Are Your Medicine Bottles Bugged Tagged?

I find this bugging (Sorry! "Tagging") of medicine bottles deeply disturbing.

And my first question: Cui bono?

Who benefits from this technology?

Viagra Tag Could Be
Bitter Pill

By Randy Dotinga

Those little tracking tags that infuriate watchdog groups are taking hold in yet another place of business -- your local pharmacy.

Last week, Pfizer announced that it will combat counterfeiters by sticking radio-frequency ID tags on large bottles of Viagra. Pfizer follows on the heels of Purdue Pharma, which began tagging every 100-tablet bottle of the painkiller OxyContin in 2004.

RFID supporters downplay the prospect that you'll take home a tracking device with your heart medicine or birth-control pills. But no restrictions are in place to protect consumers from such situations, and Pfizer acknowledges in an FAQ that "it's possible but not very likely" that some RFID tags will leave pharmacies with Viagra users.

Combat counterfeiters? More like "counter-fitters" to me.

I'm so sure that drug dealers keep and use the original pill bottles, aren't you? Since the bugs (Sorry! "Tags") can only be read 6 to 18 inches away, what's the point, anyway?

Then, there's the possibility that other consumer items will be "tagged" without your knowledge or implied consent.

RFID tags wirelessly transmit information from a tiny chip and attached antenna to help manufacturers and retailers track products through the pipeline to consumers. Several stores, including Wal-Mart, already use them.

As far as I can tell, the only way to figure out if the things you buy have been bugged (Sorry! "Tagged"), is to buy your own reader.




Prices range from $4324.00 to $5600.00.

Of course, there's no reason whatsoever to question the possible uses of this technology... if you trust Wal-Mart and the big pharmaceutical companies, that is.

Truly heavy sigh.

File this under: Big Brother is definitely here, Cousins. The question is: Do you care?