A lesson in detachment for the President-elect.

In a comment on my last post, a longtime friend and loyal reader suggested that I chime in on a New York Times story that has gotten a lot of attention in the last couple of days. Among the other restrictions imposed upon the President-elect of the United States for reasons of security, it appears that Barack Obama will have to give up his BlackBerry and may have to stop using e-mail thanks to federal regulations on presidential correspondence as well as concerns about possible online interception by hackers.

Though I'm sure they'll be hard to bear for someone as apparently tech-savvy as Obama, limits on presidential use of e-mail and related technologies seems to make good sense. Given the various political e-mail scandals of recent years, the President-elect may be well-advised to avoid the potential problems that could arise if the occupant of the Oval Office started firing off e-mails. Even if Obama's BlackBerry represents a cherished symbol of personal independence, I doubt that the President-elect will have trouble keeping track of his schedule if he is deprived of the use of a personal digital assistant. If nothing else, the President-elect can take the loss of his BlackBerry and the freedom to use e-mail as a lesson in detachment and a tangible reminder that his life is no longer his own. AMDG.