3 ms·

I'd love to write and have people read my ramblings: But putting things in the public record is my #1 concern. No-one knows what kind of 1984/'your past is all

by wernerb 12y ago

I'd love to write and have people read my ramblings: But putting things in the public record is my #1 concern. No-one knows what kind of 1984/'your past is all you are' backlash you might expect in the future. I see ways for my future health insurance provider to investigate my blogging for risk-taking overtones. They might even do it automatically.. The tendency for people to agree with "people who smoke should pay more for health insurance" is also scary. What's next? Anyway.. Blogging behind a pseudonym is also not really an option. I could be tracked down eventually. Even Satoshi will be outed, and he's a cryptographic genius. Also, I might lapse and let my 'nuanced opinions' go wild by accident only to be more at risk after discovery. Just look at those Youtube commenters go..

grecy 12y ago
If you let fear stop you from doing something as benign as blogging, I think you need to re-evaluate your risk vs. reward assessments.
krallja 12y ago
Your argument could be just as easily applied to this comment on Hacker News.
sliverstorm 12y ago
people who smoke should pay more for health insurance If the risk is priced properly, it shouldn't be that scary for other big life choices to be priced in. Health insurance for smokers is a lot more expensive, yes, but that isn't just a whim. Tobacco use costs us a lot as a nation[1] and most citizens are not thrilled to subsidize other people's choice to smoke, especially given everyone (smokers included) knows it is very bad for you. We are OK with people who have big houses and speeding tickets, being required to pay more for home & auto insurance. Both are choices- like smoking. Insurance is about risk pooling; grouping people in pools of equal risk is the core idea of insurance. In fact when you group people at high risk in with people at low risk, that becomes a subsidy. [1]: http://www.cancer.org/research/infographicgallery/tobacco-related-healthcare-costs http://www.cancer.org/research/infographicgallery/tobacco-re...

by wernerb 12y ago

grecy 12y ago

If you let fear stop you from doing something as benign as blogging, I think you need to re-evaluate your risk vs. reward assessments.

krallja 12y ago

Your argument could be just as easily applied to this comment on Hacker News.

sliverstorm 12y ago

people who smoke should pay more for health insurance If the risk is priced properly, it shouldn't be that scary for other big life choices to be priced in. Health insurance for smokers is a lot more expensive, yes, but that isn't just a whim. Tobacco use costs us a lot as a nation[1] and most citizens are not thrilled to subsidize other people's choice to smoke, especially given everyone (smokers included) knows it is very bad for you. We are OK with people who have big houses and speeding tickets, being required to pay more for home & auto insurance. Both are choices- like smoking. Insurance is about risk pooling; grouping people in pools of equal risk is the core idea of insurance. In fact when you group people at high risk in with people at low risk, that becomes a subsidy. [1]: http://www.cancer.org/research/infographicgallery/tobacco-related-healthcare-costs http://www.cancer.org/research/infographicgallery/tobacco-re...