It's kind of exasperating how little people think about the difference between voluntary participation and forced participation when it makes a world of difference. Maybe we have just lived in good times too long and we have become soft, weak and amnesiac about what happens when the other aspects of human nature gain dominance in society.
It is totally exasperating when folks excuse corporation tracking you as 'voluntary agreement' when the only alternstive to tracking is forgoonf essential services like mobile phones and living like a hermit
I'm not in Norway, but my local cafe has a rewards program that is automatic. It's linked to my credit card number; so long as I pay with that card, it happens. I get a decent discount on a sandwich every now and then.
Even if they didn't offer the reward thing, though, I would still assume that my purchases were being linked to my CC#. I'd assume it's being done so across merchants, too, where merchants use the same payments processor.
(And I'm not fond of this. To me, it's a good example of why privacy regulation matters: I shouldn't need to give up privacy for the sake of being able to have the convenience of a CC; the processor's fees are there to pay for the convenience. One shouldn't be forced to go through cash, and even then, there are places — and government places, too — that don't accept cash.)
Oh, no, no. They report so much more:
Merchant name
Purchase amount
Date
Billing zip code
Sales tax amount
Tax indicator
Merchant postal code
Merchant tax ID
Invoice number
Order number
Customer code (if purchasing cards)
Item commodity code(s)
Item description(s) (SKU)
Unit price(s)
Quantity
Unit of measure
Extended price
Discount per line item and line item total
Debit or credit indicator
Discount amount
Shipping amount
Duty amount
> Level 3 credit card data involves large transactions that take place primarily with B2B or business-to-government (B2G). These transactions take place using corporate purchasing cards, which allow the companies or government agencies to monitor purchases and have access to detailed spending reports.
Instead, it seems that level 1 would be what most businesses that sell to consumers would use
> Level 1 data primarily refers to small business-to-consumer (B2C) transactions. This level only requires the following information for credit card transactions:
Merchant name Purchase amount Date Billing zip code
I guess I was more curious if the main point of contention was the mandatory part of it or whether it was more about the fact it was coming from the government. I think some people distrust government so much that even if it were offered as opt-in, using a similar approach as a private company, some people would still trust a private company more than their government.
The United States isn’t a democracy, it’s a democratic republic. Unfortunately, most of that was thrown out with the 17th amendment, and we’re paying for it now with increased federal control.
Don't turn your country into a prison on the hope that the warden will remain benevolent. There's no shortage of past and present examples of that suddenly changing.
some random articles: https://sweden.se/life/society/a-cashless-society https://interestingengineering.com/sweden-how-to-live-in-the...
Talking to her, she'd often bemoan that the prejudice that Nordic societies are very conformist is true.
Which is in line with what Ive experienced with Nordics
It's a social glue that holds every culture together, and it never has to make much sense.
What differs between them is not how much crap you'll be in, but the shape of the cow. You like it, I dislike it, and you'll feel like you aren't pressured to conform, while I'll feel like the world around me is utterly insane.
The woman I mentioned speaks six languages because shes lived in as many countries, including the African and the European Mediterranean coast. Her's was a comparison.
Also, all of the countries you listed are Nordic except for India. India, of course, is an extremely rich country, three times the size of Europe with lots different sub-groups. Who were you with in India? The ruling class Brahmins? The English educated children and grandchildren of the mandarin class? Or amongst the day to day laborer?
You gotta be committed enough to hand over a twenty dollar bill alongside a quarter, when paying a $19.17 bill for example. Rather than take in 83 cents you take in 8 (and score a dollar.)
I change those coins into 5 euro bills whenever possible, stores always want change. Small coins go into a big jar that we use to tip people like the pizza delivery guy.
If the jar gets too full I simply donate the jar as is to a charity I know.
As long as I don't break the law, it's no one's business what I do.
Both are bad.
People don't like governments tracking their every move because, governments have sometimes done bad things with that information, both historically and even today.
People allow tech companies to track their every move because they're offered something in return: Free access to an app, automatic coupons at the supermarket, etc.
I don't envision the government lowering people's taxes in exchange for more information. Even though this program could help the government craft health policy and save millions on medical care for its people.
Don't make me confirm Godwin's law about democratically elected government.
Now another question: what the best a government is likely to do with this data? What is the best a private company is likely to do with it?
I find it unlikely that my local supermarket is going to sell my purchasing habits to China or Iran. I'm far more worried about my local government getting their hands on it, but at that point I don't see the distinction.
>to insurance companies that in some countries can prevent you from getting a credit card, a loan or even a job.
In what country are insurance companies determining whether you can get a credit card/loan/job? Are you sure you don't mean credit bureaus?
Oh really? Do you think they run an ethical check on people who propose to buy their data? I a sure China is home to a lot of cheap backend services and their clients don't think twice about it.
> Are you sure you don't mean credit bureaus?
Probably yeah, I am not used to that American thing. People think the CCP invented the reputation score but US' private system predates that.
Is this true? I thought only if you joined a rewards program.