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Comment by HeWhoLurksLate | Hacker News Reader

There is also a large difference between local surveillance (home/business/area CCTV), public surveillance (openly accessible cameras like traffic cams), and dragnet surveillance- I generally trust my local police precincts but don't like the fact that the alphabet soup of federal agencies has warrantless access to track me on the way to and from church or work or Facebook marketplace deals

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Honest question: If the feds were actually tracking you on your way to church, how does that impact you? Is that a real fear you have?

What kind of church…?

Does that matter? It's one where I share a common belief in a higher being with other people and we try to build a community and become better people and followers of our specific beliefs.

> Honest question: If the feds were actually tracking you on your way to church, how does that impact you?

Why do you suppose that stalking is illegal?

Before you write up any "clever" retorts, remember that many illegal activities (theft, kidnapping, murder, etc) are permitted when permission is obtained from a judge.

Yes, I often wonder if Martin Luther King felt at all concerned by the Feds tracking him on his way to church.

It just doesn't feel good or sit right with me to be tracked all over the place, and even though none of what I do is illegal (besides taking speed limits as suggestions from time to time, as is the American way /s) just being nearby can get you stuck with charges for things you didn't do.

The fed govt in the US has been doing questionable things on and off American soil for a long time: - bad analysis https://foreignpolicy.com/2013/09/09/the-cowboy-of-the-nsa - not to mention the massive surveillance state exposed by Edward Snowden

And then more specifically, Flock cameras:

https://www.yahoo.com/news/us/articles/one-alpr-camera-hit-e... https://reason.com/2026/08/13/flock-cameras-and-license-plat... https://www.riaclu.org/news/flock-safety-image-led-to-false-... https://ij.org/dozens-of-innocent-motorists-have-been-pulled... https://ij.org/the-ij-database-of-alpr-abuse/ https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2026/08/02/how-pol... https://www.cnn.com/2026/08/26/us/flock-kentucky-police-offi... https://www.aol.com/articles/milwaukee-police-officer-charge... https://ij.org/police-have-reportedly-used-license-plate-rea...

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