings organized by word of mouth, printed pamphlets, and phone calls that overwhelmed the snooping state's ability to observe it.

But today's technology allows these states to surveil their subjects with granularity that was impossible just a few years ago. AI can listen to every phone call made, and flag troubling words and suspicious connections. Cameras are ubiquitous now, so organic demonstrations can be identified in a matter of moments, and the security apparatus can respond with overwhelming force. Facial recognition is unbelievably sophisticated, and those data centers being built all over the world aren't just storing cat videos...they are storing all-encompassing records on every single person on earth.

Well...except in the United States, because we wouldn't do that....right? Except we do it already, with Flock cameras and license plate readers and FISA and the NSA and a host of surveillance systems that we probably don't even notice.

Will technology doom freedom? No, not necessarily, but it is an incredibly powerful tool that every government on earth is busily weaponizing against the very things that we hold dear:

The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.

Government...even our government...has been nibbling away at those freedoms pretty much forever. But technology has allowed them to take a sledgehammer to those protections, and absent a concerted effort, the ability of freedom-loving people to break the grip of government on our private lives will diminish with every advancement in technology.

Posted by: CBD at 12:00 PM

Comments

(Jump to bottom of comments)

1 BOING!

Posted by: Biden's Dog sniffs a whole lotta malarkey, at August 09, 2026 12:00 PM (Oj3Pf)

2 Good afternoon everyone

Posted by: Skip at August 09, 2026 12:01 PM (Ia/+0)

3 The Future Of Socialism Is Made Of Silicon
-

Free breast implants?

Posted by: Biden's Dog sniffs a whole lotta malarkey, at August 09, 2026 12:01 PM (Oj3Pf)

4 Nooded.

Posted by: Nazdar at August 09, 2026 12:02 PM (NcvvS)

5
*nasal, whiny, sing-song voice*

If you're not doing anything wrong, you have nothing to worry about.

Posted by: Hadrian the Seventh at August 09, 2026 12:02 PM (O0L8i)

6 Interesting 4th amendment arguments being made regarding the searching of Flock (and other surveillance systems) databases for specific information with no crime identified.

Posted by: Martini Farmer at August 09, 2026 12:03 PM (2Cry5)

7 My circus not, my monkeys not.

Posted by: The Horta at August 09, 2026 12:03 PM (dJeAh)

8
Free breast implants?
Posted by: Biden's Dog sniffs a whole lotta malarkey, at August 09, 2026 12:01 PM (Oj3Pf)

This should be a basic human right.

Posted by: Hadrian the Seventh at August 09, 2026 12:03 PM (O0L8i)

9 Not so sure conservative values will win out with Marxism shoved down kids throats

Posted by: Skip at August 09, 2026 12:04 PM (Ia/+0)

10 Is this true?

https://tinyurl.com/43m2tkva

My own view is there are few in government there because they support our views. They are there as a business, making money. The Senate GOP caucus is largely these transactional, values-free types, and they care little (or not at all) about the Fourth Amendment.

Posted by: Huck Follywood at August 09, 2026 12:07 PM (wrL87)

11 Free markets, free enterprise, will always prevail over collectivist totalitarian type regimes. The problem, as always, is the stupid shit in between. The mass slaughter, famine, and assorted atrocities everyone has to suffer until humans again discover what has already been known for 5000 years

Posted by: Common Tater at August 09, 2026 12:10 PM (JCLIh)

12 Not so sure conservative values will win out with Marxism shoved down kids throats
Posted by: Skip at August 09, 2026 12:04 PM (Ia/+0)

And the generations of these "kids" are becoming voting age. I'm not optimistic.

Posted by: Dr. Pork Chops & Bacons at August 09, 2026 12:11 PM (g8Ew8)

13 “Barbarianism is the natural state of mankind. Civilization is unnatural. It is the whim of circumstance. And barbarianism must ultimately triumph”

― Robert E. Howard

Posted by: Hour of the Wolf at August 09, 2026 12:11 PM (qx7Zg)

14 As an experiment, if the House sent the Senate a bill constraining private surveillance in a meaningful way, the howls would be unbearable. "The modern advertising economy will collapse!", "It will be the end of 'free' Internet!", "If consumers don't want it they won't buy it; so who are we to levy the heavy hand of government?!", etc. etc.

Posted by: Huck Follywood at August 09, 2026 12:11 PM (wrL87)

15 > Is this true?
---------
He's not the only one.

People said we had to support Collins in Maine over the rape Nazi. I contend there's zero daylight between the two of them when it comes to votes on MAGA approved agenda items and appointments.

Why continue to support these people?

Posted by: Martini Farmer at August 09, 2026 12:13 PM (2Cry5)

16 Digressing to the book thread for a moment:
On the subject of paper v digital reading; Rush Limbaugh, long before he went deaf, always printed out whatever he was going to read. Remember him always bitching about his printer? Thanks.

Posted by: Braenyard - some Absent Friends are more equal than others _ at August 09, 2026 12:13 PM (WY+aP)

17 6 Interesting 4th amendment arguments being made regarding the searching of Flock (and other surveillance systems) databases for specific information with no crime identified.

Posted by: Martini Farmer
---

Before the digital age a person could pick up stakes, move to the other side of the country and start over. Nevermore.

Posted by: Braenyard - some Absent Friends are more equal than others _ at August 09, 2026 12:14 PM (WY+aP)

18 It makes NO differents how much you like any particular politician's speeches, statements, purported 'values', etc etc. They're ALL fucking whores, and have no compunction as to when (not 'whether' or 'if') they feed us to the wolves. Two words solve any confusion: Trust. Nothing. Seemsayin' … ?

Posted by: Dr_No at August 09, 2026 12:15 PM (ayRl+)

19 There needs to be a clear and unambiguous Supreme Court slapdown to the effect that the government can NOT sidestep the Constitution by contracting the violation out to a private company, or another country, or anyone.

It's weird that this is even a thing to begin with. If I, as a private citizen, contract someone else to commit a crime on my behalf, I'm gonna go to jail just the same, even if it's not a crime for the second party to perform the action.

Posted by: Rodrigo Borgia at August 09, 2026 12:15 PM (IG3/x)

20 I just saw a news story about a private business (a gun range FWIW) that removed Flock cameras from their parking lot. I didn't even know that Flock was doing private security; I thought their only customers were government entities. I guess the business model is "we provide monitoring for less than the cost of installing your own equipment and we get to keep all the data for whatever purpose we want because f*ck you."

Posted by: Oddbob at August 09, 2026 12:16 PM (vTZFs)

21 Free markets, free enterprise, will always prevail over collectivist totalitarian type regimes.
Posted by: Common Tater at August 09, 2026 12:10 PM
===================
Maybe when viewed in very small snippets of time this is true, but as we see the dangers of totalitarianism rising so hugely in the Democrat Party and in Islamists (like Carlson and his crew), one can only pray it is true in more than only temporary, short term ways.

Posted by: Huck Follywood at August 09, 2026 12:16 PM (h00VL)

22
Why continue to support these people?

Posted by: Martini Farmer
---

When you lose Collins you lose 1 Republican seat forever.
Collins will always vote more Republican than a Democrat.
A Republican majority means we control committee assignments,
we sit at the head of the table.

Do you really want one of these rag heads sitting at the head of the table?

Posted by: Braenyard - some Absent Friends are more equal than others _ at August 09, 2026 12:18 PM (WY+aP)

23 I view the problem of young Americans becoming more radically left a byproduct of importing tens of millions of 3rd world trash. Mamdani got something like 65% of the immigrant vote in NYC, El-Sayed got over 90% of the Muslim vote in Michigan.

These people bring their politics with them, some because they are evil and some because they are stupid and lazy. And young people flock to them because unlike their stupid parents they are exotic and worldly and promise them they can have everything for free if they follow communism.

Stop importing people who hate America and just want to steal from us. Maybe we can get back to a high trust society where we aren't always under surveillance.

Posted by: JackStraw at August 09, 2026 12:18 PM (viF8m)

24 I would imagine there's a SCOTUS ruling, done sometime in the past with regards to searching online data with something or someone specific in mind, with or without a warrant.

Seems like that should be a starting point for the debate for, or against the surveillance collection.

It's no longer "just" about an automated license plate reader. They are surveilling you. Not your vehicle.

Posted by: Martini Farmer at August 09, 2026 12:18 PM (2Cry5)

25 "Barbarianism is the natural state of mankind..."

So don't expect anything different from a 7th Century cult

Posted by: Skip at August 09, 2026 12:19 PM (Ia/+0)

26 Is this true?

https://tinyurl.com/43m2tkva

I don't know if it's true or not but an interesting question might be "If it is true, what would he be doing differently?"

Posted by: Oddbob at August 09, 2026 12:19 PM (vTZFs)

27 I always feel like there's somebody watching me, so I've upped my grooming/dress game. I think I look marvelous.

Posted by: Beau Brummell at August 09, 2026 12:19 PM (JM9I6)

28 Collins is fighting on the borderlands. She is not our threat.

Someone line Thune, living in an overwhelmingly red state as a secret Democrat unipartiest, he's the threat. He and Capito, Murkowski, all those types.

Posted by: Huck Follywood at August 09, 2026 12:20 PM (h00VL)

29 In "The Rings of the Master" series by Jack L. Chalker an AI called Master System has taken over control of humanity.

It spreads humans out amongst the starts, its only command is that humanity MUST survive.

It does this be creating quasi-medieval feudal societies where only a select few "elite" have access to high technology.

I suspect this is what our current "elites" envision as the future of humanity. A relatively small number of serfs working menial jobs while the "elite" can maintain their power and technological superiority over the rest of us.

Posted by: "Perfessor" Squirrel at August 09, 2026 12:20 PM (FZ29D)

30 "Oh, you thought you were going to get free avocado toast and triple soy lattes? That's cute. Now get on the truck. There's a canal that needs digging."

Posted by: Red Guard #5 at August 09, 2026 12:21 PM (IG3/x)

31 >>>It's weird that this is even a thing to begin with. If I, as a private citizen, contract someone else to commit a crime on my behalf, I'm gonna go to jail just the same, even if it's not a crime for the second party to perform the action.

Posted by: Rodrigo Borgia
---

'Even if it's not a crime for the second party to perform the action.'

Then you didn't contract for them to commit a crime.

Posted by: Braenyard - some Absent Friends are more equal than others _ at August 09, 2026 12:21 PM (WY+aP)

32 Who defines "unreasonable"?

Posted by: Bertram Cabot, Jr. at August 09, 2026 12:22 PM (Cqx++)

33 Anymore, I don't think a large portion of the US population wants freedom. Too much responsibility. They want a "ruler" to tell them how to go about their daily lives. They hate having to make decisions.

Posted by: Dr. Pork Chops & Bacons at August 09, 2026 12:23 PM (g8Ew8)

34 Far more menacing then technology and cameras is the software (mindset) in so many Americans, especially those in "public service" or adjacent.

When a sitting president/former president's attorney-client privilege is trashed casually, and his lawyers (some private, some in govt. service at the time) are persecuted and blacklisted using the standing "ethics and standards" mechanisms, when the top law enforcement/intel agencies mount a (ridiculous, laughable) coup attempt at a sitting president, when a special committee whose existence is not even compliant with House rules can put on a ridiculous Vishinksy-like show trial and actually jail people for not participating, when the most obvious and universally observed measures for election integrity are actively opposed - and 40-55% of the populace is good with all of the above ..... the cameras and tech are mere details.

Magically disappear all tech and cameras and you still have an America populated, largely, by people without much trace of an historical American mindset.

Posted by: rhomboid at August 09, 2026 12:23 PM (U/Byj)

35 13 “Barbarianism is the natural state of mankind. Civilization is unnatural. It is the whim of circumstance. And barbarianism must ultimately triumph”

― Robert E. Howard

Posted by: Hour of the Wolf
---

He's seen my neighbors.

Posted by: Braenyard - some Absent Friends are more equal than others _ at August 09, 2026 12:23 PM (WY+aP)

36 This is why we need more data centers.

Posted by: fd at August 09, 2026 12:23 PM (MWfyi)

37 > 27 I always feel like there's somebody watching me, so I've upped my grooming/dress game. I think I look marvelous.
Posted by: Beau Brummell at August 09, 2026 12:19 PM (JM9I6)

Me, I make a point of flipping off any non-justifiable security camera I spot.

I've been doing that for a long time.

By "non-justifiable" I mean not in a legitimate high-risk environment (for example, a bank). I'm not happy about those, either, but I will tolerate them.

At McDonalds? Go fuck yourselves.

Posted by: Red Guard #5 at August 09, 2026 12:23 PM (IG3/x)

38 > 36 This is why we need more data centers.
Posted by: fd at August 09, 2026 12:23 PM (MWfyi)

There are going to be more data centers no matter what.

The only choice there is whether they're located in the US or in China.

The "OMG.....data centers!!!!!" panic is 100% funded by the Chinese Communist Party.

Posted by: Red Guard #5 at August 09, 2026 12:25 PM (IG3/x)

39 @ 11 Free markets, free enterprise, will always prevail over collectivist totalitarian type regimes. The problem, as always, is the stupid shit in between. The mass slaughter, famine, and assorted atrocities everyone has to suffer until humans again discover what has already been known for 5000 years
Posted by: Common Tater at August 09, 2026 12:10 PM (JCLIh)
_______________________________________________

Nicht wahr. The United States has lasted 250 years, yes - BUT: Much as I hate to recognise the obvious, Freedom (sic) is NOT the 'normal' or 'usual' state of mankind. There have always been and will always be 'slavers' and 'slaves'. As Americans, we have been exceptionally fortunate to have enjoyed the 250 years after our founding as free people. The mindset has changed since then, as has our former caution about who we admit into our nation (and why).

We are now - unfortunately for our children moreso than ourselves - on the downward slope of History's 'Bell Curve'. And remember: Every 'Bell Curve' contains 50% disappointment by weight.

Posted by: Dr_No at August 09, 2026 12:25 PM (ayRl+)

40 Abdul al Qaeda, the putative Michigan Senator, won a small number of Michigan counties as compared to his opponents very broad support, and only won the nomination because muslim turnout in Wayne County gave him the 15,000 vote win. If he cannot consolidate Democrats and win indies, Rogers will win, and he should win, unless he is a totally incompetent candidate.

Is he a competent candidate?

Posted by: Huck Follywood at August 09, 2026 12:26 PM (PFwtW)

41 " ... absent a concerted effort ... "

lol, we can't even get the SAVE act passed, not seeing much chance ...

Posted by: sock_rat_eez at August 09, 2026 12:26 PM (VyBeY)

42 > 'Even if it's not a crime for the second party to perform the action.'

Then you didn't contract for them to commit a crime.

Posted by: Braenyard - some Absent Friends are more equal than others _ at August 09, 2026 12:21 PM (WY+aP)

Not contracting for them to commit a crime is not the same as me not committing a crime.

Posted by: Red Guard #5 at August 09, 2026 12:26 PM (IG3/x)

43
Is he a competent candidate?
Posted by: Huck Follywood at August 09, 2026 12:26 PM (PFwtW)

He's okay but not charismatic....

Posted by: It's me donna at August 09, 2026 12:26 PM (FtULh)

44 > Who defines "unreasonable"?
---------
The judge who's getting a kickback from Flock since he approved their installation and use. The judge who's squarely on the left and is just fine with you being the subject to a warrantless search to see where you've been, who've you visited, what stores you frequent, etc.

That guy gets to define "unreasonable." It's the operational mode we're in right now.

Posted by: Martini Farmer at August 09, 2026 12:27 PM (2Cry5)

45 Just wait until the FBI show up on your doorstep because you said someone else will continue to say bad things about Trump. They are corrupt and illiterate and stupid yet convinced of their superiority. The arc is not bending toward liberty.

Posted by: WarEagle82 at August 09, 2026 12:27 PM (kTxo8)

46 The good news on this front is leftists are opposed to Flock cameras as well. For different reasons of course. For them it’s all about racism and the usual bullshit. But if both sides can get together and fight the cameras, even if for different reasons, it’s a win.

Posted by: Flock Off at August 09, 2026 12:28 PM (SaWpx)

47 We desperately need a supreme court case to challenge the bullshit logic that while it is unconstitutional for the government to directly install equipment to surveil us all 24x7, except in a growing number of spcially-carved out locations, it is totes ok for them to buy the surveillance products from private companies because they are offered for public sale. It is fucking not ok. Granted, the flakes on "our side" on the court will probably flake out, but may as well give it a go.

Posted by: Drink Like Vikings at August 09, 2026 12:28 PM (d1Q4D)

48 But technology has allowed them to take a sledgehammer to those protections...

Yup. This.
Vigilance and courage folks. Vigilance and courage.

Posted by: Diogenes at August 09, 2026 12:29 PM (2WIwB)

49 The future of socialism is made by the media...every outlet, even Fox news, which is pretty leftwing without its pundits, is pushing hard for the DSA.

Fox relies heavily on its leftwing made up baloney polls that it constantly conducts in order to force the "socialism as a force" and "MAGA is a loser" conversation on its hapless guests - none of these guests ever point to the putrid performance of these Fox polls - just ask President Harris.

Posted by: Boswell at August 09, 2026 12:30 PM (j10i6)

50 The good news on this front is leftists are opposed to Flock cameras as well. For different reasons of course. For them it’s all about racism and the usual bullshit. But if both sides can get together and fight the cameras, even if for different reasons, it’s a win.
Posted by: Flock Off at August 09, 2026 12:28 PM (SaWpx)
-----
Ok, now do phone companies selling your location data to data brokers in real time. And police cars with plate scanners. And EZ Pass selling you transponder location (again, in real time), or auto companies selling your driving habits.

Posted by: Huck Follywood at August 09, 2026 12:30 PM (PFwtW)

51 >>The good news on this front is leftists are opposed to Flock cameras as well. For different reasons of course.

Cambridge, MA, the heart of leftist darkness in MA, voted to get rid of shotspotter because it is rayciss and stuff.

You'll never guess what happened next!

They just voted to reactivate shotspotter.

Posted by: JackStraw at August 09, 2026 12:31 PM (viF8m)

52 At McDonalds? Go fuck yourselves.

Posted by: Red Guard #5 at August 09, 2026 12:23 PM (IG3/x)

I hold up a sign that said, "Why don't you fix your ice cream machines, ya bums!"

Posted by: Who needs Customer Service at August 09, 2026 12:31 PM (dJeAh)

53 Digressing to the book thread for a moment:
On the subject of paper v digital reading; Rush Limbaugh, long before he went deaf, always printed out whatever he was going to read. Remember him always bitching about his printer? Thanks.

Posted by: Braenyard - some Absent Friends are more equal than others _ at August 09, 2026 12:13 PM (WY+aP)

Remember how he would rattle the papers in front of the mic? "I hold here in my formerly nicotine-stained hands..."

Posted by: pookysgirl, Rush Baby Forever at August 09, 2026 12:32 PM (Wt5PA)

54 I like the Flock cameras. They will help to monitor the activity of the gun owning, white supremacist christian males who oppose woman of colour like me from enjoying our reproductive freedoms and ability to dine and dash at the local Applebee's when I am not watching my favorite WNBA team.

Posted by: Karen Muddlumpski, Local democrat scold and busybody at August 09, 2026 12:32 PM (G5vcO)

55 What conservatives forget is that the US is by and large an exception to the rule. Most of the world lives in some kind of totalitarian or socialist environment. So the whole “mankind years to be free” mindset is dumb. Mankind doesn’t yearn to do anything except obey their masters. It’s been the norm for thousands of years.

It’s just by a twist of historic fate that we Americans have managed to buck this trend for 250 years. But it’s by no means guaranteed to last forever.

Posted by: Flock Off at August 09, 2026 12:32 PM (SaWpx)

56 An off-topic observation: The big-tittied blonde babe-ette resting her face on her fist in the ever-so-intrusive pop-up ads DOES have a nice set of ta-tas, but SHE's AI. Can't reach out and 'grab a handful' of AI, y'know. These damned things are a pain in the ass to keep dismissing. Just sayin' … and btw: ALL the babe-ettes in the AI inventory have great poses to go with the huge hooters.

Posted by: Dr_No at August 09, 2026 12:32 PM (ayRl+)

57 I think the landscape is a bit better than that. Never have the elites of the world been viewed so poorly.

Young people - at least the men, are more conservative than the boomers they are replacing. Yes, young college educated women are a problem, but with the value of a college degree declining rapidly, perhaps the market will eliminate some of the programming they seem to be so susceptible to.

The US system is amazingly resilient, and the state/fed system helps diffuse power and allow counter powers to rise independently - we are seeing that happen right now.

I like our chances.

Posted by: Black JEM at August 09, 2026 12:32 PM (UQRAm)

58 >>Ok, now do phone companies selling your location data to data brokers in real time. And police cars with plate scanners. And EZ Pass selling you transponder location (again, in real time), or auto companies selling your driving habits.

A whole lot of people will helpfully do it themselves by incessantly posting their every move on social media. In real time.

Posted by: JackStraw at August 09, 2026 12:33 PM (viF8m)

59 I don’t think technology definitely leads to tyranny. The development of new and better technology is inevitable. What is done with it is what matters.

I do think that even in the US we’ve passed the point of no return. Due to the threat of the Soviets we set up structures like the CIA and NSA and now sadly they’re being turned on us, the citizens. Alas that’s no going to be reversed…. The only way to avoid surveillance these days is to move into the boondocks and get rid of all your electronics. I won’t do that; no easy solutions

Posted by: LinusVanPelt at August 09, 2026 12:34 PM (M+uMR)

60 > Not contracting for them to commit a crime is not the same as me not committing a crime.

Posted by: Red Guard #5 at August 09, 2026 12:26 PM (IG3/x)

Examples:

In many jurisdictions, it's a crime to induce someone else to commit suicide, even though committing suicide is not itself a crime, and the person who attempts it will not be prosecuted.

It may be a crime (or a tort) to persuade a minor to sign a contract from which you benefit, even though the minor can't be held to the contract.

Posted by: Red Guard #5 at August 09, 2026 12:34 PM (IG3/x)

61 So of course conservatives assume that the arc of history will move in freedom's direction...who would choose otherwise? Isn't the desire for freedom and liberty innate? Doesn't everyone want the bounty of free markets, personal freedom, and benign and small government?
-
This line of thinking glosses over two major errors.

1) Folks want to be optimistic and assume that people are basically good. Worldwide history and Scripture directly contradict this.

2) There is an enormous arrogance among conservatives and especially libertarians behind this idea that good ideas will win out that boils down to "I'll win enough arguments because I'm clever to make things turn out right" which fails doubly because of 1 (The folks who just want what they want don't care about your argument, and we're not all that good, either).

Posted by: Methos, inauthentic X-bot account at August 09, 2026 12:34 PM (vSvIl)

62 BOING!
Posted by: Biden's Dog
------

This sounds suspiciously like pouncing.

Posted by: Mike Hammer, etc., etc. at August 09, 2026 12:34 PM (XeU6L)

63 now do phone companies selling your location data to data brokers in real time. And police cars with plate scanners. And EZ Pass selling you transponder location (again, in real time), or auto companies selling your driving habits.
Posted by: Huck Follywood

What are you saying then? Do nothing. I don’t get your comment.

Posted by: Flock Off at August 09, 2026 12:34 PM (SaWpx)

64 A whole lot of people will helpfully do it themselves by incessantly posting their every move on social media. In real time.
Posted by: JackStraw at August 09, 2026 12:33 PM (viF8m)
-------------
True, dat.

Social media users may think they are talking only to their followers, especially if their accounts are "private", but forget that the platform owners read everything and sell it all.

Posted by: Huck Follywood at August 09, 2026 12:35 PM (PFwtW)

65 Much as I hate to recognize the obvious, Freedom (sic) is NOT the 'normal' or 'usual' state of mankind.
------

If I'd said it was, I guess you'd have a point.

What I said was, free enterprise will always prevail. Because there is no comparison, and it's not even close.

Posted by: Common Tater at August 09, 2026 12:35 PM (hf6fI)

66 I like the Flock cameras. They will help to monitor the activity of the gun owning, white supremacist christian males who oppose woman of colour like me from enjoying our reproductive freedoms and ability to dine and dash at the local Applebee's when I am not watching my favorite WNBA team.

Nah, the Bluesky/Reddit libs think they're racist because somehow they mostly catch minorities committing crimes.

Posted by: Ian S. at August 09, 2026 12:36 PM (QZThv)

67 ability of freedom-loving people to break the grip of government on our gladiator movies

Posted by: Commissar of plenty and festive little hats at August 09, 2026 12:37 PM (RaAaD)

68 the Bluesky/Reddit libs think they're racist because somehow they mostly catch minorities committing crimes.
Posted by: Ian S. at August 09, 2026 12:36 PM (QZThv)

And give Trump’s jack booted thugs at ice a way to find “undocumented” future brain surgeons. That’s their main concern right now with cameras.

Posted by: Flock Off at August 09, 2026 12:37 PM (SaWpx)

69 This line of thinking glosses over two major errors.

Posted by: Methos, inauthentic X-bot account at August 09, 2026 12:34 PM (vSvIl)

I think you need to read what I wrote more carefully.

Posted by: CharlieBrown'sDildo at August 09, 2026 12:37 PM (l4RKn)

70 The surveillance databases can be searched from anywhere. There's no protection from state laws that might prevent that sort of thing, if the person doing the search is in state A, but searches data from states B, C and D. Where a warrant might have been required. Or the search was patently illegal.

It's a mess.

Posted by: Martini Farmer at August 09, 2026 12:38 PM (2Cry5)

71 > 64 A whole lot of people will helpfully do it themselves by incessantly posting their every move on social media. In real time.
Posted by: JackStraw at August 09, 2026 12:33 PM (viF8m)

Not necessary.

If you're using your phone, the cell network knows exactly where you are to within a few meters, and will happily sell that information to anyone who wants to buy it.

Posted by: Rodrigo Borgia at August 09, 2026 12:38 PM (IG3/x)

72 I am essentially repeating CBD's point: the surveillance is ubiquitous. It is Flock cameras, it is phones, it is EZ Pass, it is a data collection and sales effort across all of these platforms (and social media, as JackStraw pointed out). See my comment @14 for what I think needs doing.

Posted by: Huck Follywood at August 09, 2026 12:40 PM (n2tmY)

73 46 The good news on this front is leftists are opposed to Flock cameras as well. For different reasons of course. For them it’s all about racism and the usual bullshit. But if both sides can get together and fight the cameras, even if for different reasons, it’s a win.

Posted by: Flock Off
---

It's not a get-together-moment but it is a wave we can ride when conversing with a liberal.

Posted by: Braenyard - some Absent Friends are more equal than others _ at August 09, 2026 12:40 PM (WY+aP)

74 At least with tech you have the option of not participating in the surveillance state. You don’t have to own a smart phone. You don’t have to be on social media. You don’t have to use Gmail. And so on.

With public cameras you have no ability to opt out short of never leaving the house.

Posted by: Flock Off at August 09, 2026 12:40 PM (SaWpx)

75 Flock cameras are like seagulls. Obnoxious thieves, stealing your food, your wallet, and other property. Annoying people going about, living their lives. Driving people away from areas they might enjoy.

Flock Safety. Brought to you by Big Seagull, in cooperation with Big Penguin.

Posted by: Hour of the Wolf at August 09, 2026 12:41 PM (qx7Zg)

76 Seattle had no problem with the surveillance state until word got out that it could be used to track illegal aliens and capture and depart them.

Then the city shut it all down.

Posted by: nurse ratched. at August 09, 2026 12:41 PM (yEz+x)

77 Meanwhile in Canada an 84 year old grandmother got MAIDed after refusing it on religious grounds. The government waited for her daughter with power of attorney to go on vacation and killed her.

Posted by: Ian S. at August 09, 2026 12:41 PM (QZThv)

78 >>Social media users may think they are talking only to their followers, especially if their accounts are "private", but forget that the platform owners read everything and sell it all.

The NSA has listening posts in major cities across the US and beyond where digital traffic is connected and transferred. They have been there forever, hiding in plain sight. And where the NSA doesn't have them our Five Eyes partners do.

It's virtually impossible to live in the modern world and not fall under some level of government surveillance. Most of the data is useless, unless they want to arrest CBD for crimes against humanity of his stance on Maple Syrup, but they do collect it.

Posted by: JackStraw at August 09, 2026 12:42 PM (viF8m)

79 Anymore, I don't think a large portion of the US population wants freedom. Too much responsibility. They want a "ruler" to tell them how to go about their daily lives. They hate having to make decisions.
Posted by: Dr. Pork Chops
---------

It is the sacrifice of freedom to convenience.

Posted by: Mike Hammer, etc., etc. at August 09, 2026 12:42 PM (XeU6L)

80 >>If you're using your phone, the cell network knows exactly where you are to within a few meters, and will happily sell that information to anyone who wants to buy it.

Exactly how they proved Michael Cohen was never in Prague as the Russia collusion truthers claimed.

Posted by: JackStraw at August 09, 2026 12:43 PM (viF8m)

81 I am essentially repeating CBD's point: the surveillance is ubiquitous. It is Flock cameras, it is phones, it is EZ Pass, it is a data collection and sales effort across all of these platforms (and social media, as JackStraw pointed out). See my comment @14 for what I think needs doing.
Posted by: Huck Follywood at August 09, 2026 12:40 PM (n2tmY)

Whether it’s good or bad, there’s no way to escape it. It’s part of our modern world. Congress will never, ever pass such a law. We all willingly comment here knowing NSA Bob is watching. It is what it is. I’m not going to live like Ted Kasinsky (sp?)

Posted by: LinusVanPelt at August 09, 2026 12:44 PM (M+uMR)

82 At least with tech you have the option of not participating in the surveillance state. You don’t have to own a smart phone. You don’t have to be on social media. You don’t have to use Gmail. And so on.
----------
I don't agree: your car is reporting your movements. Should you not drive a car? Your phone necessarily broadcasts your location, buy phone companies should not in turn sell that location to data brokers.

Posted by: Huck Follywood at August 09, 2026 12:44 PM (n2tmY)

83 The surveillance databases can be searched from anywhere. There's no protection from state laws that might prevent that sort of thing, if the person doing the search is in state A, but searches data from states B, C and D. Where a warrant might have been required. Or the search was patently illegal.

It's a mess.

I know this will strike many here as heresy, but I think the only solution to digital intrusions on our privacy are strong privacy laws. Sure, you're giving the government more power, and yes, that will gum up the works, but we'll probably have to settle for some compromise between efficiency and privacy, not unlike the Euros have done with the GDPR. (General Data Protection Regulation) It's not perfect, not by a long shot, but it's a start.

Posted by: Archimedes at August 09, 2026 12:45 PM (Riz8t)

84 The second part of what I said, was that we have to endure yet another generation (every generation) that thinks it has everything figured out, and a new way. This is the problem. The only thing we learn from history, is that humans do not learn from history.

We literally have to start over with every generation and teach them what's what. It's a pain in the ass to be sure, but if we don't really really bad things happen. Like what's happening now, completely unnecessary. Stupid people doing stupid shit.

The people talking about "reimagining" things offer nothing, have never done anything, except destroy things. That's another problem, it's now de rigeur to let retards operate the equipment, so to speak, because reasons. Just insanity.

Posted by: Common Tater at August 09, 2026 12:45 PM (hf6fI)

85 Posted by: Ian S. at August 09, 2026 12:41 PM (QZThv)

That's terrible .Can the daughter sue the Canadian government health system?

Posted by: FenelonSpoke at August 09, 2026 12:45 PM (xPsv8)

86 I now have Michigan +1 for our side in the Senate.

Hopefully with more to come in other races, as the D party implodes from the DSA takeover.

Posted by: Ignoramus at August 09, 2026 12:46 PM (dtajH)

87 @ 82 At least with tech you have the option of not participating in the surveillance state. You don’t have to own a smart phone. You don’t have to be on social media. You don’t have to use Gmail. And so on.
----------
I don't agree: your car is reporting your movements. Should you not drive a car? Your phone necessarily broadcasts your location, buy phone companies should not in turn sell that location to data brokers. Posted by: Huck Follywood at August 09, 2026 12:44 PM (n2tmY)
________________________

To sum up: "You can run, but you can't hide". Yes?

Posted by: Dr_No at August 09, 2026 12:46 PM (ayRl+)

88 It may be a crime (or a tort) to persuade a minor to sign a contract from which you benefit, even though the minor can't be held to the contract.

Posted by: Red Guard #5
----

Really getting away from the topic of surveillance.

Posted by: Braenyard - some Absent Friends are more equal than others _ at August 09, 2026 12:46 PM (WY+aP)

89 > 77 Meanwhile in Canada an 84 year old grandmother got MAIDed after refusing it on religious grounds.
Posted by: Ian S. at August 09, 2026 12:41 PM (QZThv)

"Okay, Brigitte, I’m gonna give you your medicine."

https://tinyurl.com/yny62bxx

This Mengele motherfucker needs to be given a taste of his own "medicine".

Posted by: Rodrigo Borgia at August 09, 2026 12:46 PM (IG3/x)

90 Meanwhile in Canada an 84 year old grandmother got MAIDed after refusing it on religious grounds. The government waited for her daughter with power of attorney to go on vacation and killed her.
Posted by: Ian S. at August 09, 2026 12:41 PM (QZThv)
-----------
With any justice, there would be murder trials and convictions of anyone within inches of that decision and act.

Posted by: Huck Follywood at August 09, 2026 12:47 PM (n2tmY)

91 Thinking about hearing him rattling those papers moves my soul.

Posted by: Braenyard - some Absent Friends are more equal than others _ at August 09, 2026 12:47 PM (WY+aP)

92 “Barbarianism is the natural state of mankind. Civilization is unnatural. It is the whim of circumstance. And barbarianism must ultimately triumph”

― Robert E. Howard
Posted by: Hour of the Wolf

Nah. Barbarianism is the entropic state.

Posted by: Dark Lixtiquatal at August 09, 2026 12:47 PM (DZ9Lv)

93 That's terrible .Can the daughter sue the Canadian government health system?

I don't think that's how that works there, but I'll defer to any Canadians on the thread.

Posted by: Ian S. at August 09, 2026 12:48 PM (QZThv)

94 Leftists care more about criminals than themselves

Posted by: Skip at August 09, 2026 12:48 PM (Ia/+0)

95 The second part of what I said, was that we have to endure yet another generation (every generation) that thinks it has everything figured out, and a new way. This is the problem. The only thing we learn from history, is that humans do not learn from history.

We literally have to start over with every generation and teach them what's what. It's a pain in the ass to be sure, but if we don't really really bad things happen. Like what's happening now, completely unnecessary. Stupid people doing stupid s***.

The fact that we're once again having a discussion about whether communism should be tried is proof of what you say.

Posted by: Archimedes at August 09, 2026 12:48 PM (Riz8t)

96 I don't agree: your car is reporting your movements. Should you not drive a car? Your phone necessarily broadcasts your location, buy phone companies should not in turn sell that location to data brokers.
Posted by: Huck Follywood

As I said initially you don’t have to own a smart phone. That’s a choice people make. You’re right about cars but there is an opt out for that as well, you can turn location sharing off. Which 99.9% of people don’t do of course.

But in theory you can opt out of the system.

Posted by: Flock Off at August 09, 2026 12:48 PM (SaWpx)

97 Pray for Carrington, cleanser of civilization.

Posted by: Dark Lixtiquatal at August 09, 2026 12:49 PM (DZ9Lv)

98 Both my vehicles, a Ford and a Chevy have an app I can use to do mundane things like remote start, roll windows down, etc. The apps also can show me, precisely, where either is located too.

I'm sure the various telemetric systems in both are feeding data about how they're being driven, where, and how often to my insurance agency.

I'm not clear on when I submitted to this data collection. It certainly wasn't discussed during the purchase of either vehicle or when I got them insured.

Posted by: Martini Farmer at August 09, 2026 12:50 PM (2Cry5)

99 I think anyone would be a fool to even visit Canada, even young people.

What happens if you get into a traffic accident and some medical ghoul decides to save the government some money by offing the tourist?

Posted by: Rodrigo Borgia at August 09, 2026 12:50 PM (IG3/x)

100 @ 97 Pray for Carrington, cleanser of civilization.
Posted by: Dark Lixtiquatal at August 09, 2026 12:49 PM (DZ9Lv)
___________________________

Boy, that's some primo ad copy for somebody's cleanser …

Posted by: Dr_No at August 09, 2026 12:50 PM (ayRl+)

101 @92
I was unfamiliar with barbarianism, but it is indeed a word.

Barbarism refers to a primitive or uncivilized state or behavior, while barbarianism describes behavior appropriate to a barbarian, indicating actions that are uncivilized, brutal, or crude. Both terms convey a sense of lack of culture or refinement.

As nouns the difference between barbarism and barbarianism is that barbarism is a barbaric act while barbarianism is a primitive, less advanced, or simplistic ethos or societal condition

As nouns the difference between barbarian and barbarianism is that barbarian is an uncivilized or uncultured person, originally compared to the hellenistic greco-roman civilisation; often associated with fighting or other such shows of strength while barbarianism is a primitive, less advanced, or simplistic ethos or societal condition; barbarism. As an adjective barbarian is relating to people ...

Posted by: Archimedes at August 09, 2026 12:50 PM (Riz8t)

102 63 now do phone companies selling your location data to data brokers in real time. And ..
Posted by: Huck Follywood
--

Verizon giving the Administrative State data to use against the president without, by law, advising the president that they had shared info with other government agencies.

Posted by: Braenyard - some Absent Friends are more equal than others _ at August 09, 2026 12:51 PM (WY+aP)

103 Opt out?

How many people here would go for a two hour walk outside and leave their cellphone at home?

When is the last time you left your home without your phone? Did you slap your pocket and run back to get it or did you shrug your shoulders and continue on your errand?

Posted by: nurse ratched. at August 09, 2026 12:51 PM (yEz+x)

104 "You can't have a welfare state AND open borders."

But it seems you just can't have a welfare state, at all. At least not one that is very "generous" and not well guarded from massive fraud.

LBJ said he'd have those "blacks" voting Democrat for 200 years ... by promising them free shit, apparently. But now the Free Shit society has spread far beyond blacks, as we somehow stayed economically healthy enough (massive debt) to keep Free Shit Nation growing, for now.

Posted by: illiniwek at August 09, 2026 12:51 PM (vbXSk)

105 As I said initially you don’t have to own a smart phone. That’s a choice people make. You’re right about cars but there is an opt out for that as well, you can turn location sharing off. Which 99.9% of people don’t do of course.
-------
As I am looking to buy a car salesmen tell me this is not the case. Which car allows you this privacy? (Asking as a potential buyer).

Posted by: Huck Follywood at August 09, 2026 12:52 PM (n2tmY)

106 Anyone under 40 wasn’t alive or was too young to remember the USSR or eastern block. To them communism is free health care and education. Paid for by evil billionaires.

What’s there not to love?

Posted by: Flock Off at August 09, 2026 12:52 PM (SaWpx)

107 >>As I said initially you don’t have to own a smart phone. That’s a choice people make. You’re right about cars but there is an opt out for that as well, you can turn location sharing off. Which 99.9% of people don’t do of course.

All cell phones, whether they are smart phones or flip phones, communicate with cell towers. They can triangulate the data no matter the type of phone.

The only way to avoid is to not have a cell phone.

Posted by: JackStraw at August 09, 2026 12:52 PM (viF8m)

108 As I said initially you don’t have to own a smart phone. That’s a choice people make. You’re right about cars but there is an opt out for that as well, you can turn location sharing off. Which 99.9% of people don’t do of course.
-------
As I am looking to buy a car salesmen tell me this is not the case. Which car allows you this privacy? (Asking as a potential buyer).

Regardless, the roads are studded with license plate readers, so it really doesn't help you much.

Posted by: Archimedes at August 09, 2026 12:52 PM (Riz8t)

109 My phone tracks everywhere I go
Constantly get asked to give reviews of places I go or sometimes near where I go.

Posted by: Skip at August 09, 2026 12:53 PM (Ia/+0)

110 As I said initially you don’t have to own a smart phone.
--------

Smart, not smart, makes no difference. Cellphone location is via the cell towers.

Posted by: Mike Hammer, etc., etc. at August 09, 2026 12:53 PM (XeU6L)

111 The only way to avoid is to not have a cell phone.
Posted by: JackStraw

Or just leave it at home.

Posted by: Dark Lixtiquatal at August 09, 2026 12:53 PM (DZ9Lv)

112 Orwell envisioned a society in which people were forced to have a government "telescreen" spying on them.

I don't think he'd have believed that people would ever carry one around in their pocket willingly.

Posted by: Rodrigo Borgia at August 09, 2026 12:53 PM (IG3/x)

113 Leftists care more about criminals than themselves

Literally true. There's a famous chart showing that conservatives care most about their family and friends, then their neighbors and countrymen, and least about random people and animals they've never met. And it's exactly inverted for lefties. They care least about their family and friends and most about random people and animals.

Posted by: Ian S. at August 09, 2026 12:53 PM (QZThv)

114 >>Or just leave it at home.

True. Kind of defeats the point of cellphone, but true.

Posted by: JackStraw at August 09, 2026 12:54 PM (viF8m)

115 Far too many people take freedom for granted.

nurse, to answer your question, I don't carry a phone anywhere.

Posted by: Ben Had at August 09, 2026 12:54 PM (3ZNGI)

116 A whole lot of people will helpfully do it themselves by incessantly posting their every move on social media. In real time.
Posted by: JackStraw at August 09, 2026 12:33 PM (viF8m)

This is true. Much like many people on this blog more than willing to discuss their complete medical histories in the comments.

Posted by: Dr. Pork Chops & Bacons at August 09, 2026 12:55 PM (g8Ew8)

117 It is obvious, that we tend to have blinders.

We "assume", through familiarity, that civilization is normal. I agree with this 100 per cent. The lights are on, electricity comes out of the wall. Water comes out of the tap, drinkable fresh water. The waste water is flushed away. Hot water on demand. Garbage gets picked up on Thursdays.

If there's a fire, nice men in a big red truck show up in a few minutes and put it out. Ditto for calling the cops. If I get seriously ill, an ambulance shows up and whisks me away to a fully stocked Hospital with trained Doctors and Nurses.

All these things are not "normal", they are the result of thousands of years of refinement and a whole bunch of people laboring tirelessly to maintain it and keep it running. It all falls apart astonishingly fast without dedicated people working 24/7/365. This is the big illusion in my mind, nobody knows how anything works any longer.

They think this shit just sort of runs itself, by default.

Posted by: Common Tater at August 09, 2026 12:55 PM (hf6fI)

118 Posted by: nurse ratched. at August 09, 2026 12:51 PM (yEz+x)

If I'm out for a short time and say, my phone needs to be recharged I obviously leave it at home. If my husband is with me sometimes we just take one phone. When we go for a walk in the morning I almost always leave it at home.

Posted by: FenelonSpoke at August 09, 2026 12:55 PM (JrHfD)

119 Opt out?

How many people here would go for a two hour walk outside and leave their cellphone at home?

When is the last time you left your home without your phone? Did you slap your pocket and run back to get it or did you shrug your shoulders and continue on your errand?
Posted by: nurse ratched.

You’re right almost nobody does. But that’s a choice people make. They’re giving up privacy for convenience. They can opt out if they choose to. That’s all I’m saying.

With cameras however there is no opt out whatsoever. That’s the point I was making. Cameras are forced upon us, phone tracking, social media tracking, etc is chosen by us.

Posted by: Flock Off at August 09, 2026 12:55 PM (SaWpx)

120 now do phone companies selling your location data to data brokers in real time. And police cars with plate scanners. And EZ Pass selling you transponder location (again, in real time), or auto companies selling your driving habits.

Posted by: Huck Follywood

Other than the government (which, let's be real, is the biggest "customer" of data brokers), what good does it do to gather all this information? Ad Agency XYZ knows that I go to the grocery store most often on Mondays (because ours is closed on Sundays). How is that information valuable? Or is it valuable because the data brokers *say* it's valuable and are covering up for the fact that they're being bankrolled by the government?

My view aligns with Norm Macdonald on this one: "Now this might strike some viewers as harsh, but I believe everyone involved in this story should die."

Posted by: pookysgirl prefers fire as a method at August 09, 2026 12:55 PM (Wt5PA)

121 > 111 The only way to avoid is to not have a cell phone.
Posted by: JackStraw

Or just leave it at home.
Posted by: Dark Lixtiquatal at August 09, 2026 12:53 PM (DZ9Lv)

Boss-level would be to have an accomplice carry it for you, to a location that would serve as an alibi.

Posted by: Rodrigo Borgia at August 09, 2026 12:56 PM (IG3/x)

122 It's silly to think one can avoid the surveillance state. Sure, I suppose one can not own a cell phone, but walk into a grocery store and your picture is taken. Many stores, and even malls, are following customers to better understand their preferences and buying habits, and that information is sold. So should you not leave your house?

Posted by: Huck Follywood at August 09, 2026 12:56 PM (n2tmY)

123 The only way to avoid is to not have a cell phone.
Posted by: JackStraw
--------

Faraday bag.

Posted by: Mike Hammer, etc., etc. at August 09, 2026 12:56 PM (XeU6L)

124 You’re one in ten million, Ben Had.

Posted by: nurse ratched. at August 09, 2026 12:56 PM (yEz+x)

125 LBJ said he'd have those "blacks" voting Democrat for 200 years ... by promising them free shit, apparently.

He also either intended to destroy black society or just lucked into it by strongly encouraging single motherhood. His welfare program actually pays more for additional kids if they each have a different father. Which is either intended to increase single motherhood or to pay off women being knocked up by Democrat politicians. Maybe both.

Posted by: Ian S. at August 09, 2026 12:56 PM (QZThv)

126 I use the Strava app to record all my runs. I love it… I can go back 10 years and see paces, routes and other workout details (in some ways this is depressing because your pace naturally slows as you age)…. But I do realize that the government (almost anyone with some savvy really) can see all my workouts… and my account is private

Posted by: LinusVanPelt at August 09, 2026 12:56 PM (M+uMR)

127 59 I don’t think technology definitely leads to tyranny. The development of new and better technology is inevitable. What is done with it is what matters.
...
Posted by: LinusVanPelt
---

_ FLOCK ZAPPERS!!

Posted by: Braenyard - some Absent Friends are more equal than others _ at August 09, 2026 12:57 PM (WY+aP)

128 Does anyone remember State Farm's solicitations in the '80s saying they'd pay you $50 (or some piddly amount) IF you let them install 'equipment' in your car to 'monitor your gas mileage' (a straight-up primo brand of bullshittery) … ? It ballooned out of all proportion to need and/or reality once it escaped its cage. Æ ”It's there, and we're a-gonna use it, by Gawd!”

Posted by: Dr_No at August 09, 2026 12:57 PM (ayRl+)

129 Regardless, the roads are studded with license plate readers, so it really doesn't help you much.
Posted by: Archimedes at August 09, 2026 12:52 PM (Riz8t)
-------
You can always choose not to drive on roads. Right?

Posted by: Huck Follywood at August 09, 2026 12:58 PM (n2tmY)

130 Krebs v Carnot is more succinct in the sidebar.

Who Had to Lose for Jason Arday to Win?

“It is hard to escape the impression that Cambridge wanted him as a visible symbol of its commitment to diversity, overlooking in the process his suitability for the job. He was, in blunter terms, hired to be the face of Cambridge’s diversity drive. Whether his work was any good or not was beside the point. He represented something that Cambridge wanted to show the world, and that was that. In the years since, however, the political climate has changed decisively. The excesses of identity politics have led to a backlash from society at large, while the higher education sector’s unpopularity has led some governments to inflict large cuts on universities. But many university officials on both sides of the Atlantic seem to be operating in a permanent 2020 mindset, blind to the fact that most of the world has moved on.”

https://tinyurl.com/5eryy72t

Posted by: Archimedes at August 09, 2026 12:58 PM (Riz8t)

131 And it's exactly inverted for lefties. They care least about their family and friends and most about random people and animals.
-----

Yup. Families are completely fucked up, but they get all spooled up about, say, rising ambient temperatures on Ganymede, one of Jupiter's moons.

Ya hafta have a grudging admiration for the shrinks. They've really fucked over a lot of people.

Posted by: Common Tater at August 09, 2026 12:58 PM (hf6fI)

132 I can’t log into my computer at work without double authentication using my personal cellphone.

Posted by: nurse ratched. at August 09, 2026 12:59 PM (yEz+x)

133 Which is either intended to increase single motherhood or to pay off women being knocked up by Democrat politicians. Maybe both.

Posted by: Ian S.
---

No payoff if there's a man in the house.

Posted by: Braenyard - some Absent Friends are more equal than others _ at August 09, 2026 12:59 PM (WY+aP)

134 But if your goal is to collapse a country, the best way is a Socialism state and open boarders

Posted by: Skip at August 09, 2026 12:59 PM (Ia/+0)

135 Does anyone remember State Farm's solicitations in the '80s saying they'd pay you $50 (or some piddly amount) IF you let them install 'equipment' in your car to 'monitor your gas mileage' (a straight-up primo brand of bullshittery) … ?

Don't remember that, but there was a different insurance company (possibly Progressive) much more recently that did that and they explicitly said they use it to judge your driving and give you discounts if you drive well enough.

Posted by: Ian S. at August 09, 2026 01:00 PM (QZThv)

136 I leave my phone at home when I take my dogs for a walk. I left the phone at home once doing so by mistake. I was like hmm it’s nice not to have it with me. Since then, I leave it home.

Weirdly enough, I can survive that 20 minutes being disconnected from the world . 😀

Posted by: Flock Off at August 09, 2026 01:00 PM (SaWpx)

137 I invented the Flock camera system and next will be helping Elon reach Mars within the next 2 years.

Yeah, that's the ticket....yeah....

Posted by: Jason Atta Kwei Arday at August 09, 2026 01:00 PM (G5vcO)

138 Regardless, the roads are studded with license plate readers, so it really doesn't help you much.

Most police cars too, so going off-road doesn't necessarily help.

Posted by: Ian S. at August 09, 2026 01:01 PM (QZThv)

139 In the old days, welfare departments would sometimes do actual bed checks... show up at the recipient's home in the middle of the night to make sure there wasn't a man there.

Posted by: Rodrigo Borgia at August 09, 2026 01:01 PM (IG3/x)

140 >> The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.

It’s not the technology, per se. It is what is done with that technology. A person should be free to go about their day and be secure in their “persons”. That is, without surveillance that is premised as protecting public safety but is in reality a tool to spy on the population.

Some of the greatest infringements of our rights have used the excuse of public safety as their subversion. We are protected against this type of random surveillance as part of The Bill of Rights. So we don’t lack protections, we lack people with courage, and the ability to protect those freedoms. Like most of the US Senate.

Posted by: Vengeance at August 09, 2026 01:01 PM (yv1Au)

141 It is hard to escape the impression that Cambridge wanted him as a visible symbol of its commitment to diversity, overlooking in the process his suitability for the job
-----

No, there is something far more sinister going on here. They are decidedly not "overlooking" his utter un-suitability, this is a package deal. The incompetence, therefore, is a feature not a bug.

Posted by: Common Tater at August 09, 2026 01:01 PM (hf6fI)

142 I invented the Flock camera system and next will be helping Elon reach Mars within the next 2 years.

Yeah, that's the ticket....yeah....
Posted by: Jason Atta Kwei Arday

Will Morgan Fairchild be accompanying you on the way to Mars?

Posted by: Archimedes at August 09, 2026 01:01 PM (Riz8t)

143 I leave my phone at home every time I take a run. But it really doesn’t count because I have my GPS watch on for those runs…

Posted by: LinusVanPelt at August 09, 2026 01:02 PM (M+uMR)

144 Will Morgan Fairchild be accompanying you on the way to Mars?

I couldn't take Arday seriously because his last name is literal pig Latin. Ixnay on the Arday.

Posted by: Ian S. at August 09, 2026 01:03 PM (QZThv)

145 Don't remember that, but there was a different insurance company (possibly Progressive) much more recently that did that and they explicitly said they use it to judge your driving and give you discounts if you drive well enough.

"We are adding a 10% surcharge to your insurance this quarter because our AI has detected that your car was parked outside of a cannabis shop."

Posted by: Oddbob at August 09, 2026 01:03 PM (vTZFs)

146 Will the surveillance system know when the commode is out of TP and deliver a roll? It's about to get ugly in here.

Posted by: Rev. Wishbone at August 09, 2026 01:03 PM (iySPJ)

147 It's silly to think one can avoid the surveillance state. Sure, I suppose one can not own a cell phone, but walk into a grocery store and your picture is taken. Many stores, and even malls, are following customers to better understand their preferences and buying habits, and that information is sold. So should you not leave your house?
Posted by: Huck Follywood

We’re in agreement.

I said you can opt out of things like phones and social media. But you CANNOT opt out of cameras.

Which is why cameras are in an even worse category of surveillance than household tech. There is no avoiding them. And which is why they need to be banned.

Posted by: Flock Off at August 09, 2026 01:04 PM (SaWpx)

148 109 My phone tracks everywhere I go
Constantly get asked to give reviews of places I go or sometimes near where I go.

Posted by: Skip
----

Speculating that you have a phone full of helpful apps that sell your data to advertisers.

Posted by: Braenyard - some Absent Friends are more equal than others _ at August 09, 2026 01:04 PM (WY+aP)

149 I frequently leave my phone at home. Not intentionally.

Senility.

Posted by: Martini Farmer at August 09, 2026 01:05 PM (2Cry5)

150 Or just leave it at home.

True. Kind of defeats the point of cellphone, but true.
Posted by: JackStraw

Replaces a landline and do you really need to take it everywhere you go?

Posted by: Dark Lixtiquatal at August 09, 2026 01:05 PM (DZ9Lv)

151 Posted by: Flock Off at August 09, 2026 01:00 PM (SaWpx

It's an advantage I think . This did give me a good idea-to just try to "fast" from the cell phone next Sunday and in keeping with the article from the book thread only read printed material.

Posted by: FenelonSpoke at August 09, 2026 01:05 PM (JrHfD)

152 Which is why cameras are in an even worse category of surveillance than household tech. There is no avoiding them. And which is why they need to be banned.

You can either have cameras everywhere or actually lock up criminals. If you do neither of those things, which seems like where we're headed, you get Cloward-Piven on steroids.

Posted by: Ian S. at August 09, 2026 01:05 PM (QZThv)

153 > Ixnay on the Arday.
Posted by: Ian S. at August 09, 2026 01:03 PM (QZThv)

Maybe ArdTay.

Morgan Fairchild is still a 1, by the way, at least for an older-than-dirt guy like me.

Posted by: Rodrigo Borgia at August 09, 2026 01:05 PM (IG3/x)

154 Now, I'm not suggesting this, but the reason a surveillance state works is because everyone plays along.
Solzenytzhen mentioned this.

Imagine, if you will, that everyone in the U. States took off their license plates tonight, all 200 million motorists, cars, trucks, motorcycles, everything. Everyone. Just as a thought exercise.

Now what? It would be fucking glorious. LOL

Posted by: Common Tater at August 09, 2026 01:05 PM (hf6fI)

155
Pray for Carrington, cleanser of civilization.
Posted by: Dark Lixtiquatal

Butlerian Jihad

Posted by: Bertram Cabot, Jr. at August 09, 2026 01:07 PM (Cqx++)

156 > 146 Will the surveillance system know when the commode is out of TP and deliver a roll? It's about to get ugly in here.
Posted by: Rev. Wishbone at August 09, 2026 01:03 PM (iySPJ)

Heh... I saw a sign from an outhouse in a park... something like "This facility is only serviced once a week. Check the roll before you commit."

Posted by: Rodrigo Borgia at August 09, 2026 01:07 PM (IG3/x)

157 I contend there's zero daylight between the two of them when it comes to votes on MAGA approved agenda items and appointments.

Why continue to support these people?

Posted by: Martini Farmer at August 09, 2026 12:13 PM (2Cry5)

I'd encourage you to look at actual votes. Collins may occasionally have a high profile defection but will still vote with her party on most things. A Democrat like Fetterman might get garner some praise from conservatives for making some nice sounding statements on some issues but he still votes with his party on almost everything.

Holding a politician's feet to the fire is important and I'm all for serious primary challenges, but there is a vast chasm between how every R and D vote in congress. Pretty much every day Congress actually bothers to do some work a significant number of things are decided on party line votes.

Posted by: Sjg at August 09, 2026 01:07 PM (i8HNq)

158 Ya hafta have a grudging admiration for the shrinks. They've really fucked over a lot of people.

Posted by: Common Tater
---

The abstract is more comfortable than the here and now.

Posted by: Braenyard - some Absent Friends are more equal than others _ at August 09, 2026 01:07 PM (WY+aP)

159 I think you need to read what I wrote more carefully.
Posted by: CharlieBrown'sDildo at August 09, 2026 12:37 PM (l4RKn)

Sorry if I was unclear, I didn't mean to criticize your statement, but to agree with the criticism you were making.

Posted by: Methos, inauthentic X-bot account at August 09, 2026 01:08 PM (vSvIl)

160 The worst is when you need the phone , can't find the damn thing, the ringer is turned off and you or nobody in your family has one of those "locate my phone" apps.

Posted by: FenelonSpoke at August 09, 2026 01:08 PM (JrHfD)

161 Will Morgan Fairchild be accompanying you on the way to Mars?

Why yes, yes she is and also Syd...err...Sydney...Sydney Sweeney as well! Sydney is going to be our co-pilot if you know what I mean...yeah...that's the ticket!

Posted by: Jason Atta Kwei Arday at August 09, 2026 01:09 PM (G5vcO)

162 You can either have cameras everywhere or actually lock up criminals.
-----

Lock up the crooks. Not the toothpaste. The UK has cameras everywhere, and they have horrific crime there too. We live in a police state, but they have stopped enforcement, and in effect are now emptying the prisons on the sly. They just refuse to prosecute in the first place. If you hadn't noticed.

This is so basic, but it is inconvenient for the race hustlers. Fuck them, it's way, way past time to allow the lowest common denominator to ruin everything for decent, peaceable folk.

Posted by: Common Tater at August 09, 2026 01:10 PM (hf6fI)

163 Normalizing, accepting the surveillance state does not make anyone "safer."

There's plenty of bad actors with access to that data, or who'll pay to have certain datasets analyzed for "whatever" will eventually lead to more abuses than we're aware of now.

Physical abuse. Not some sort of bullshit online harassment.

Posted by: Martini Farmer at August 09, 2026 01:10 PM (2Cry5)

164 “ You can either have cameras everywhere or actually lock up criminals. ”

The cameras do very little to lock up criminals though. That’s propaganda by police departments and Flock itself.

Posted by: Flock Off at August 09, 2026 01:10 PM (SaWpx)

165 I'd encourage you to look at actual votes. Collins may occasionally have a high profile defection but will still vote with her party on most things. A Democrat like Fetterman might get garner some praise from conservatives for making some nice sounding statements on some issues but he still votes with his party on almost everything.

Holding a politician's feet to the fire is important and I'm all for serious primary challenges, but there is a vast chasm between how every R and D vote in congress. Pretty much every day Congress actually bothers to do some work a significant number of things are decided on party line votes.

Everything you said is true, but there is an even bigger point to make. The side that has the majority sets the agenda and approves SCOTUS justices. Even if Collins voted against us on every last vote, she'd still be valuable in determining who sets the agenda.

Posted by: Archimedes at August 09, 2026 01:10 PM (Riz8t)

166 I'd encourage you to look at actual votes.

Many people who should know better think only the things the TV tells them are what happens. That's why Democrat primary voters don't know Fetterman votes 99% Schumer.

Incidentally, the dog shocker Hasan Piker now has called for a "Marxist-Leninist purge" of Schumer and Pelosi and the other remaining "old guard" Democrats.

Posted by: Ian S. at August 09, 2026 01:11 PM (QZThv)

167 >>Replaces a landline and do you really need to take it everywhere you go?

No, and I don't. But I don't think the NSA cares where I take the dog for a walk.

But my phones go on all my business trips cause it's my office and I've to a lot of places, some pretty sketchy ones. I also go through airport checkins, customs and border checks, hotel registrations and on and on. Having spent a number of years in the tech world and the internet construction world in particular I'm under no illusion about the amount of surveillance we live under.

I don't like it but I don't want to live like a hermit either.

Posted by: JackStraw at August 09, 2026 01:11 PM (viF8m)

168 Incidentally, the dog shocker Hasan Piker now has called for a "Marxist-Leninist purge" of Schumer and Pelosi and the other remaining "old guard" Democrats.

I love the smell of a Democrat civil war in the morning. It smells like...victory!

Posted by: Archimedes at August 09, 2026 01:12 PM (Riz8t)

169 You know it’s bad when you’re looking for your phone while talking on it.

Posted by: nurse ratched. at August 09, 2026 01:12 PM (yEz+x)

170 The cameras do very little to lock up criminals though. That’s propaganda by police departments and Flock itself.

The data's actually pretty positive on solving "broken windows" crimes with Flock. But that's racist, of course.

Posted by: Ian S. at August 09, 2026 01:12 PM (QZThv)

171
Can't pretend to understand everything about this, but I think that the occasional and extraordinary will become the constant and routine not because that's the way it was intended from the beginning, but because civil-service drones have to justify their jobs.

Posted by: Hadrian the Seventh at August 09, 2026 01:13 PM (O0L8i)

172 I really tried not to have apps that track me.
Google maps is enough

Posted by: Skip at August 09, 2026 01:13 PM (Ia/+0)

173 1. Surveillance goes way beyond cameras, phones, cars, social media and phones and it is necessary to collect and sell that information, even if bad.

2. It isn't so bad if the layers of data is put to good use.

3. It's great!

Posted by: The Propaganda Press at August 09, 2026 01:13 PM (R5gr8)

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