On 28 May 2006 08:43:05 -0700, "name" > wrote:

>I'm just openminded towards the idea of an open society where everybody
>potentially has easy access to any information about anybody, as long
>as the openness of such a society also effectively prevents abuse of
>any information that we would consider sensitive in our current
>society.

Except that you have no idea what information may turn out to be
sensitive.

Maybe you have a relative who married a foreign immigrant. Maybe one
of your ancestors was foreign.

The next government may decide to impose limitations on certain
foreign immigrants *and any relatives they have*. You think that's
farfetched?

I watched the film, "Pianoman" yesterday evening. It is the story of
a Jew in wartime Poland, and based on fact. The teenage son of a
friend I was with said, "Why don't they just say that they are not
Jewish?"

Which would have been perfectly possible, had they not happily handed
over their personal details to the government at a time when nobody
thought that such political change was possible.

--
Cynic