Peters, again, on the next step towards total control over your vehicular travel.

V2V is a critical step toward the replacement of autonomous cars with automated cars – which must be aware (like the Terminator) of their environment, of the other cars within a certain radius of their position at any given moment. This in order to anticipate the need to alter course or speed to avoid impacting another car.

Which the car will do – without any input from you.

For saaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaafety, of course.

That is how it’s being presented – and it’s on that basis it will be force-fed to us. Including those of us who want nothing to do with it. Can you say rip tide?

About half of all new cars already have or offer (it’s not yet mandatory) automated braking and steering “assist.” The car decides it’s necessary to stop – and applies the brakes if you don’t.

It steers itself in the direction it thinks is right.

The fully automated and therefore no longer autonomous car will come standard with these things. And for the potential of this technology to be maximized, all cars must come standard with these things – as well as the V2V ability to constantly chatter with all the other cars in the immediate vicinity.

And – the really Big Thing – they will chatter with a central hive brain of some sort. Which will coordinate and control the whole enchilada. The central hive brain will be in constant contact with – and in constant control of – all the automated cars.

It’ll be like having a cop with a two-way radio riding shotgun – only worse because it will be a Super Cop. A single, central all-controlling cop who cannot be dodged – much less bargained with.

Prepare to kiss your own driving goodbye (maybe in ten to twenty years, maybe sooner). Many or most will welcome this. I will not.

Luckily I think I may have found (re-discovered) my own solution.

The glow. PL.