So after some more reading, I seemed to have found a middle ground between my "there's nothing wrong" and Chief's "WOE IS US" standpoint.
it seems that this world-shaking privacy problem is only happening to people who do not already have Google Profiles when they activate Buzz. Buzz has them create a Google Profile, and then does the AUTOMATED LIST OF EVERYONE YOU'VE EVER TALKED TO thingy. have to then go to their profiles and disable the option and/or stop following the people they don't want broadcast.
people who already had google profiles (like me), don't seem to be affected by this. why? I don't know.
but the chatter indicates this to be the case.
that's reasonable to me. I'm going to delete my Google Profile and then start Buzz fresh. we'll see if I have the same horrifying privacy issue that everyone else in the world has. If so, then fine, you're right, Google is a horrible intrusive evil company. and stuff.
that would mean that you aren't crazy and paranoid like I say, and I'm not just ignoring crap because its Google like you say.
and speaking from my experience with a produce = shaking pom poms?
I suppose if you said "all laptops don't work" and I said "mine does", then I'd be "shaking the Laptop Pom-Poms"?