Haven't posted anything in over a month - and "No." it's not because Iraq's suddenly become paradise, the recent election notwithstanding - well, maybe a "gangsta's paradise" - but I digress.

The reason I haven't posted is simply because I've been to lazy to actually write anything... at least until now. So what was the impetus? Well, basically, I've just figured out that Amazon's one scary SOB.

It's scary how accurate their recommendations are getting....

I love Amazon. Love the customer service (really!). Love the ease. Love the selection. But I haven't entirely abandoned my home town bookstores. So, I buy a lot of stuff from both - with my hometown bookstores winning the race for my hard earned cash over the past couple of months.

What was scary was that I just got an email from Amazon recommending a grand total of 6 books based on my prior purchases. The accuracy was scary - I already owned all the books they recommended! Each and every one!

Not only do they know what I purchased before, now, they can even predict what I'd probably buy in the future.

It's great and all... but in the back of your mind, you keep asking yourself, what if, what if they decide to use all this information for other purposes? What other things does this say about you - the consumer? In what werid sick ass ways can all this information be extrapolated, massaged, integrated to other sources? What's possible?

Scary... scary.... scary.