[109107] in Cypherpunks
RE: Transparent Society
daemon@ATHENA.MIT.EDU (Jim Burnes)
Wed Mar 10 18:05:32 1999
From: "Jim Burnes" <jburnes@iss.net>
To: "'Trei, Peter'" <ptrei@securitydynamics.com>, <cypherpunks@cyberpass.net>
Date: Wed, 10 Mar 1999 15:42:19 -0500
In-Reply-To: <D104150098E6D111B7830000F8D90AE84DE093@exna02.securitydynamics.com>
Reply-To: "Jim Burnes" <jburnes@iss.net>
>As a result, not only can government watch the people,
>the people can watch the government (and the government
>cannot prevent them from doing so). The social
>results are protrayed as good.
An interesting concept, but obviously its a fiction from
a different age. Whether by Bob's DBS system or some other
technology, government as we know it will either be nonexistant
or radically altered beyond any reasonable facsimile.
Technology that would contribute:
o the net (obviously)
o public key crypto (obviosly)
o nanomachines/matter compilers (imagine downloading the source code
to the latest automatic weapon to your matter compiler). The BATF
would loose it over matter compilers.
o nanites that ooze through your household ventilation system, record
some video of you into some sort of molecular memory and cruise off
again only to download their contents into the feds archives. Nanites
are cheap so they could coordinate a mass videotaping from 1000 different
viewpoints. Near holographic resolution?
Of course the nanite enhanced game works both ways. What do you want
to check out? At this juncture, people would have surveillace capabilities
that vastly exceeds the government's. I don't think this government would
withstand
that kind of surveillance. If we knew even 1% of the corruption that goes
on in DC they're might be a revolt tomorrow.
Who knows. The future will be stranger than we can possibly imagine.
Imagine just the implications of the net/ecash/DBS, serious life extension
(telomerase therapy), and nanotech happening together.
Can you say "technological singularity".
I knew you could.
fwiw
jim
