Around the Internet...
Maybe I should have made that last post longer and make it "weblog" style.
I'm trying to close extra tabs I have open that I don't need:
Currently those tabs are as follows:
I've just written about the first article in the last post. The second link I thought was particularly interesting because it talks about how we are less attentive to long-term risks and harm. I find that curious because lately I've been thinking more and more about the future these last, maybe approaching six months now? Especially about the long-term harm that could come of certain mentalities, or technologies, and even about what happens if humanity simply can't work together.
It doesn't look good and I find it alarming. I don't want to be all, "The world is ending tomorrow!" about it but I want people to wake up and smell the proverbial coffee except maybe this time the coffee is burning.
Article four is seriously concerning. While I'm not terribly worried about my credit (I know my FICO score and it's reported to me regularly, woo.) I know that not everyone has good credit. Obviously there's a need for the services the companies in that article are providing or they wouldn't have any customers. While it's great that they are trying something new to help those who could really benefit, is mining your social network for what your friends have done really a good idea to help you get a loan?
You might enjoy your friends company but are you going to let them push their views about financial responsibility? What really bothers me about is that if you are not like your friends. If you make different decisions, we are all individuals and I don't think that it's safe to assume that we will hang out with people like us.
As I sit here...thinking about my situation, the friends I consider closest tend to have the same sort of financially responsible attitude I have. My siblings...and my sister-in-law...I'm a little less certain about.
I don't know, it just...doesn't strike me as a good idea. Plus there's the whole privacy part of it that really irritates me. On the other end of that why should my financial data like whether or not I've made late payments or defaulted on a loan be used to determine whether or not my friends are eligible for credit? I'm not okay with the continuing destruction of personal privacy and this is just another brick in the road. It might as well be paved with gold bricks.
Most people (I know) consider their finances to be rather private. They don't share with the whole world if they are living paycheck to paycheck or if they are rolling in excess cash that the old bank account is nearly bursting with Benjamins. (Or any other president(s) you'd like partying in your bank account.)
Article six in the above list is an example of the danger of allowing "customized" or "tailored" advertising. Advertising companies will swear up and down that it's to make the ads more relevant to you while failing to warn you of any possible downsides.
Predatory lending? Nah, they're advertising companies, they wouldn't do that. Hey, they know you are looking for a hotel for your upcoming vacation, they wouldn't try to sell you the most expensive rooms at the most expensive hotels at your destination or do any additional mark-up in the ads while you search...would they? Nah, surely they want to give you the best deals, right? That's what advertising is all about, isn't it?
And that's how they win.
Oh, and I just saw this one about tribes and thought of hands_cupped. The best way to effect change is to engage the tribe. Use those early-adopters!
There's a fun thought: Around the Internet in 80 Links or Less, sort of a take on Around the World in 80 Days.
I'm reading about Jung and Myers-Briggs personality types. The other day at a gathering among my friends personality types came up and one who is really introverted who was talking about being out doing thing socially with people three days in a row and that she needed a break. She mentioned some of us (me for example) aren't quite as taxing as we know each other better. (I'm also really laid back and I can't help but to wonder if that makes a difference?)
I was surprised the test they pulled up online wasn't longer. (It was seventy-two questions.) The description of the type I was identified as...I can certainly see what they mean. There are statements that definitely sound very familiar to me.
I'm trying to close extra tabs I have open that I don't need:
Currently those tabs are as follows:
- Syria: A defining moment for chemical weapons?
- How human psychology holds back climate change action - Summary
- Just thinking about science triggers moral behavior
- Facebook friends could change your credit score
- Synchronized virtual reality heartbeat triggers out of body experiences
- The next frontier of consumer exploitation by corporations - Summary
I've just written about the first article in the last post. The second link I thought was particularly interesting because it talks about how we are less attentive to long-term risks and harm. I find that curious because lately I've been thinking more and more about the future these last, maybe approaching six months now? Especially about the long-term harm that could come of certain mentalities, or technologies, and even about what happens if humanity simply can't work together.
It doesn't look good and I find it alarming. I don't want to be all, "The world is ending tomorrow!" about it but I want people to wake up and smell the proverbial coffee except maybe this time the coffee is burning.
Article four is seriously concerning. While I'm not terribly worried about my credit (I know my FICO score and it's reported to me regularly, woo.) I know that not everyone has good credit. Obviously there's a need for the services the companies in that article are providing or they wouldn't have any customers. While it's great that they are trying something new to help those who could really benefit, is mining your social network for what your friends have done really a good idea to help you get a loan?
You might enjoy your friends company but are you going to let them push their views about financial responsibility? What really bothers me about is that if you are not like your friends. If you make different decisions, we are all individuals and I don't think that it's safe to assume that we will hang out with people like us.
As I sit here...thinking about my situation, the friends I consider closest tend to have the same sort of financially responsible attitude I have. My siblings...and my sister-in-law...I'm a little less certain about.
I don't know, it just...doesn't strike me as a good idea. Plus there's the whole privacy part of it that really irritates me. On the other end of that why should my financial data like whether or not I've made late payments or defaulted on a loan be used to determine whether or not my friends are eligible for credit? I'm not okay with the continuing destruction of personal privacy and this is just another brick in the road. It might as well be paved with gold bricks.
Most people (I know) consider their finances to be rather private. They don't share with the whole world if they are living paycheck to paycheck or if they are rolling in excess cash that the old bank account is nearly bursting with Benjamins. (Or any other president(s) you'd like partying in your bank account.)
Article six in the above list is an example of the danger of allowing "customized" or "tailored" advertising. Advertising companies will swear up and down that it's to make the ads more relevant to you while failing to warn you of any possible downsides.
Predatory lending? Nah, they're advertising companies, they wouldn't do that. Hey, they know you are looking for a hotel for your upcoming vacation, they wouldn't try to sell you the most expensive rooms at the most expensive hotels at your destination or do any additional mark-up in the ads while you search...would they? Nah, surely they want to give you the best deals, right? That's what advertising is all about, isn't it?
And that's how they win.
Oh, and I just saw this one about tribes and thought of hands_cupped. The best way to effect change is to engage the tribe. Use those early-adopters!
There's a fun thought: Around the Internet in 80 Links or Less, sort of a take on Around the World in 80 Days.
I'm reading about Jung and Myers-Briggs personality types. The other day at a gathering among my friends personality types came up and one who is really introverted who was talking about being out doing thing socially with people three days in a row and that she needed a break. She mentioned some of us (me for example) aren't quite as taxing as we know each other better. (I'm also really laid back and I can't help but to wonder if that makes a difference?)
I was surprised the test they pulled up online wasn't longer. (It was seventy-two questions.) The description of the type I was identified as...I can certainly see what they mean. There are statements that definitely sound very familiar to me.