Privacy is a topic about which I see posts and tweets every few weeks, sometimes days. Seems to me a lot of these well intended posts don't quite make the point the way I would, especially about "well, if you have nothing to hide, no harm done, right?"
Let me use a sort of metaphor, the way G.K. Chesterton used to, although I know Chesterton would absolutely not ever use this metaphor. (Well, if he were alive today, who knows?)
So, you're at the airport, having just flown in from some other country not otherwise specified. The authorities (you pick one) decide you are probably smuggling drugs. In balloons, like they do.
Shoved up yer butt.
Not the most practical option, but we're supposin' here.
So the Authorities say, "to check whether you have balloons full of drugs shoved up yer butt, we're going to probe yer butt." And of course, "If you don't have drugs up yer butt, no harm done, right?"
You'd respond, "Wait a G.D. minute here -- probing my butt is harm! You find something, you don't find something, the probing itself is harm! It's not just offensive, it's literally invasive..." and so on.
But hey, if you have nothing to hide...
What is forgotten in the discussion in the first place is that invasion of privacy is harm, all by itself, whether they find everything, something, nothing, whatevah. The invasion itself, just like the anal probe itself. Even if they find a lump on your prostate while they're up there, they're not doing you any favors.
Was gonna do that as a podcast, but that's all I had to say right now.
Make the most of it.
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