Seniors. Did you know that in Britain?

CCTV is the least of it.

The most significant thing about CCTV spying, which has been around for decades, is that it has served as a sort of social test of how much Orwellian government power ordinary people are willing to tolerate. Or even applaud!

And it turns out that there are legions of people who naively trust the government to monitor and record every aspect of their lives. Because, according to that right-wing slogan they love to repeat, "If you haven't done anything wrong, then you have nothing to hide."

Which sounds sensible. Except that it really isn't. History shows us that:

1) Government power is ALWAYS abused when people allow it to happen.

2) Police who are given the power to investigate one thing will ALWAYS use that power to investigate other things they are interested in. It's sometimes called "mission creep." (For instance, G.DUH-bya Bush's "Department of Homeland Security" was created strictly to stop terrorists, but its vast powers are now used to investigate accusations of child pornography.)

3) The technology for spying usually increases much faster than do the legislative and judicial processes for protecting citizens from abuse..

4) Even when the authorities are not abusing the law, but are upholding it, the laws themselves are often so wrongheaded that society is actually better off when they are not well enforced. (For instance, until very recently, it was a crime in various parts of the American South for a woman to own a vibrator.)

5) Even when the authorities are not abusing the law, and even when it is not wrongheaded laws that are being enforced, surveillance of law-abiding citizens still often results in disastrous consequences. (For instance, police investigating a complaint of possible criminal intimidation accidentally discovering a powerful political figure having a harmless love affair, which nevertheless destroys his career when the police make it a matter of record.)

And because in recent years the public has blithely gone along with CCTV, we now have much worse forms of government spying.

For instance, in the U.S., the police and the government now spy on the cell phone locations, text messages, cell phone conversations, computer emails, and records of websites visited, by MILLIONS of Americans every single year. The phone and internet companies employ HUNDREDS of people whose only job is to keep up with handling all the orders from the police. And the numbers of those who are being spied on are increasing at an exponential rate. And in almost all cases, the traditional privacy protections guaranteed in the Constitution are ignored. The cops rarely bother with getting a court order, or even with demonstrating "probable cause" of wrongdoing. They simply tell the phone company that the target is "related to an investigation." The cops just want to know as much as they can about everyone.

And because of the complacency of most people, nobody is stopping them.

That tells me you have a 13/14 chance of getting away with something, most people will take those odds.

no problem - it keeps us safe

During the Christmas shopping season,if these cameras can stop one robbery they are very well worth it.

In Atlanta,we have these crime deterrents and they have helped apprehend many a criminal.

On one level they are something we should all be concerned about because we have started accepting intrusions into our lives without fighting back. Like any slippery slope it get harder and hared to try and climb back up.

Generally speaking though, I think they are a good idea.The level of monitoring doesn't seem that onerous and if they help to stop me from being assaulted or mugged I am all for them.

We have then at school and to be frank I doubt that any of us remember they are there or what we have been watching ( as long as nothing is wrong) one minute after we have watched.

I often look at the issue from another standpoint: as long as you're not doing anything wrong, why worry about it? And, if you are - such as by hurting or cheating someone - then I'm happy for the cameras.

If someone stole your package, wouldn't you want them to be on the Telly?..

I have no problem with CCTV cameras at all. If you haven't done anything to feel guilty about, then there isn't a problem.

They don't bother me. We once had a spate of robberies in our building - so the owner's committee installed cameras around the place and we've never had another robbery. Just their presence makes people think twice.

In a car park near our place, there used to be a lot of hooligans on the weekends, breaking into cars, destroying property. CCTV cameras were installed there by the Council, and some kids were caught and arrested. Since then, peace reigns in the neighborhood.

If you aren't doing anything you are ashamed of, CCTV is nothing to worry about. If someone sees me scratching my bum, who cares ?

I think these CCTV cameras are often mounted on high buildings so we dont see them and I am never doing anything I would be ashamed of anyone seeing?

They'll be putting them in our houses next.

And the anti-smoking Police will smash your door down and drag you off to clink if you light a ciggy.