“Eric Schmidt suggested that young people should be entitled to change their identity to escape their misspent youth, which is now recorded in excruciating detail on social networking sites such as Facebook,” Murray Wardrop reports for The Telegraph.
“‘I don’t believe society understands what happens when everything is available, knowable and recorded by everyone all the time,’ Mr Schmidt told the Wall Street Journal,” Wardrop reports. “In an interview Mr Schmidt said he believed that every young person will one day be allowed to change their name to distance themselves from embarrasssing photographs and material stored on their friends’ social media sites.”
Wardrop reports, “The 55-year-old also predicted that in the future, Google will know so much about its users that the search engine will be able to help them plan their lives. ‘We’re trying to figure out what the future of search is,’ Mr Schmidt said. ‘One idea is that more and more searches are done on your behalf without you needing to type. I actually think most people don’t want Google to answer their questions. They want Google to tell them what they should be doing next.'”
MacDailyNews Take: No, Eric, we definitely do not want Google to tell us what we should be doing next, you dope.
Wardrop continues, “The comments are not the first time Mr Schmidt has courted controversy over the wealth of personal information people reveal on the internet. Last year, he notoriously remarked: ‘If you have something that you don’t want anyone to know, maybe you shouldn’t be doing it in the first place.'”
Full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: Maybe the Pink Cowboy should change his name to Eric T. Mole… Oops, that wouldn’t work, either.
I think Eric has lost all reality.
Ummm ok that guy is just scary!
Me asking google what to do? not in a million years.
It is almost like asking microsoft how to make a good windows publicity. You can ask them how to make a good apple publicity, they are very good at it.
“The 55-year-old also predicted that in the future, Google will know so much about its users that the search engine will be able to help them plan their lives. ‘We’re trying to figure out what the future of search is,’ Mr Schmidt said. ‘One idea is that more and more searches are done on your behalf without you needing to type. I actually think most people don’t want Google to answer their questions. They want Google to tell them what they should be doing next.'”
Just scary!
If they ever get rid of Ballmer at MS this guy would be the perfect replacement. Cluelessness of this magnitude doesn’t come along every day.
Society is so geared toward bailing people out and making victims out of thin air.
Why are we so afraid to own up to accountability and demand mature behavior?
Afraid of your cyber past because you were/are a pathetic sack of shit? Stop being an asshole and grow up.
Eric “don’t be evil” shmidt: change your name.
The Internet has a propensity to turn normal people into pathetic, impatient, hotheaded, know-it-all bitches!
Change your name . . .
Grow a pair you douche!
Eric is one to talk, the hypocrite: here’s a married man’s mistress on her blog, which he was unsuccessful at muzzleing:
http://gawker.com/5488563/google-ceo-cant-keep-his-ex+mistresss-blog-down
Be careful what you wish for, Eric
That much power must be intoxicating.
But with alcohol, you eventually sober up.
I find it very interesting that MDN hates Schmidt while it is abundantly clear that MDN’s hero considers good ole Eric to be one of his best friends.
MDN’s obsession with Steve Jobs is pathological.
I think Steve tolerates Eric, as long as their respective companies are aligned in their goals.
Further evidence? While MDN, like any red blooded, self reliant, freedom loving American, deplores the notion that Schmidt would try to tell us what do – they fully accept the very same behavior in Steve Jobs.
Not only is it OK for Jobs to tell us what to do, we seem to wait like scared weaklings on his every utterance so we will have direction for the next action we should take.
Like I said, it’s pathological.
Schmidt is seriously sick and dangerous man. Just last week he said that in his opinion anonimity on th Internet should not be allowed: http://www.businessinsider.com/eric-schmidt-anonymity-online-2010-8.
Jobs was right when he called Google’s ” No evil mantra” bulshit.
Dr. Strangelove? Mole, he needs to be contained fast and probably so does Google which actually fooled us all for many years promised to be the world’ s best company.
OK, that’s it, I am in the process of clearing all my archived mails on Gmail accounts I hold.
I’ll want to switch to another personal main email asap. Surely, it’ll take some time and consideration, but I guess everyone will find a way without ’em, Google.
Otherrrrrrr institutions will hopefully provide services comparable with or equal to Google, but that’s it for me now.
I’m out as good as possible.
Anyone listenin’…?
I agree with you – but this is a world that is definitely different for young people today than say 20 years ago. Every young kid does stupid crap – everyone. The difference now is like Eric says a lot of it (most of it) is recorded and trackable and will never be forgotten – which is an awful world to live in when you think about it.
How can society change for the good when the bad or ignorant is forever captured and freely available to watched or read over and over? Mistakes help us to move forward if we choose to learn from them, but if everyone is afraid to make a mistake because of some unflinching eye – who will learn anything?
That advice from the Adolf Hitler of digital the digital holocaust.
Thanks no u pos.
I avoid Google search as much as I can these days. I use Bing and only switches to Google when Bing cand find what I want.
What is he telling us—that Eric Schmidt is really Jack the Ripper?
I agree with all “scary” comments. This is NOT the mindset any sane human on earth should want at the top management level of Google.
Mac95:
Loud and clear
You mean to say that in the future Google will automatically look for nude pictures of Miley Cyrus for me without me even asking?
Cool.
Of course Schmidt likes the idea of name change. This guy practically changes his identity depending on the company he works for and the company he’s with. One day he will peel back his mask like in Mission Impossible and people will realize his real name is William.
see Charlie Rose show, they talked about Google last
http://www.charlierose.com/
What a prick!!!
MDN word; clearly
Choose from Eric, who said what he said today or Steve paraphrased by Mark Spoonauer last month:
“I have neither the time nor the inclination to explain myself to a fanboy who rises and sleeps under the blanket of the very innovation that I provide, and then questions the manner in which I provide it. I would rather you just said thank you, and went on your way. Otherwise, I suggest you pick up a bumper, and stand a post. Either way, I don’t give a damn what you think you are entitled to.”
how bout changin’ yer name to ‘O. Schmidt’, since yah step in it all the time…
Eric T. Mole has attended Bilderburg for the past few years, alongside Charlie Rose, Billy Gates, and Craig Mundie of MS. We can be sure they were up to no good.
I don’t like Google, they will scan emails in your gmail accounts, weeks ago I was shocked when I found ads related to my email contents shown up… so scary.
Maybe the appropriate thing would be not to do the stupid things that will come back to haunt you in the first place.
Google has an exaggerated sense of self-importance, to say the least.
The sad truth is that everyone who uses Google’s products and services, such as search, Android, Google Earth, etc… they are NOT even Google’s real customers. A “customer” is someone who pays for a service or product. Google “users” do not pay anything to Google directly, so Google has no direct incentive to make them happy or look out for their best interests. Google’s real customers are the entities who pay for things such as advertising and user data. They are the ones Google wants to satisfy. The users are nothing more than Google’s “commodity.”
In contrast, Apple’s customers are the users of Apple’s products and services, the people who buy Macs, iPods, iPhones, and iPads. Apple’s motivations align directly with the motivations of customers, and what’s good for the customer is good for Apple.
Maybe Eric could find Osama for the government.
@ Bunsen Honeydew
Amen brother … or sister.
Eric Schmidt went to Google today and it predictively presented the answer to “How to be an a-hole?” Answer: “be yourself, Eric.”
Freak. It’d be funny if he wasn’t the CEO of Google.
Eric is insane, but you all know that.
Oh, the advantages of having a common name.
I’m on the Internet – search for me. The name is John Brown.. (Warning, the US government determined I was a terrorist.)
“MDN’s obsession with Steve Jobs is pathological.”
I don’t see that at all. I see some good pokes at people who write articles and open their mouths (like Schmidt), but no obsession.
Steve is a damned good manager and inspiration for good design and yet just a guy who does the dishes after dinner.
Sure he pushes and shouts at people, but that hardly makes him bad.
I don’t see suck up on MDN.
I think I’ll change my name to Eric Schmidt… He thinks that pink shirt is wild! It will be nothing compared to the exploits of me, complete with blogs, photos, videos, police records, judgement summaries, restraining orders and the like! Yes, folks it’s the NEW Eric Schmidt…
Pretty soon, Eric… You’ll need to change your name! Again and again and again…
Moron! And Steve had this guy, along with Al G., makes me wondercat times about Steve’s faculties at times!
Add to my earlier post at the end…
And Steve had this guy and Al G on the Board of Directors…
…but can you change your MAC address? – that is The Question.
Damn, I just crapped my pants because Goggle didn’t tell me to take a dump quick enough
‘Eric Schmidt suggested that young people should be entitled to change their identity to escape their misspent youth’
Hmmm….I wonder what Eric’s original name was and what bad things did he do when he was young.
Just a couple of weeks ago, Eric Schmidt said, “Show us 14 photos of yourself and we can identify who you are.”
In a world of sophisticated facial recognition software, what good will it do to change your name?
“aybe you shouldn’t be doing it in the first place”
The battle cry of security fascists everywhere.
As for the notion that people shouldn’t do stupid things that they may be ashamed of someday… good luck with that.
The vast majority of humans, particularly young ones, tend to do stupid things that they regret only when they become older. It’s a sign of maturity. Many things are regretful only in hindsight. People without regrets are either stupid, immature, lying, or lucky.
Or they have so much money or are in such positions of power that they can ignore the consequences of actions that produce regrets.
As for changing one’s name, good luck with that, too.
Does anyone (besides Schmidt) seriously think past behavior won’t dog you even after a name change? Is he proposing some kind of Federal Protection Program for Regretful People that will relocate them with new identities?
The world is full of self-rightgious bastards of every stripe who take great delight in making sure your regretful past follows you no matter what you try to do.
Eric Schmidt is made from a sack of weird stuff.
Eric, remember this timeless adage: “You can fool some people sometimes, but you can’t fool all the people all the time.”
What drugs is this guy on???????
There is no way in hell ANY government will allow identity change.
Think of this senario… A known child molester with grooms his latest victim online.
He finds out someone might be onto him.
So he covers his tracks by changing his online identity so he can carry on abusing children.
Senario 2 :
A habitual drink driver who has been banned from driving for running over and killing someone content get a job because of his criminal record.
He changes his identity with a false name, background history etc to get that driving job he wants.
He gets the job under false details (which is fraud and a criminal offense btw!) and starts his new job.
Day 1 he drives off, runs over someone and kills them. He gives the police his fake online name and details because if he gives then his birth details he will end up in prison because he’s banned from driving.
He in effect gets away with murder.
To summarise, IF this ever gets considered then I WILL BE ACTIVELY APPOSING THIS AND WILL DO EVERYTHING INY POWER FOR IT NOT TO HAPPEN.
So Eric is in effect promoting online Fraud and falsifying personal data.
In the UK you go to prision for a minimum of 5 years if you do this.
And hey, let’s not jet change our name, let’s change our families identities, let’s make up a fake date of birth, let’s hide our criminal record, let’s change our medical history, let’s rewrite history…
Hitler was a Samaritan, saddam vassal was a saint who saved the world, serial killers are helping society, 911 didn’t happen, world war 2 happened between Mcdonalds and Burger King in the year 1420ad, Jesus Christ was black…
The list us endless of the implications of what Eric is suggesting.
He seriously needs to be locked up – he is one dangerous guy!
Oh and btw Eric, lose te pink look.
You look like some sort of 70s gay porn star – not the right image for one of Googles major players.
Your ‘customers’ must be laughing their asses off!
I have stopped using Google since someone mentioned an alternative search engine which does not pass on any of your personal information or search habits.
This is – “ixquick.com” and it doesn’t have any ads either, or records your ip address. Works on your desktop and the iphone.
@MDN ‘If you have something that you don’t want anyone to know, maybe you shouldn’t be doing it in the first place.’
I believe in this day and age, with better and better technology (cameras everywhere, DNA tests, search enginges), he certainly has a point.
Technology can’t be stopped. It is how the obtained information is delivered to the wrong people, that matters. As technology progresses we may have to rethink privacy and regulate the distribution of information, who owns it, whether such info is admissible in court, etc.
Of course, when society or an authoritarian government unduly tells us which actions are allowable, there may be (big) problems.
For all the knuckleheads out there who think folks who like Apple products are being told what to do by Steve Jobs, listen up:
No.
I either like Apple’s products or I don’t. I either accept the conditions in which Apple offers them or I buy something that I find acceptable.
It’s just that simple. The choice is mine. And who would ever think that a site devoted to Apple would follow what it’s CEO does! Shocking!
“…but can you change your MAC address? – that is The Question.”
Mac’s can mask their MAC address with another one, but not change it as it’s hard wired.
In fact there is a AppleScript floating around that will randomize your MAC address mask every time you reboot your Mac.
Regardless of what you think about him, the point about young people posting things that may haunt them later in life is valid. Witness the myriad of articles about employers searching the web for information about potential new employees.
Most states don’t allow felons to change their names. Many localities do a criminal search before they process change-of-name applications. With modern “secure” driver’s licenses, you need the original name-change court order to change your name on your license. Without a valid license, you can’t get a job today.
Young kids have no sense of privacy. Having taught many 18-24 year olds and asked, they say they don’t care about wiretapping or Google’s e-mail data mining. These kids’ brains are not fully developed physically in areas that really count, like judgment.
hypocrite.
FB and Google have already got all kinds of info totally screwed up because some businesses/households have multiple users and guests per MAC address, not to mention the households with no MAC address and the sophisticated single users with multiples. No way Google or anyone else is going to keep up.
Remember, a dozen federal security agencies with unlimited budgets can’t find an old man in a cave who is very well connected, so it’s not very likely that Google will be able to do any better.
Moreover, FB is the perfect example of idiots posting and embellishing their boring little lives to stroke their own egos. Sure, Z-boy and Schmidt can make insane amounts of money by selling all this info, but many people with productive lives (you know, the people who actually make money by doing real work instead of teens and retirees blogging and opinionating all day online) are almost totally missed in their databases. Which reminds me, i have a meeting to attend….