Privacy Route 666
Strange bedfellows: a religious privacy advocate is speaking against RFIDs
because she “believe[s] that RFID tags — tiny chips that emit serial
numbers — are
the Mark of the Beast. Many of those Christians believe humans one day
will be compelled to bear a mark on their heads or wrists, to engage in
the buying and selling of goods.” Perhaps the Christian Right
will be sufficient to ensure that the talk of National ID cards or
Passports embedded with RFIDs never become a reality.
**
This talk of the mark of the beast, also reminds me of the new tenants [fixed the link] in my office building, who have drastically retarded the speed of our
shared elevator bank. Their product allows one to pay using
finger-print recognition technology. They incorporate similar
technology into their entry system; instead of magnetic passcards,
their employees use fingerprint touchpads for entry.
**
Edit: Perhaps I should go with my dentist’s hardsell on cosmetic
dentistry (in my case veneers for my front teeth) and try my hand at
TV news reporting. I think that I have the voice for it.
badxmaru
July 15, 2005 @ 2:40 pm
actually I believe the mark of the beast to be the mark of nero, who was emperor of Rome in the time that John received his revelation and for what the book is aptly named.
No one was able to do business because they had a singular type of currency. But to believe that the mark of the beast will be the only way to engage in buying and selling of goods is illogical, it’s more likely that people will maintain a separate monetary system, it’s far too annoying for international business for everyone to be marked. And much of the world still engages in barter for payment.
I’d be far more afraid of being marked in some FBI database, my credit report, etc… which are perhaps more realistic markings.
Simon
July 16, 2005 @ 10:24 pm
I always though that the mark of the beast was those little UPC bar codes that are read by scanners at the cash register.