You can do nothing on the web without filling in your email address and password.  It gets time-consuming, especially if, like me, one has a number of passwords (for security reasons) and you can’t remember which one you should use.

Why is it obligatory to do this?  If it’s a bank or the Defense Department you are contacting, well,that is one thing.  But just to get onto this blog for instance? Your check-in details are of no interest to me – I never look at them and couldn’t use them if I wanted  to.  The  use of addresses and passwords will not stop the troll or the dedicated hacker.  But no one has ever explained why collectively we have to spend so much of our time getting access to harmless websites and general information that involves the no credit card or other sentitive bit of personal information.

Is it fair to assume that it is required so that companies can harvest your email for commercial purposes and pester you at length?  I would like to be able to spend the time saved on filling in passwords in contemplation of nature and the enhancement of peace of mind (or eating chocolate) What is your explanation?