http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20120619/04094319383/data-mining-exec-pays-burgers-cash-to-keep-his-insurance-company-knowing-his-bad-diet-habits.shtml

Thought this was interesting  and is one of the reasons I think Bitcoin (or something like it) is so vital. I can easily imagine a future where physical cash is more and more rare and nearly all money is digital. If we are not careful we will sleepwalk into a world where every transaction is recorded in some big companies database. Would you like Visa, Facebook or Google knowing where and when you've spent or received every last cent?
The ability to have financial privacy in a digital world is definitely one of Bitcoins best features.