New TSA Pat-Downs

All this talk about new body scans and aggressive pat-downs at the airports have me seriously considering changing my travel plans. You read these headlines and then you have to become more informed, so you can make reasoned decisions about your feelings on the subject... Yessir, if I can come up with the money I just might have to start flying more often! Some of us can't be too choosey, you know.

And after hearing that the agents have to go through several weeks of training and continual daily testing -- well, who knows, that might even help with our unemployment problems!

Facebook Re-invents Email

Facebook announced yesterday the release of their Titan project - a re-definition of email in the context of a Facebook-centered world. I can fully understand why they would want this. But what does it say about us, and what behavioral shifts might it reinforce?

Technology seems to be helping us move further towards continual "content snacking" -- to feed our voracious need for constant realtime updates in order to validate our existence. Our ADOS (Attention Deficit - Oooh, Shiny) mindsets already mean we cannot drive two miles without being on our phones.

Our messages (and thought processes) get shorter
We no longer communicate via written letters, because we don't want to spend the time & effort to get out pen and paper, perhaps actually THINK ABOUT IT, then compose & write the letter, find an envelope, address & stamp it and then mail it. Now Facebook (from listening to high school students) decides that email is too slow; and we don't really want to leave Facebook and fire up some sluggish email software just to mail someone a message, when we can just do it right there in Facebook! Wow. Now we'll get to spend even less effort engaging our brains before we put our (figurative) mouths in gear.

I thought mainstream media was doing a good enough job of that.