Freedom of Association

As you may know, GOOGLE, has decided to offer a free, web-based e-mail service to certain of its users. The service is currently in BETA testing, so is not available for public use. As a Google Toolbar user (which I started using while it was still in BETA) and BLOGGER user, I have been invited to use the service. This service is very different in that, first of all, you can have up to 1GB of storage space. Yes, you read that right. A whole gig to save emails. Take that Yahoo! with your measly 6 MBs and Hotmail with your pitiful 2MBs. Also, GMail integrates Google's search technology to automatically organize and find messages. The idea is to get users away from having folders and sub-folders, and subfolders to categorize, store, and retrieve saved messages.

Of course, providing a service and storing email is not free to Google. The hardware alone has to be a substantial chunk of change. And, since nothing is really free, Google plans to use its software to "read" your emails and display relevant ads based on the content of those emails. So, that means if you get a message from your buddy asking you if you want to go hiking this weekend, you might see an ad for boots. Google believes that this kind of targeting will help them sell more ads, but it makes some privacy advocates uneasy. So, a California legislator has has threatened to write legistlation to prevent the California based company for implementing this service. After all, she says, consumers have a right privacy. Google responds that the ads are chosen by computer programs, not human beings.

Now, I have a very simple solution to this seemingly complex conundrum. What if (now hang in there with me...this might be a little shocking at first), the consumer were allowed to decide for himself if wants to use GMail with the understanding that the Google programs will read his mail and provide ads? Maybe, just maybe, some people are willing to trade-off some privacy to a company in return for a free service and storage system. Does government really need to step in and interfere with that relationship (consumer and company) or do I really not have a right to associate with anyone I want? If I don't like the deal, I won't make the deal.

Personally, I think that prohibiting such a voluntary association is out of line (If only there were something in the Bill of Rights about the freedom to associate). Let consumers decide. I am actually less scared of what Google might do with my email than I am about what government would do with my email. If only legislators would protect me from themselves....

BTW, you can send me comments to rsbowmanREMOVE@gmail.com. Remove the word REMOVE to get the correct address.