It feels inevitable, given where technology is heading --- not only in terms of my personal effects emanating trace information about my location, but also just because monitoring and sensing networks are getting so much cheaper.
It also feels (word chosen carefully) like this capability is going to have more positive uses than negative ones. If I want to focus my energy on the law enforcement stuff that really matters, then perhaps I focus on whether we're criminalizing the right things (for instance: drug criminalization is a debacle), and whether we're appropriately constraining the ability of the police to detain and physically search us.
I don't believe that this kind of technology can't be limited in practice and in the law to protect us from the downsides while giving us most of the upside.
We were able to develop a framework to protect telephonic communication (against the wishes of law enforcement I might add) and I think something similar can be accomplished with electronic records compiled by service providers. If the government can pass a law making it illegal for me to sell lemonade without the appropriate permits, they sure as heck can pass a law restricting the sale or distribution of personal data.
I want my location to be made available (to others) to serve ME, but not propagated wantonly willy-nilly to the highest bidder. That's REALLY the major issue here; if these records are permitted to be generated for "legitimate business purposes permitted by law" then it's a free for all, since those records can be subpoenaed. But if we make certain classes of those records "personal identifiable data" then it's easy to erect a barrier to that information legally. The cops and marketers will complain to holy hell about it but I feel like it's a necessary step we as a society need to take to prevent total abuse by the powers-that-be.
It also feels (word chosen carefully) like this capability is going to have more positive uses than negative ones. If I want to focus my energy on the law enforcement stuff that really matters, then perhaps I focus on whether we're criminalizing the right things (for instance: drug criminalization is a debacle), and whether we're appropriately constraining the ability of the police to detain and physically search us.