Privacy in Atlantis

Abstract

This Socratic Dialogue is set in the nation state of Atlantis. The Queen has charged the Counselor to consult learned stakeholders to forge a course of action on the matter of privacy. Accordingly, the Counselor has called forth the Philosopher, Economist, Merchant, and Technologist to the great Hall of Discussion. Through a hard-nosed, pragmatic dialogue, the Counselor comes to believe that form has been privileged over substance in the privacy debate. Regardless of whether privacy is viewed as property or dignity, one must confront similar core problems in establishing privacy policy. And regardless of the framing, quite similar solutions may be adopted.

Keywords: privacy, cyberspace, data protection, narrative