But there's more in store. Or simply, more store. Because a sign popped up in a patch of pines the other day, announcing new construction. Come spring 2002, there will be a trio of Krogers within a mile of my house. Kroger's latest expansion comes at a time when the company is taking flack over its Kroger Card, a discount device that requires you to fill out a personal information form with the store.
Libertarians are aghast at the invasion of privacy.
Then they head back to the ranch, past a battery of surveillance cameras, to leave a trail of traceable cybercookies wherever they surf on the Internet. Face it, the Powers That Sell already know everything about you short of a barium enema. Kvetching about personal privacy in the Information Age is tantamount to a multiple gunshot patient whining that the blood pressure cuff pinches. Between credit cards, credit reporting agencies and that nosey neighbor with the police band scanner that also picks up cell phone calls, you have about as much privacy as the Statue of Liberty. Hey, if it'll save 10 bucks they can follow me into the shower to see what shampoo I use.