UDA Today has a spirted point/counterpoint debate between its editorial board and the head of the Internet Advertising Bureau over the privacy implications and societal value of cookies.

Don’t Fear Internet Tracking
Opposing view: Tracking tools make your life easier. They also help fuel the economy.
A wild debate is on about websites using “tracking tools” to “spy” on American Internet users. Don’t fall for it. The controversy is led by activists who want to obstruct essential Internet technologies and return the U.S. to a world of limited consumer choice in news, entertainment, products and services.
They have rebranded as “surveillance technology” various devices – cookies, beacons and IP addresses – that fuel the Internet. Without them, Web programming and advertising can’t make its way to your laptop, phone or PC. At risk are $300 billion in U.S. economic activity and 3.1 million jobs generated by the advertising-supported Internet, according to Harvard professors John Deighton and John Quelch.
Thousands of small retailers and sites devoted to niche hobbies, ethnic minorities, sports teams, politics, “mommy blogs” and myriad other interests – as well as local businesses, such as your neighborhood car dealer and grocer – depend on these tools. Regulating them unwisely puts at risk people such as Tim Carter, a former Cincinnati home contractor who now makes a living with his ad-supported site AsktheBuilder.com, and James and Susan Martin, who work full time and care for their kids from their Montross, Va., home, thanks to their site, Ikeafans.com.

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USA Today – Don’t Fear Internet Tracking

USA Today – These ‘cookies’ aren’t tasty; you’re left hungry for privacy.