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Librarians in the US have started deliberately purging records of patron loans on a frequent basis so they can't be subpoenaed for those records. I applaud them, but if I was really concerned about people knowing what I read, I think I wouldn't want to rely on this.
I'm not planning on running for public office (or attempting to be appointed to the Federal bench), but if I were, I guess I'd have to make a "freedom of speech" kind of issue out of any spin my opponents might try to put on my reading habits. But then again, part of the reason I don't plan to run for office is that I don't feel like having to defend the details of my private life. There's nothing that interesting in my private life, mind you, but I'm sure someone who wanted to could find something to spin.
Meanwhile, the FBI already has my fingerprints, because we adopted two children internationally, and I'm probably already on a watch list due to my affiliation with the Quakers and the AFSC (American Friends Service Committee-- that awful subversive organization!) Last time I traveled by air, I got searched both ways. Maybe that was just due to the last-minute changes in flights due to cancellations, maybe not. They don't tell you why they choose to search you.
None of this makes me less concerned about the lack of privacy on the Kindle -- I'm significantly less interested in having one with the situation as it's been described. But I'm not kidding myself that my life is especially private as things stand already.
Switzerland is looking better and better....
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