Radpops
There are concerns greater than citizen privacy in regards to that situation. How would we gather the funds for 300 million iphones, why use the iphone and not other phone models, how apple would deal with the sudden rise in demand and how it affects the global market, how would the government pay for the data plans, should someone lose their phone what would happen, what about people who already have one, what if you don't want one. The list goes on and it isn't all that comparable to the health care thing. I guess maybe in the most abstract of concepts. I don't know, I guess not being denied insurance coverage because you have chronic asthma or whatever is a bit more on the government's priority list than everyone being able to play Angry Birds (I think?).
Actually your over-thinking it & missing the point here. The main point was wether or not there is a trust issue with the government & how far it goes... as in would you refuse even something clearly harmless & very practical & useful to you with no moral issues tied to it just because it was from the government. Another example could be, if the government gave you free food, would you want to have it tested in a lab to check it for poison, drugs, or genetic modification, just because the government was the one who have it to you? & yes I agree, it is more important that I'm not denied health insurance then it is that you get to play angry birds.