In today’s Washington Post is this article about how ubiquitous surveillance cameras have become in Great Britain. Consider this:
Britain has become the world’s premier surveillance society. There are more than 4 million unblinking electronic eyes gazing down on shoppers and travelers across the country (though far, far fewer human brains are dedicated to deciphering the data those eyes record). London’s railway stations are overseen by some 1,800 cameras, and another 6,000 are trained on the capital’s underground train network and double-decker buses, catching the average commuter on videotape about 300 times a day.
In other words, to travel around London is to have your image recorded numerous times. Even if all you’re doing is going to the pub for a pint.
Now consider this:
Some people have agonized about the Orwellian implications of such surreptitious surveillance, indulging in eye-in-the-sky speculation about the invasion of individuals’ privacy. Developments such as face-recognition technology and computerized tracking of out-of-the-ordinary behavior have reawakened anxieties about Big Brother. But for the most part, the British have learned to live with — and sometimes even appreciate — the ever watchful eye. And, really, it takes a certain hubris, a strain of self-importance, for Mr. and Ms. Ordinary Citizen to imagine that anyone is watching them, anyway
Hubris or not, the point is that the British people are being watched and they seem to have completely accepted it.
This does not bode well for the United States, I think. The 9/11 attacks made security at airports and government buildings even more intensive than in the past, and with very few exceptions we all seem to accept the wisdom of all this increased security without ever really questioning if its accomplishing anything. Another attack on the American mainland and I am afraid that the average American would be willing to accept almost any restriction on their freedom, all in the name of safety.
Yes, it may be true that security cameras may have helped capture the London bombers, but they didn’t succeed in stopping them.
