

Jeff Jarvis on How Google Makes the Germans Go Bonkers - dreambird
http://thefastertimes.com/mediaandtech/2010/08/25/why-does-google-make-the-germans-go-bonkers/

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drinian
It's not only Germany, but lots of other countries as well.

I remember, several years ago, noticing that the White House had been
pixellated out of Google Maps. Later that day, I used a rest-stop bathroom
near Washington, DC... and noticed, above the urinal, an enormous aerial view
of the White House.

Also, I'm living in Japan right now, and there's an elementary school on the
next block. I noticed that there's no Street View on any of the streets
encircling the school. Why?

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nkassis
Maybe because Google maps is so freakin easy to use. I mean, yeah that pic of
the white house exists but finding it can't get any easier than searching
google maps.

My point is, google maps is a success and success usually gets a bunch of
people suspicious of you.

~~~
drinian
Nothing is easier to find than a gift shop in Washington, DC...

You're right, but I'm trying to illustrate that this irrationality exists, to
some degree, in most countries (and it's depressing).

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t_muc
I will repost my comment here to you in the hope you will better understand my
culture.

first this isnt about google the german public has seen theire private
information being collected and send through algorithms in attempts to harvest
behavioural data leeding to many scandals over the last years. It is now start
to begin to develop a consciousness about the change that the informational
age will truly have impact to the relations on human interaction in the 21st
century and it is thus they want to have a debate about to determine the pro´s
and con´s and to be able to setup institutionalized rules for government and
corporations alike to determine a balance and safeguard human dignity.

then this is about google streetview represented the german public with theyre
first real chance to express theyre desire for thorough intellectual
investigation regarding the future treatment and development of theyre right
to privacy - originating from the german constitution - originating from the
equality and quality of dignity – Die Würde des Menschen ist unantastbar The
Right of every german citizen to determine pictures of her- or himself public
or not is a strong safeguard of the real enforcement of oneselfs privacy. In
this case google streetview just happens to have ignited a spark that allowed
many who could not express theyre desire nor give rational of theyre feelings
a flank to project exactly those desires. Special Interest Groups represented
e.g. through Springer/Bild, AdvertisePrint, politians… used this “opportunity”
to exaggerate themselves. Google may not take this easy! The acceptance of
humans expressing theyre will to not take part in something many others do is
on the very essence of democratic societies – the protection of minorities
Google may be best adviced to not take the streetview issue as utterly
important but just if they realise that there are societies that will not
allow theyre freedom and dignity to be washed out by the slow streams of
magnitudial change – but want them to grow with it.

~~~
bitboxer
But why isn't there much fight against Swift, the telecommunications data
retention and other stuff?

I don't understand that...those issues are way more important than google
street view.

~~~
t_muc
Analyzing the macro objectives of steady transforming entities like societies
- you need to have substantial knwoledge about the underlying principles that
form the core of the structure of such entities as well as the intensity and
underlying principles of the magnitudial change these entities are being
constantly encountering. Then the interdependence of action inducing
substructures regarding the affinity or neglection of change. In this
circumstance the solely important principles to assess your findings are
reality and humans. streetview as i tried to explain entered a nexus in a
society that struggles to define a core right -privacy- in a new surrounding
-informational age- streetviews core -photos- is colliding with the
interpretation of a wide known -right on ones own photo- these and other
factors work as aplifiers. swift was a very deep public and parliamentary
debate and the conclusion was that from now on it will be send again from the
eu to the u.s but a european agency will be established and will take over
when they are ready - i hope i could help a little

