Surveillance Capitalism, Military Contracting, and the Rise of the Security State

In the wake of 9/11 and the subsequent "War on Terror," the United States has embarked on an unprecedented and expansive surveillance regime. This surveillance apparatus has been enabled and fueled by the rise of surveillance capitalism, a business model that commodifies personal data for profit. The convergence of surveillance capitalism and military contracting has created a powerful security complex that poses a grave threat to our privacy, civil liberties, and democratic values.

Shoshana Zuboff, a leading scholar on surveillance capitalism, defines it as "a new economic Free Download that claims human experience as free raw material for hidden commercial practices of extraction, prediction, and sales." In other words, surveillance capitalists collect, analyze, and sell our personal data to make a profit. This data can include everything from our location to our browsing history to our social media posts.

Surveillance capitalism has become a dominant force in the digital economy. Companies like Google, Facebook, and Our Book Library have amassed vast amounts of personal data, which they use to target us with personalized advertising and other forms of manipulation. This data has also been used to develop powerful artificial intelligence (AI) systems that can be used for everything from facial recognition to predicting our future behavior.

Tug of War: Surveillance Capitalism, Military Contracting, and the Rise of the Security State (Carleton Library Series Book 242)

by Dave Levitan

4.4 out of 5

Language	:	English
File size	:	1933 KB
Text-to-Speech	:	Enabled
Screen Reader	:	Supported
Enhanced typesetting	:	Enabled
Word Wise	:	Enabled
Print length	:	508 pages
Lending	:	Enabled

FREE

The rise of surveillance capitalism has coincided with the privatization of national security. In the wake of 9/11, the U.S. government increasingly outsourced its surveillance and security functions to private contractors. These contractors, such as Blackwater and Halliburton, have been accused of human rights abuses, war crimes, and fraud.

The privatization of national security has created a powerful security complex that is largely unaccountable to the public. These contractors are often exempt from the same laws and regulations that apply to government agencies, and they have a vested interest in perpetuating the surveillance state.

The convergence of surveillance capitalism and military contracting has created a powerful security state that poses a grave threat to our privacy and civil liberties. This security state is characterized by the following:

• Mass surveillance: The government and private companies collect vast amounts of data on our every move. This data can be used to track our movements, monitor our communications, and even predict our future behavior.
• Dataveillance: The government and private companies use data to create detailed profiles of our lives. These profiles can be used to target us with advertising, manipulate our behavior, and even deny us access to essential services.
• Secrecy: The government and private companies often operate in secrecy, making it difficult to hold them accountable for their actions. This secrecy allows the security state to operate outside of the checks and balances of the democratic process.

The rise of the security state has led to a significant erosion of privacy and civil liberties. The government and private companies now have the ability to track our every move, monitor our communications, and even predict our future behavior. This has created a chilling effect on free speech and association, and it has made it more difficult to hold the government accountable for its actions.

The erosion of privacy and civil liberties is a serious threat to our democratic values. It is essential that we take action to protect our privacy and civil liberties before it is too late.

The rise of surveillance capitalism, military contracting, and the security state poses a grave threat to our privacy, civil liberties, and democratic values. It is essential that we take action to protect our privacy and civil liberties before it is too late.

We need to demand transparency and accountability from the government and private companies. We need to support organizations that are working to protect our privacy and civil liberties. And we need to educate ourselves about the dangers of the security state and the importance of protecting our privacy.

The future of our democracy depends on our ability to protect our privacy and civil liberties. We must not allow the security state to undermine our most cherished values.

Tug of War: Surveillance Capitalism, Military Contracting, and the Rise of the Security State (Carleton Library Series Book 242)

by Dave Levitan

4.4 out of 5

Language	:	English
File size	:	1933 KB
Text-to-Speech	:	Enabled
Screen Reader	:	Supported
Enhanced typesetting	:	Enabled
Word Wise	:	Enabled
Print length	:	508 pages
Lending	:	Enabled

FREE