Taking care of business in a crazy world

The following notice from Blogger or Google (or somebody) has suddenly begun to appear on the Overview page in the bowels of my blog:

European Union laws require you to give European Union visitors information about cookies used on your blog. In many cases, these laws also require you to obtain consent.

As a courtesy, we have added a notice on your blog to explain Google’s use of certain Blogger and Google cookies, including use of Google Analytics and AdSense cookies.

You are responsible for confirming this notice actually works for your blog, and that it displays. If you employ other cookies, for example by adding third party features, this notice may not work for you. Learn more about this notice and your responsibilities.


In that last sentence, the words “Learn more” were in blue, and clicking on them brought up even more information. I show it to you below, but as I am now officially tired of looking at italic font you will just have to make do with reading it in regular Times Roman:


Cookies notification in European Union countries

European Union (EU) laws require you to give EU visitors information about cookies used on your blog. In many cases, these laws also require you to obtain consent.

As a courtesy, we have added a notice on your blog to help meet these regulations. The notice lets visitors know about Google’s use of certain Blogger and Google cookies on your blog, including Google Analytics and AdSense cookies.

Change the notice

How to change or disable notice

If you have edited your blog in a way that hides this notice, it will be your responsibility to notify your visitors about cookies used on your blog and if necessary, obtain consent. Also, if you have added other blog features that set cookies, including third-party analytics or advertising services, you’ll need to provide additional or a different notice.

It is your responsibility to determine, based on your cookie use, what else would be appropriate. If you choose to use a different notice, be sure you still comply with Google’s EU user consent policy.

See the notice

To see the notice if you’re outside of the EU, view your blog and change the country code, for example blogspot.fr or blogspot.co.uk. If you use a custom domain, you won’t see the notice outside of the EU.


I showed you all of that to say this:

1. I have no idea whether I have edited my blog in a way that hides this notice.
2. I have no idea whether I have added other blog features that set cookies.
3. I have no idea what third-party analytics are.
4. I have no idea what advertising services are.
5. Even though Blogger or Google or somebody tells me it is my responsibility to determine what else would be appropriate, we Americans have been historically and remain to this day a rebellious lot who do not like to be told what to do by such entities as the European Union or England’s King George III.
6. I am definitely outside of the EU and therefore cannot see the aforementioned notice, but I have no intention of changing the country code to, for example, blogspot.fr or blogspot.co.uk in order to see it.

Therefore, I am asking my EU readers (Neil, Michelle, Gary, Adrian, others, this means you) to tell me in the comments section of this post whether you see from your vantage points the pesky notice Blogger or Google or somebody is so insistent that my blog provide. I am also asking non-EU readers who care to to let me know whether you have received similar instructions and what, if anything, you plan to do about it.

Furthermore, I would also like to inform Blogger or Google or somebody, and especially the EU itself, that I did not go to the EU users, they came to me, and if they want to take steps to comply with EU laws on their end and choose to do so, they can. I, on the other hand, being a citizen of the United States and not the EU, am responsible for complying with U.S. laws, not those promulgated by the exalted leaders of the EU. Put that in your pipe and smoke it.

Perhaps I am making a mountain out of a molehill.