Both are involve victims being taken advantage of by a stronger force abusing their superior power. Yes, physical violence is more serious, pressing, and in need of immediate remedy so in that regard I heartily agree with you that they differ. However, those who do not learn from history are doomed to repeat it - our liberties are not stolen from us not all at once but rather piecemeal, bit by bit. So in terms of potential cumulative effect they are not so far apart.

Dawg, my intent here is not to argue with you personally, but rather discuss the issue at hand because I feel it is of importance, not merely in and of itself, but in the larger scheme of things, as this is one more example of an increasing trend that many find disconcerting. Thanks for the opportunity to clarify this relationship, as I suspect we would agree on much of the underlying principles at hand.

btw- I've tried to opt out twice now and the "system was unable to process your request at this time". Apparently volume of customers opting out exceeds vzw's processing capacity. Irritates me that not only do they put the onus on me to opt out but that I apparently will have to make multiple efforts to do so before I succeed. Anyone else experiencing this?