While tech bros would say we’ve passed the Age of Information and are into a new industrial revolution, we’re still all about information, and we are long overdue for a mainstream conversation about the corresponding rights that should necessarily be embraced, legislated, and enforced. This is especially critical when the proposed fourth industrial revolution is, in its entirety, based on using the vast collection of our personal and collective information.
The right to privacy. The cornerstone of it all, with impact far beyond the obvious. For example, we don’t give up our right to privacy when we drive in our own vehicles, let alone when we are passengers in someone else’s.
The right to repair. If we want to be able to replace a worn out piece so that we can get more or better usage out of something we purchased, we ought to have the right to do so.
The right to sourcing. If information is today’s currency, then we ought to have the right to know whether information that is presented to us is real or counterfeit.
I get that it must be frustrating for venture capitalists that quaint notions like privacy have not yet been fully killed off yet, let alone hearing the idea of other rights that would curtail the endless possibility of quarterly financial growth at all costs. But there’s a lot more to humanity than what’s found on a balance sheet.