The IRS and the NSA and How They Relate to Social Media

Unless you have been living in the far reaches of the Amazon jungle, out of touch with society, I'm sure you all are aware of the recent Federal organizations in the news. Specifically, I'm referring to the IRS and the NSA (National Security Agency). These news events have caused all of us to consider the far-reaching ramifications and effect it will have on each of us.
My concern is more focused on the IRS than the NSA. We all know now that the NSA can monitor basically everything. They can read all of your emails, monitor your social media interactions such as with Twitter, Facebook, and Google+. I would be more concerned with your online posture in these social media networks and how it relates with your political affiliations with certain organizations and possible targeting by the IRS. 
I'm sure as time goes on we will be hearing more details about these organizations and how far their powers will actually affect each of us. 
As far as privacy is concerned, there are web sites that maximize your online privacy and minimize intrusion into your life. A few of these sites are:

SelectOut - If you want to surf the Web unnoticed, you can opt out of ad tracking. See more at:
http://www.selectout.org/ 

Glassboard - a more private way to share with family and friends. See more at: http://www.glassboard.com/

Ixquick is a search engine that doesn't record any of your private information when you search. That includes your IP address, browser information or search history. See more at: https://www.ixquick.com/

How Secure Is My Password - Test the strength of your passwords at this site. See more at: https://howsecureismypassword.net/

Pwned List - How can you tell if any of your online accounts have been hacked? See more at: https://pwnedlist.com/

Privnote -  emails that self-destruct after they're read. See more at:
https://privnote.com/

Obviously, some of us have a stronger privacy concern than others. Please feel free to check out the above web sites and find something you feel comfortable with. I believe this list is a helpful alternative that will enable many of you to feel somewhat more comfortable about your future online experiences with the various social media. If you have any comments or issues with privacy, please send me an email or if you feel comfortable posting about it, feel free to express your viewpoint. I answer all comments.

I'm Jim Scarbrough and you can view my other technology blog I write at:
http://pcjournal.typepad.com/blog .