How can we protect ourselves ...? First, we can turn off the TV. ... It is hard to imagine FDR instituting a color-coded system of terrorist alerts ... The vicious cycle at this point should be clear. The public fixates on low-probability but vivid risks because of images we absorb from television and from politicians. This cycle fuels the public's demand for draconian and poorly designed laws and technologies to eliminate the risks that are, by their nature, difficult to reduce. We have the ability to resist this dangerous cycle by choosing leaders who will insist on laws and technologies that strike a reasonable balance between freedom and security. What we need now is the will. The author of this article repeatedly uses the term Machine as a rhetorical device, but this can be deceptive, since the essence of the issue has everything to do with people and nothing to do with machines. Nevertheless, read this article and let me know which Machine you'd prefer. |