While I'd love to spend a MAGICal Friday night here and am lacking in time, I just had a rather bizarre and weird and typical-for-me experience involving the FBI.
OK, no, it wasn't involving me directly. More something I witnessed, which plays into everything I've been talking about regarding surveillance and why technology is a bad thing because it tracks you anywhere if the government or individuals within or powerful folks in companies want to go after you, to know your every move.
The problem here was the group in a SoFla burger joing that starts with Fudd and ends with ruckers was being tracked by three of the most obvious FBI agents I had ever seen in my life. Imagine a bad movie from about a decade ago with the guys wearing sunglasses indoors at 6 p.m. on a cloudy/dark day ... imagine one wearing a Tommy Bahama type casual button down the front shirt and a hat etc.
The group they were surveiling was also like a stereotype -- folks looked like they were born in the 1940s, snowbirding here and connected to some organized crime in the NYC/NJ or Boston areas ... the women had big hair, the men had leather jackets and jewelry ... they were loud and flamboyant (not in the fanboi way, either).
The only thing they didn't have, though, was not one of the six people (three couples, one who got a very pricey watch as a gift) was carrying a smartphone or tablet. Nothing that big old USA FBI (the folks who can't protect us when they need to) could use discretely from a distance, even one of many miles. So they had to do it the old-fashioned way and man, was it bad. It was like spotting the 'mark' in a theme park show who is pretending to be a tourist in the crowd and gets pulled into the action.
Yes, it was THAT bad.
To make matter worse, I didn't notice things at first. Well, I noticed the flamboyant marks, but not the agents. One who was sitting with his back to me.
While he was while pretending to be playing with his own smart phone, I happened to engage in a conversation with my companions where I discussed whether it was possible my phone calls could be monitored by the FBI (I've worked in China, speak regularly to important people across the globe including an official in Europe today, often use words like '9/11' and 'Obama' on the phone, and have ed off plenty of people with considerably more power than the people I gleefully off here daily). Again, no clue what was going on 4-6 inches behind me (no fanboi jokes here, please). But my topic clearly spooked the agent behind me who got up, and moved to another table a ways away to continue monitoring the group (he also had a man purse that didn't fit the look, so I assume he had equipment in there).
As soon as he had to move, Agent #2 moved in closer and gave a dirty look to our table. ... Hell, we even got some dirty looks from two of the women at the 'evildoers' table because they damn well knew they were being watched and didn't want us to blow the cover of Agents Larry , Moe and Curly because then they might have to deal with watchers they weren't so aware of.
The point, here, beyond the bizarre incident (phone call incoming @
Lee) was that if those folks just had those amazing (let's all kneel and pray to the Cult of Jobs) iPhone5s on them, then they could have been spied on in a less intrusive, less in your face and, yes, waaaay less obvious manner. Oh, and cheaper too.
Again, I know all you techies are going to say the train is out of the station, but clearly it only is if you allow it to be. If you don't buy products that track your every move, then you do have a leg up.
Technology allows us to be followed and tracked in ways we couldn't have even imagined in Y2K.
Just a strange burger incident. .... But, man, I have to say I wanted to walk over to one of the agents and say simply 'Dude, with my tax dollars you damn well shouldn't be so obvious.'' I was talked out of said move by my more level-headed companions.
Y'all have nice Friday nights and I'll be back a little later ...
. I am sure there are many people that buy in on a whim or as an impulse buy without getting all of the facts, but I don't think it's most people (especially when you are talking about a serious cash outlay).