X-Message-Number: 24637
From: "John de Rivaz" <>
References: <>
Subject: Re: surveillance
Date: Tue, 14 Sep 2004 10:03:59 +0100

> Message #24618
> From: 
> Date: Sat, 11 Sep 2004 09:36:23 EDT
> Subject: surveillance
> I'm all for surveillance of everyone
> by everyone.
>

Quite so. However it is a battle between those with good memories and those
with bad. In a "closed society", ie on with little public surveillance,
those with good memories find that they can easily set up a web of deceit
that improves their position in the world. However to be a good liar you
need a good memory, or you get tripped up. If there is an "open society", is
one with lots of surveillance of everyone by everyone else, then you stand
much more chance of being tripped up by those with poor memories relying on
recordings or easily performed searches.

In an open society, if you are ashamed of doing or saying something, then
don't. Seems simple enough to me. Religions suggested that God could monitor
your thoughts, so if you even think of breaking a Commandment, then this is
as bad as doing it from God's viewpoint on the day of judgement. It was
never considered unethical at the time it was proposed. Thought reading may
be going unnecessarily far, but street surveillance certainly isn't.

Look how people get very upset by recording or listening to telephone
conversations. Yet a recent article revealed that far more people will lie
over the telephone than by any other mode of interaction. This suggests why
telephone recording is so upsetting to many people, even if it is by one of
the parties to a conversation. Stockbrokers and other professional have to
tell clients that calls are being recorded, otherwise it is illegal for them
to do so. When it was totally illegal, it was possible for clients to
telephone their broker and order stocks, and then deny it if the stocks went
down after a few hours. Of course they could only do this once or twice
before getting barred, but if the stock was volatile, and it went the right
way, then they could make a fortune after getting being barred by only a few
brokers.

Of course, in a open society it is much easier to find out when a cryonicist
needs help, and also it is much more difficult for anyone to interfere with
a cryopreservation without knowing that his actions will be judged by
others, both at the time and in the future.

-- 
Sincerely, John de Rivaz:  http://John.deRivaz.com for websites including
Cryonics Europe, Longevity Report, The Venturists, Porthtowan, Alec Harley
Reeves - inventor, Arthur Bowker - potter, de Rivaz genealogy,  Nomad .. and
more

Rate This Message: http://www.cryonet.org/cgi-bin/rate.cgi?msg=24637