December 08, 2004
The Shift from Guns to Cameras
There's been this interesting trend of surveillance where guns are being replaced with cameras, and our favorite cyborg surveillance artist has some interesting thoughts on the subject:
'In today's world, the hand gun has a lesser role to play. Wars are fought with information, and we live in a world in which the appearance of thugs and bandits is not ubiquitous. While there is some crime, we spend most of our lives living in relative peace. However, surveillance and mass media have become the new instruments of social control. Department stores are protected with security cameras rather than by owners keeping a shotgun under the counter or hiring armed guards to provide a visible deterrent. While some department stores in rough neighbourhoods may have armed guards, there has been a paradigm shift where we see less guns and more surveillance cameras.' [Defn. of "Wearable Computer", Steve Mann]
As I've said before, check out the Photographer's Bust Card. Many people think there is some kind of legislation that requires that you get their permission to take photos of them, which is pretty silly when you look around at all the surveillance cameras everywhere, but knowing your rights as a photographer is important, and just like the ACLU bust card, it's worth printing up and putting in your wallet.
Posted by nym at December 8, 2004 11:25 PM | TrackBack