Do DUers care about privacy, at least on principles? [View All]

[question everything]

Many years ago, as I was ready to graduate, the placement office suggested that I establish a file with letters from my professors to be used when a prospective employer would need a reference.

I was taken aback when I was presented with the form with an "option" to waive my right to read the letters. I would not have bothered, never did, but I do not like to waive rights that others before me fought hard to achieve. I thought that if a professor preferred his comments to be confidential, that it was up to him to ask for this, not to put a student, clearly at a disadvantage position, to make the decision.

I did not select that option and later heard that the chairman of the Dept. said that his letter was going to be very bland and non-committed. I never used that service.

Several years later, two young men working for me - at different companies - applied to graduate schools and requested recommendations from me. To my chagrin, they have already waived their right to read my recommendation. So I gave them a copy of my comments.

Fast forward to post 9/11, to the Patriot Act, when many of us would read letters to the editors or other comments from people saying that they "have nothing to hide" and therefore have no problem with a government agency listening to their phone conversations, keeping track of their travels, of their book use in the library, of their emails, web sites visited and bank accounts. For many of us, at least, I have taken it for granted, that most DUers would object to this based on principles, even though most of us have nothing to hide.

And now we have Facebook and other sites where people reveal all about themselves. I once asked about it here and the answer was that it is different when one chooses to reveal personal details as opposed to others digging them, often without one's knowledge.

So now we come to DU where it was revealed that the administrators know how we vote on the many polls that we have here. And that four individuals who voted yes on a very bigoted poll were banned.

What surprised me were the many responses, like the ones about the Patriot Act that they "have nothing to hide." Again, it is not the opinion itself - most of us are very vocal about our opinions - but the principle involved.

Most of the polls are about issues, but some of them are demographic that DUers are on occasions interested to know the makeup of this community. And, yes, some DUers do reveal their income level but if there is a poll about it, this means that the administrators can "triangulate" the results and know a lot about us.

Yes, it is their toy and their prerogative to run it as they want. But I think that a warning that they do know how we vote would have been welcomed. And, no, knowing that one has already voted is different from knowing how we voted.

Again, my concern is less with the administrators but more with DUers who "have nothing to hide" so anyone - a government agency, a web administrator - can track their activities. I did not expect to find such acquiescence on DU.

OK, start flaming. Before it is locked.