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Title: Unrelenting Pessimism
Review: In Database Nation, Simson Garfinkel uses Orwellian prose and dark prophecies to dramatize an important but dry subject (how much the government should regulate the use of medical records and consumer purchasing records). Garfinkel portrays our world as a hopeless technical dystopia where insurance companies rip you off, telemarketers bother you at dinnertime, terrorists run free and the average person is powerless to do anything about it.The book's unrelenting pessimism makes it unbalanced and ultimately hurts the author's credibility. For example, instead of giving a nod to the progress being made by pro-privacy agencies such as the Department of Health and Human Services and the state Consumer Protection Boards, Garfinkel dwells on abuses by the FBI and "faceless" corporations.I'd skip this one unless you need another reason to be mad at insurance companies.
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