Elon Musk. Twitter. Babylon Bee.

[Ken]

It would not be difficult at all for the US to require KYC for phone lines. Wouldn’t even require new legislation, just regulation.

I wish they’d do this so I would quit getting so many spam / junk calls.

Yeah. Not going to happen The US is not New Zealand. Phones are more or less essential to modern life in most of America. These days you need them to even apply for and hold down most minimum wage jobs since applications and shift scheduling is mostly done online, especially for corporate employers. Or to schedule anything like a doctor's appointment or put money on your kid's school lunch account.

And there are vast millions of people in this country at the lower end of society whose finances, credit, immigration status, etc. aren't conducive to walking into a Verizon store and opening a standard postpaid account where you pay for your usage after the fact. So there is a vast market in cheap pre-paid cell phones in this country. In fact, there are about 75 MILLION pre-paid cell phone users in the US which is about 15-times the population of New Zealand. None of whom were required to show ID and have it verified when they bought their phones. The government isn't going to take that away.

You don't even need to buy a pre-paid cell phone. If you have any ordinary unlocked iPhone or Android phone you can get pre-paid sim cards nearly anywhere, again, no ID required. Just toss it in your shopping cart at Wal-Mart. https://www.walmart.com/ip/Tracfone-Kee ... 1931949241 And you can buy reloadable airtime cards anywhere as well so you don't even need a credit card much less any ID. You have to provide a name and address when you activate but you can put anything down for that and any fake address too if you want. They don't care since they aren't billing you.

[Josh]

Ken,

I’ve only ever had prepaid cell phones in Australia and NZ.

I had to standard KYC documentation checks to get a SIM card. There is no reason America could not enforce the same. You have to pass KYC to get a driver licence or to open a bank account or do something as simple as use Facebook.

[temporal1]

Ken,
I’ve only ever had prepaid cell phones in Australia and NZ.

I had to standard KYC documentation checks to get a SIM card. There is no reason America could not enforce the same. You have to pass KYC to get a driver licence or to open a bank account or do something as simple as use Facebook.

The notion laws can’t be enacted after the fact, or, because,”it’s too late, everyone’s doing it!” is absurd.
i grieve for gov school students. God protect them.

Brakes were not invented before wheels.
There were no “Rules of the Road” prior to motor vehicles.
Alcohol consumption was an ancient practice long before DUIs were implemented.

Presently, i’m looking at my gas range thinking it will become a family heirloom.

Technology is a bit weird in history, the more typical pattern is that “new things” are rare+costly, available only to the elite, long before mass production. The internet, tech, however, was developed and foisted out onto society willy-nilly “virtually” without parameters, it’s 100% to be expected rules+regulations will follow. To be sure, the internet was foisted because of VAST WEALTH to be had in the foisting process.

Not unlike ensuring abortion pills are distributed to every remote corner on earth FOR PROFIT of some.
There is no wise King Solomon involved. Follow the $$$$.

[Falco Knotwise]

Everyone notice EM plans to "transform Twitter into the everything app"?

Ready for X/Twitter?

[temporal1]

https://twitter
Everyone notice EM plans to "transform Twitter into the everything app"?
Ready for X/Twitter?

Even more for me to ignore?

[Falco Knotwise]

https://twitter
Everyone notice EM plans to "transform Twitter into the everything app"?
Ready for X/Twitter?

Even more for me to ignore?

So you're not planning on getting your brain chipped, and communicating telepathically with your new Tesla phone?

Me neither. I don't know whether it will really come out in 2024 or not, but I bet will be a hot seller when it finally does.

The younger generation is going to eat this stuff up. You can already get a virtual AI girlfriend. People in Japan are already dating robots.

[Falco Knotwise]

[Ken]

Ken,

I’ve only ever had prepaid cell phones in Australia and NZ.

I had to standard KYC documentation checks to get a SIM card. There is no reason America could not enforce the same. You have to pass KYC to get a driver licence or to open a bank account or do something as simple as use Facebook.

Sure, the government *could* do a lot of things. But I'm not sure what problem you are trying to solve her that requires government monitoring and tracking of all cell phone use in the US. A lot of people would be up in arms about the invasion of privacy and government overreach if you passed such a law. It fact it would be a lot of the same people who lost their minds about mask mandates and vaccines. And to what end?

The cell phone companies would also oppose it vigorously because it would add enormous costs, cut back on their markets and sales, and would essentially be an unfunded government mandate.

[ohio jones]

But I'm not sure what problem you are trying to solve her that requires government monitoring and tracking of all cell phone use in the US.

The bunny trail just started yesterday. Studies show too much screen time results in short attention spans.

perhaps questions of smartphones involved with criminal acts (like coordinating mayhem in cities for fun looting+destruction)
should be addressed in courts? for instance, removing privileges of ownership+use?

If a phone is stolen, well, then perhaps the surveillance state could track the stolen phone’s location, retrieve it, and return it to its lawful owner.

I wish they’d do this so I would quit getting so many spam / junk calls.

Presently, i’m looking at my gas range thinking it will become a family heirloom.

[Szdfan]

But I'm not sure what problem you are trying to solve her that requires government monitoring and tracking of all cell phone use in the US.

The bunny trail just started yesterday. Studies show too much screen time results in short attention spans.

perhaps questions of smartphones involved with criminal acts (like coordinating mayhem in cities for fun looting+destruction)
should be addressed in courts? for instance, removing privileges of ownership+use?

If a phone is stolen, well, then perhaps the surveillance state could track the stolen phone’s location, retrieve it, and return it to its lawful owner.

I wish they’d do this so I would quit getting so many spam / junk calls.

Presently, i’m looking at my gas range thinking it will become a family heirloom.

If someone opposes government action because it limits or restricts their freedom and liberty, it seems odd to me that these same people want the government to track everyone's cellphone usage and restrict who gets to own a phone.

Freedom for me but not for thee?