Be afraid. Be very afraid...
Anyone reading my page has probably heard of Palladium. Just in case anyone's not up to speed, Palladium is basically Microsoft's attempt at creating a hardware-based DRM (Digital Rights Management) platform. They always accompany it with such phrases as "trusted computing" and "better security." I won't even get into the irony of MS using terms like "secure" and "trust" to describe anything relating to them or their products, but needless to say, many people feel that MS could use this new-found control of your PC to even further exploit their illegal OS monopoly.
Microsoft and other Palladium backers are, of course, denying any malicious intent for the platform. I can buy this, as it does have legitimate use for such industries as entertainment. However, my fear is that once MS controls the keys to our computers, does anyone really think they'll be content to just leave it at that? If you do, I have a bridge I'd like to sell you.
A recent article on The Chronical discusses many of these fears and doubts. It's geared towards the education sector, but the issues discussed apply to everyone. Definitely worth reading.
And needless to say, I will be thoroughly pissed if this in any way affects my my ability to run Linux, or other open source software.