Don't be fooled, you are NOT Anonymous

Lately there has been discussion on Kos about anonymity and how we should at all time respect bloggers inherent desire to be anonymous. We have read about the disgraceful way that Armando was 'outed' and have even been given tips on how to remain anonymous. The tips by bluerevolt make a lot of sense and should be followed but I have news for you, you are NOT anonymous.
No matter where you post, how many email addresses you set up, or proxies you go through, you can and are able to be tracked.

To grasp how this administration is using the power of technology to piece together everything you do online we should first get a basic understanding of what happens behind the scene when you send an email, visit a website, or post a comment.

The Packet
Everything you send and recieve on the web is organized into packets. These are bundled and unbundled by the networking software residing in your computer. A typical packet looks like this:
It is composed of a header; containing information about where the packet is being sent, and where it is originating from. The payload contains the 'important' stuff; if it is an email packet it may contain the recipient, originator, subject body etc.; if it is a comment to a blog it is going to contain the text, username, etc.
In short, packets transport all of our exchanges over the web.

Take the following hypothetical:
I am very careful about protecting my identity.

My user name at Kos is hatethewar.

I have a yahoo email address called [e-mail].

I work at Acme Ad agency

Sometimes I check my email at work

Sometimes I check my email at home.

I never post on DailyKos at work, just lurk and read.

Sometimes I comment 'anonymously' at Crooks and Liars.

Sometimes I search for things on Google

Occasionally I retrieve porn through a proxy server

Connecting the dots
The list of things I do daily are all related in the following way: each is bundled up and sent in one or more packets through my ISP (Internet Service Provider) through the network of hubs and switches that we call the internet. Each of them contain the IP Address of the machine I am currently using. Each of these requests (Posts and Gets) are logged by my ISP...for a minimum of two years:

Top law enforcement officials have asked leading Internet companies to keep histories of the activities of Web users for up to two years to assist in criminal investigations of child pornography and terrorism, the Justice Department said Wednesday.

The very first time I check my email address at work, my IP address at work is linked to my IP address at home. Every post I make to any blog is logged along with the IP address that I have currently been assigned by my ISP, along with a time stamp.

Implications
What does this mean?

Suppose I attend an anti-war demonstration and some energizing young soldier takes down my license plate. This yields a name and address. Running the name and address through a database shows that I use BellSouth as an Internet Service Provider. BellSouth logs show all of the IP addresses I have been assigned for the last two years. Matching the IP addresses yields every comment I have made, every email I have sent (regardless of whether they are anonymous or not), every time I use a proxy server, every page I have visited, and every google I have made. There is no end to the information obtainable.

Suppose a DoD snoop is reading posts on Crooks and Liars and I say something stupid like "I wish da preznit would do us all a favor and go down in history as the first one to commit suicide." The DoD guy thinks that maybe this is a threat that I'm gonna pray for the dear leaders' death. So he checks the logs and finds the IP Address of the 'anonymous' me. This IP Address belongs to BellSouth. He checks their logs and sees that that IP Address was assigned to me on that day and time. He checks all the other IP Addresses I have been assigned, runs them through the database and voila'...my entire web experience is available.

Conclusion
The Telecoms and Internet Service Providers are one and the same. They are giving the government access to information that in itself may not be totally destroying your privacy. But when this information is collected and sorted into relational databases and mined, the effect is that my (and your) entire web experience is easily revealed, as are our aliases, email accounts, and anonymous postings. One more step toward TOTAL INFORMATIONAL AWARENESS.

UPDATED: Some comments have been made about using the public library or anonymous internet providers. They might want to consider this: Librarians Speak Out
and this:An Internet Service Provider's NSL Challenge