Consumer Identity

Welcome to the random and sporadic world of ai, where there' s always something interesting going on, even if it's sometimes really hard to tell. And today it's All Alice All Day, and what could be finer? Hi Alice. Good luck on those exams.

In other news, I heard on the radio today that "identity theft is a consumer protection issue." That makes sense, considering the fact that "identity theft" is the term we use to describe what happens if someone steals our credit card numbers, social security number, pin numbers, mother's maiden name, etc. So we have these "identities" that are made up primarily of numbers and a few random little bits of information that, when assembled appropriately, tell computers and banks and businesses who we are. These identities are what enable consumption. Without these identities, we cannot consume or otherwise participate in our material culture, hence identity theft is a consumer protection issue.

However, if we were going to be precise about it, we'd have to acknowledge that these are not our "identities," but our consumer identities; therefore, the appropriate way to describe what happens when these bits of information are stolen would be "consumer identity theft." But we don't call it that. Why not? Have lost, or are we quickly losing, any idea of "identity" other than our identity as consumers? If we allow "consumer identity" to be reduced to "identity" as if the two are essentially equivalent terms, aren't we somehow also reducing ourselves to consumers, as if "self" and "consumer" are essentially equivalent terms?

There was a time when "lying politician" was not redundant. Has "consumer identity" become redundant? And if so, what have we lost in the process? I bet Professor Cass R. Sunstein would have a thing or two to say about this. (For a quick holiday read, check out Republic.com, especially chapter five.)

Now if you'll excuse me, I've got a lot of holiday shopping to do.

Posted December 10, 2002 02:41 PM | life generally