Record the Lens That Records You

wired news ^ | Nov. 28, 2002 | Patrick Di Justo

[freepatriot32]

Ronald Deibert, a University of Toronto associate professor of political science, wants people to grab their cameras and hit the shopping malls Dec. 24 and participate in World Sousveillance Day.

Surveillance means "to view from above." Sousveillance means "to view from below."

[FreedomPoster]

>>Yeah, just keep beating that terrorism horse.

I'll agree with you here. We beat the Germans, the Japanese, and the Soviets without the kinds of Big Brother-ish governmental goings-on that are afoot now. Not much to say about mall security, that's a private business, they can do what they want. But the FedGov bears watching, to see how far they go on the home front.

[FreedomCalls]

Translation:

"All these security cameras are getting in the way of my shoplifting." "What's a liberal to do these days -- we can't just obey the laws like the conservatives do." "Private property is our property."

[Rodney King]

Why would a store care if you photogrpahed their video equipment that is in plane sight? They wouldn't. Unless of course they suppose that you are a criminal who is staking out the store.

The assumption here that for some reason the men behind the cameras are deeply distrubed that you know they are there is silly. Stores want you to know that there are cameras there. They would much rather that you didn't try to steal in the first place then have to catch you after you did.

[Jhoffa_]

But the FedGov bears watching, to see how far they go on the home front.

Yes. I am much more concerned about Uncle Fedgov and a modern day Reichstag (not that it's happened or that I relate the WTC to such an act, but it certainly set a precedent for anyone interested in such things) than I am about Osama and the dirty underwear gang.

[boris]

"Why would a store care if you photogrpahed their video equipment that is in plane sight?"

Why would they want airplanes flying around their stores, taking pictures?

--Boris

[rockfish59]

Smile!

[boris]

Well, I once proposed a website; basically a huge database. I called it "surveil the surveillors" and posited that thousands of volunteers armed with GPS receivers would post the location and purpose (if known) of every surveillance camera. Seven-eleven cams, traffic cams, red-light cams, whatever.

Why? To be "ornery". That's an American right.

Submitting quietly to the growing lack of privacy and anonymity--even when going about your lawful business--should trouble Americans.

--Boris

[dogbyte12]

Baltimore has more than 60 police department surveillance cameras placed throughout the city.

I would say that is tame. I am not worried as much about businesses, but the gubermint. Cameras and storage space are going to keep shrinking in price. They are going to be so ubiquituous that everywhere you are in public, you can assume you are being monitored. I just don't want me picking me my nose on FOX's "Wackiest government surveillance tapes" ;)

It is estimated btw, that every typical working american is caught on 10 surveillance cameras per day, be it at work, driving on the freeway, at the ATM, etc... If we didn't tune it out, I bet we would act differently. I will not mention this to my wife, because she will take an hour doing make-up and hair every time we go to the supermarket, if she is consciously aware that she is being filmed.

[Rodney King]

LOL. sorry for typo.

[Happygal]

Eh on December 24, I will be....tearing my hair out (as scheduled since December 24 2001)

When you are the only girl in a family (since Mam died) it is my perogative to have a break down on that date...so I suggest Mr. Dilbert shove his camera up the nearest turkey opening on Christmas Eve! *LOL*

[unixfox]

Personally, I'm in favor of cameras in public places...

I guess you wouldn't be opposed to having cameras pointed at your house then either, right?.

My point is this...Give em an inch and..well you should know the rest.

[blaze]

Well they've got 1.2 million more to watch,this year,thanks to our lax immigration enforcement.

[spectr17]

[stocksthatgoup]

The "eyes" have it! The motion carries.

[eno_]

Most imaging devices in those cameras are CCD digital sensors. These can be permanently blinded with a sufficiently powerful laser. Any class 4 laser in the visible spectrum will easily do the job from a greater distance than the camera can see. And, depending on how the camera is configured, it does not have to be "in use" for this to work.

[eccentric]

Yes, I'd like a camera on my street, even at me house. It could record breakins, vandalism... and even me watching for the mailman. I put on in my car a couple of times and recorded drivers running stop signs. Cops didn't care, "Picture isn't good enough to see the driver" etc.