@smkinoshita - The world has become small again, as it was in small towns of the past.  Everyone knows your business when you share something. 

@Joanne Goldman:  Short answer is "No".  

Now that's not to say they can't be guarded for 'long enough' however.  The fact remains that once those thoughts are recorded, it's simply a matter of time before they're shared if they're not destroyed in short order.

With enough security, some thoughts might not be shared until long after sharing would change anything.

For the average person however, do not publish anything you don't want to be shared within your lifetime.  That includes both traditional media, social networks, web pages, and email.

Guarding our thoughts is a really scary thought, however, like you point out, smkinoshita, it's time to stop thinking whatever is posted anywhere won't be available for others to see and pass on.  The question is, can our recorded thoughts still be guarded?  Is this still a real possibility, or has the horse left the barn?

There really is no privacy anymore, and although I shudder at who might learn my 'secrets' such as they are, I also have the feeling that the removal of privacy boundaries is probably a good thing all in all.

Consider:

• If you knew that others knew everything about you, you wouldn't bother trying to lie to them because they would already know the truth
• If you already knew everything about everyone else, they'd have no reason to lie to you either.

But there have been a plethora of fictional studies concerning loss of privacy. Perhaps the most prevalent reason for such a loss is the development of telepathic communication that cannot be blocked; most writers' scenarios in such circumstances have the characters becoming mad. We don't seem to be able to stand such a complete loss of privacy.

But I still think that a partial loss of privacy may not be without its compensations.

I've heard an IP lawyer describe the Internet as just a really great tool for copying and sharing content.  We need to rethink our assumptions about copyright and privacy in the light of that fact, which isn't going to go away.

I'd like to point out that it doesn't matter if it's electronic or not.  The moment someone shares anything -- be it on paper, a VHS cassette, CD, photograph or recording on an old LP -- it's not private and it can be transferred and then posted to the Internet for all to see.

The moment anything leaves one's brain onto another media, it can be posted to the Internet unless it is promptly destroyed afterwards.

That's just the way of things now.  Since we can't stop sharing or recording our thoughts, we simply must be prepared to guard what we do not want to be made public and accept that most things will be made public eventually.  There's no halfway measures.

I can bet $1000, that there are people in Russian parlament who doesn't know what Google is. and I mean it!!!

Ah, it is better to be Googled a little than not to be Googled at all.  Sounds like Oscar Wilde.

Kim, recently a law, that limits an access to certain websites was passed by Russian Government, So today, the whole country couldn't get an access to Google. At all.

The officials  explained that this was a mistake, though the last week, no one could  get to Youtube. I understand, it's terrible when your government is googling you, but may be it's not as bad, as  your gorvernment doesn't let you google.

Many commentators have said it one way or another - whatever you type electronically lives on.  Once upon old fashioned paper was secure in that you only had to trust one person and you could even ask that person to destroy the "evidence."  Those days are gone.

Anything you write using electronic media is never 100% in your control - end of story.  Even if it secure - it is never 100% private - and it has not been since the days of the Pentagon Papers and the Watergate tapes!

Case in point, in a job interview earlier this year somebody based their questions about CRM on articles and comments that I had made on Internet Evolution!