this post was submitted on 26 Jun 2026
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Privacy
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The distinction has an explicitly defined difference with hundreds of years of history behind it in the us alone and severe consequences for misunderstanding it.
I don’t mind to disengage but these are not abstract concepts we’re discussing and treating them as such does more harm than good to anyone who reads what you say.
I think it's clear I can't convince you, you can't convince me, and that the only thing left is to respectfully disagree.
I am not trying to convince you of something. I am trying to help you to understand why using the word privacy as a stand in for what you mean (which is anonymity, btw) is a bad idea.
Anonymity might actually be a reasonable fit here: if data couldn't, in any way, shape or form and without measurable confidence, be attributed to a person (or context related to them: a car, or a specific shirt worn that day, being examples); then details about one's private life couldn't be inferred, based on publicly available information.
If for example: a surveillance system logged a person frequently moving from one house to another, while confident in the identity of the person departing from home, and a track record of the persons present in the house of destination on arrival, it can be inferred the person in question, has some relationship with the other persons.
So because this person has no choice, other than to be subjected to public surveillance, it is physically impossible to keep such details to oneself (private if you will). Similarly, if every other started wearing spywearables ("smart" glasses, pendant, pin, etc.) or (unknowingly) bugging their houses (a home surveillance system, robot vacuum, or any other "smart" appliance with listening devices); how are you going to keep anything private, and when is in no context "expectation of privacy" "reasonable"?