It's not that I'm worried about Google doing evil things with my data, I'm worried about it increasing the complexity of the identity management I already have to do.
I don't want Google targeting ads at me while I'm at work, based on searches I did at home. I don't want to have to worry about the carefully targeted adverts displayed on random webpages I show people on my screen.
I don't want my hypothetical future child having to worry about accidentally disclosing via content targeting that they L, G, B or T before they want to.
Until it's obvious that Google are building tools that let me actually cope with these sorts of problems safely, and easily I'm happy to not have my thousands upon thousands of Google searches being centrally logged. Even if it was an occasionally useful feature.
Remember, people are not normal. The long tail is still long and there are a vast number of people out there with "specific privacy needs" that are "outside that scope" and definitely do have something to worry about.
You make excellent points, and I'd like to add one more:
Google's personalized search is just not as good as their unpersonalized search.
The time I was Googling for suitable Xmas presents for my Grandma should not influence my searches for valentines gifts.
Incidentally, am I the only one to mentally filter out search results that have the avatar of an online "friend" recommending them? Is that link was ranked highly just because someone I've never met tweeted it?
I don't want Google targeting ads at me while I'm at work, based on searches I did at home. I don't want to have to worry about the carefully targeted adverts displayed on random webpages I show people on my screen.
I don't want my hypothetical future child having to worry about accidentally disclosing via content targeting that they L, G, B or T before they want to.
Until it's obvious that Google are building tools that let me actually cope with these sorts of problems safely, and easily I'm happy to not have my thousands upon thousands of Google searches being centrally logged. Even if it was an occasionally useful feature.
Remember, people are not normal. The long tail is still long and there are a vast number of people out there with "specific privacy needs" that are "outside that scope" and definitely do have something to worry about.