TMI floating around.

Right now I'm reading "IBM And The Holocaust" by Edwin Black. He's an author who meticulously cites references for any allegations or claims in his work, I know this from reading another of his works; "War Against The Weak". So I think I'm getting the truth. I don't particular like a lot of his conclusions but he has the proof on his side and it's better to know an unpleasant truth than live in the comfort of a lie.

What is increasingly evident in this book is the use the Nazis put to readily available information, even in nations they'd overrun. Census data was a big thing, a lot of them required their citizens to list religious affiliation. You can fill in the blanks from there.

But now I'm thinking of the casual way we provide strangers the most intimate details of our lives. An example I've cited before is the question routinely asked by pediatricians regarding the presence of firearms in the house. It DOES get asked whenever we start seeing a new doctor for our kids and have to fill out the routine paperwork. That's just one example.

So I think of that and I recall a story from months ago of how the health insurance industry is being pressured by the Feds to provide data about their clients.

I'm starting to wonder just what the hell else is out there, becoming more readily available to those who might intend us harm. Those potential antagonists don't even have to be currently on the scene, if the information is already present for innocent purposes it would still be available should some despot come to power.

For an example of that we can look again to Nazi Germany. The gun laws that allowed Hitler to suppress all potential resistance weren't enacted by him. They'd been put in place by the Wiemar Republic long before "Adolf" hit the big time. It seems the leaders of the Republic wanted to avoid the rise to power of a dictator and thought those laws would help. That turned out SO well, didn't it.

Yep, MYOB should be a standard answer for all questions not directly pertaining to someone's health, employment or enrollment in a school. There might be other exceptions beyond those three but I can't think of any right now.

So excuse me, I going back to my reading so I can lie awake tonight and wonder where in Hell we're headed.