I'm old enough to remember party lines, so your point is well taken. But even with the advantages of the telephone, it soon became obvious that people resented the constant eavesdropping of nosy neighbors. It's frustrating to have to fight that battle all over again, especially when someone like Eric Schmidt says, "If you have something that you don't want anyone to know, maybe you shouldn't be doing it in the first place." [1] I get it, the Internet is turning the world into a small town, but sometimes living in a small town sucks.

[1] http://gawker.com/5419271/google-ceo-secrets-are-for-filthy-...