We Need More Cameras, and We Need Them Now

I like Farhad Manjoo, but I deplore this article of his.

If you want to sell me on increasing surveillance, don't bother selling me all the upside based on fear. Any random salesjerk can do that.

Instead, let me know what sort of information you consider needs to be made public, what sort you do agree should be kept private, and what safeguards you think should be put in place to guarantee that information is safeguarded.

I enjoyed how he brings up and then completely glosses over the fact that:

"Once a city is routinely surveilled, the government can turn every indiscretion into a criminal matter. You used to be able to speed down the street when you were in a hurry. Now, in many places around the world, a speed camera will record your behavior and send you a ticket in the mail. Combine cameras with facial-recognition technology and you’ve got a recipe for governmental intrusion. Did you just roll a joint or jaywalk or spray-paint a bus stop? Do you owe taxes or child support? Well, prepare to be investigated—if not hassled, fined, or arrested."

An idea also notably absent: the current amount of surveillance we stomach as a nation has helped and continues to help in many criminal investigations.

From what I understand about terrorism, many times the terrorists don't get a chance to leave the scene.

Where there is multiculturalism there must be cameras. Lots and lots of cameras.