Eye in the Sky

Based solely off of the information that was presented in this podcast, I do not understand why there was so much strong opposition against Project Angel Fire. As I was listening to the opinions presented from the opposing side-- that the surveillance camera was an invasion of privacy and that it gave the government too much power which discarded autonomy over oneself, I could not help but to form the opinion that those people were extremely selfish and privileged. Additionally, it sounded as though most of the opposition was coming from the potential of the technology, not what it was actually doing: "McNutt...(is) exasperated when his system is criticized not for what it does, but for its potential" (Reel). To start off, I believe that the time limit of 90 days to keep the photos and the fact that faces cannot be seen is enough privacy for everyone. Because in the right hands, this technology will only be used to catch criminals, I did not understand why some people were so opposed when they were not even the main target of the cameras. Bluntly speaking, I thought that the people who valued their "privacy" (written in quotes because the government possesses far more personal information on individuals such as social security numbers and etc.) more than stopping thousands of crimes from happening, such as with the incident in Mexico, were not only selfish but extremely privileged because it sounded as though they had never been affected by crime enough to want to put a sure end to it. This is of course, however, only if this technology is properly monitored and restricted for government use. Another point that angered me from the opposing side was that with this technology, people will no longer be able to make personal connections with police officers as authorities will no longer be as needed on the streets since criminals can be caught with a few clicks. I thought that this was a ridiculous statement because the only reason people may desire to develop personal relationships with police officers is in order to feel protected and in good hands. Because these cameras operated by authorities can do a far better job at protecting citizens than individual authorities on the streets, it makes more sense that this technology will improve police-citizen relationships than act as a detriment. Additionally, I thought once again that those who valued having a police officer friend over catching a kidnapper before any child is hurt were very privileged as crimes seem to have little effect on them. While I understand that this is a controversial issue, I believe that with the correct regulations and restrictions on these cameras, such as only being able to use them for incidents that were reported and have enough need to be examined, they will do more good than harm.

Reel Article: https://www.bloomberg.com/features/2016-baltimore-secret-surveillance/

"What Surveillance Will Look Like in the Future"
https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2016/11/even-bugs-will-be-bugged/501113/