Should We Microchip Humanity?

[Amunrasonther]

I'm sure this question has been asked here before.

We already are semi-chipped in that we can be located using our cellphones. The Police can trace where you last were with cellphones and cellphone towers. Some countries I read, have begun micro-chipping their prison population. There's also apparent use of microchips in the military. Not to mention we already microchip our pets. So we do have the technology. I'm sure with humans this technology can be made more sophisticated and advanced than it is now.

Pros of micro-chipping humans?
-Never have a missing child, sick, unstable, or elderly person again.
-Significant deterrence in murder. If someone is murdered, the police would easily be able to trace who was the last person within the area.
-No more missing people in the world. Airplane goes down in Asia again? Boom! We know where it crashed.

Cons of micro-chipping humans?
-"I don't want the government knowing where I am and what I'm doing at all times," said the sketchy, criminal-esq person.... I kid, I kid. I think there can easily be made rules (albeit maybe hard to regulate) that would only allow access to track these chips in times of emergency/missing person cases/murders.
-Are there any health risk complications for having these chips in our body for such a long time and from childhood to adulthood? Probably not, though like I said, the technology for this surely has room to grow and be tested.
-Couldn't people just forcibly have these chips removed in order to remain undetected? Most likely, I'll leave it to scientists to make this hard/unappealing to try and achieve.

What are your thoughts? To me the above pros sounds like a better world to live in. In today's modern age, through the internet, satellites, cameras, credit card transactions etc etc - we're already so easily tracked and traced. Why not just take one final step into making our lives more safe and secure when we're already so easily monitored.

Edit: I would of added a poll but for the life of me I cannot see the option. I think it's my browser.

[Deleted]

Been tried in the past and it was a failure, I think it would be worth another attempt though now that technology has advanced a decade.

http://rense.com/general12/microc.htm

They were not used to track people but rather used as a form of ID, much more secure than carrying around a card or passport.

[Annoying]

I'm not sure how you think putting a microchip in someone will give you a GPS radio. A microchipped pet needs to be taken to a vet to be scanned, and until we get passive GPS technologies, it won't be much different. You can microchip people all you want, but you'd have to get close enough to scan them.

[Kelathos]

Re: missing aircraft.

That's what black boxes are for, and I assure you no microchip in your skin is ever going to compare to the signal those output.

[Pickynerd]

Just thinking to myself here, and there are probably as many pro's as there are con's. Though I could see some use for them in temporary situations.

Say from birth to age of adulthood, or when travelling to other countries. Yes.

But, governments have far to much control over us already, could you imagine being declined to buy a candy bar, because you already had one that day, or not being able to buy a TV because you owe the government 100 dollars and after purchase you'd only have $99.99 left? We all know that they would tie ID and banking together and eventually tracking via Google or some shit...

Yeah, no thanks.

[Reeve]

There's a great advantage in its use as an ID/mobile payments system. You could stick a chip in someone's thumb, for example, and have the combination of the RFID and the biometrics of their thumbprint act as positive identification. An extremely secure mobile payments system.

Of course, I think the dark side of that outweighs the benefits.

[Amunrasonther]

I'm not sure how you think putting a microchip in someone will give you a GPS radio. A microchipped pet needs to be taken to a vet to be scanned, and until we get passive GPS technologies, it won't be much different. You can microchip people all you want, but you'd have to get close enough to scan them.

I was under the impression that there are microchips for pets that sends out a signal and can be traced. Otherwise, maybe microchip is the wrong word to use. How about implantable tracking device? Much like computer technology, I'm sure tracking technology can get smaller and more powerful.

Re: missing aircraft.

That's what black boxes are for, and I assure you no microchip in your skin is ever going to compare to the signal those output.

And yet we still have missing airplanes that crashed into the depths and are nowhere to be found.

Oh lawdy, lawdy! It's the Mark of the Beast. Everyone run!

Haha, it's funny you mention that. I brought up this idea to a woman who I used to work with who was ultra-religious and she just about flipped out on me. Probably thought I was the anti-christ...She later explained to me what that was all about.

[Kurioxan]

It does have its benefits, however, the governments are not an entity that is trustworthy enough to have something like this implemented on mass to be honest, I would love to think we have evolved culturally past tyranny, but i very much doubt it.

I have thought about this sort of thing before, if its for personal security you could make them a bit larger than just a chip, maybe a bracelet? Which would ping whomever they are near, but not transmit data unless the command was requested by the person, or maybe in some extreme case (failing heart rate?)

A chip cant quite give you the location of someone unless they are inside a grid and even then its only to the local grid, it wouldnt help anyone on a missing plane.

Basically its a benefits vs risk of abuse, and right this very moment, the risk of abuse isnt worth the few benefits it has.

[Deleted]

As long as the data contained on the chip cannot be copied, altered, read, or tracked without the owners permission whilst they are alive. I would not see an issue.

[Deleted]

Yes. I would love this. A sort of black box for humans. I mean it wouldn't necessarily help you find missing people since it's not like you can have them transmitting, too small, not really possible at the moment, but if they could record data about what's happening around you that might be useful. Even just a really short range "which other ID chips are nearby" might help catch murderers etc. if that's even possible. Would be nice to have passport information or card information on it so you could just scan your hand and pay for stuff or something.

Would also be nice if you could store stuff on it yourself, like a little USB drive or so. Then again I'm all for anything like that. Give me a full cyborg body if you can, would love that.

[Deleted]

Having been raised Catholic, I just remember a microchip system being speculated to be the Mark for like 20 years now.

I did have a lady who purchased another item to avoid paying $6.66 once though.

Where I buy lunch at work sometimes I buy a carton of milk even though I never drink the stuff every time I go just so the till reads £4.20

[Reeve]

I find it so frustrating that people seem increasingly willing to just sacrifice their privacy. Everything's all fun and games until a totalitarian dictator takes over, which sounds like doom and gloom, but it would hardly be the first time in human history.

[Deleted]

Microsheep when you have some satellites more powerfull than Hubble which can see every possible spectrum. LOL looks like a childish excuse... INB4 some fake obscur armies doin shit in middle east and africa can't be stopped EASILY...

Plus this can't stop any accident... your wife to be raped or child to be crush in an accident or a bonobo killing you with a gun.


It lacks " mark of the best " in the tittle...

[Deleted]

I find it so frustrating that people seem increasingly willing to just sacrifice their privacy. Everything's all fun and games until a totalitarian dictator takes over, which sounds like doom and gloom, but it would hardly be the first time in human history.

Yo isn't that why y'all got guns over there? I mean the proper reason. Like so you can remove such people from power?

[Sierra85]

if you have nothing to hide you should be okay with this

[Kurioxan]

if you have nothing to hide you should be okay with this

That is a silly way to think, its not about having something to hide, its about it being abused, and basic right of privacy.

[Sassafrass]

Why not just take one final step into making our lives more safe and secure when we're already so easily monitored.

While we're at it, why don't we put everyone on a reservation fenced in with barbed wire and watched by armed guards?
In the name of safety and security!


You can take your microchip and live out your dystopian wetdream, I'll pass, thanks.

[Reeve]

Yo isn't that why y'all got guns over there? I mean the proper reason. Like so you can remove such people from power?

Not really no. Can't remove a dictator from power with a Glock 9MM.

- - - Updated - - -

if you have nothing to hide you should be okay with this

Go ahead and post all your personal information online, including credit card numbers, bank account numbers, social security numbers, full name and address, pictures of your house with layout, naked photos of yourself, medical history, full genomic sequence, and all your online passwords, and then maybe we can have a discussion about having nothing to hide.

[Blur4stuff]

i think computer systems of some kind will eventually be integrated into nearly all humans. there will likely come a point when it doesn't require hardware, but more like having an extra body function or organ that is all bio and no mech.

i don't think there will be much controversy other than in the early stages. it will be just like having a phone or a car.

[looorg]

Don't we already sort of have this? I think we call them cellphones (or mobilephones or whatever). Most of humanity in the western world seems to be glued to theirs. Can't speak for the rest of the world.