Glasgow, CNN, and the panopticon

Has anybody else seen the story currently running on CNN Headline News
about the surveillance cameras now in use in the commercial district of
Glasgow? The police sit in front of the TV screens and control the cameras
(which are set up about one to a street on tall, unobtrusive poles) by
means of joysticks. Each camera offers a view of the entire street. The
whole operation is funded almost entirely by private contributions, mostly
from the companies with businesses in the district, above all Marks and
Spencer department store. Of course, CNN cloaked the story in terms of
Orwell's _1984_: "Just 10 years after George Orwell's vision of Big Brother
was supposed to be real, frightened citizens have decided that privacy is
not as important as protection from crime" (or something like that).

--------------------------------------------------------

|-|_|-|_|-|_|-|_|-|_|-|_|-|_|-|_|-|_|-|_|-|_|-|_|-|_|-|_|
_|-|_|-|_|-|_|-|_|-|_|-|_|-|_|-|_|-|_|-|_|-|_|-|_|-|_|-|_
|-|_|Landis Duffett_|-|_|-|_|-|_|-|_|-|_|-|_|-|_|-|_|-|_|
-|_|e-mail:duffett@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx |-|_|-|_|-|_|-|_|-|_|-
|_|-|vms address:landis@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx _|-|_|-|_|-|
_|-|_|-|_|-|_|-|_|-|_|-|_|-|_|-|_|-|_|-|_|-|_|-|_|-|_|-|_
|-|_|-|_|-|_|-|_|-|_|-|_|-|_|-|_|-|_|-|_|-|_|-|_|-|_|-|_|
-|_|-|_|-|_|-|_|-|_|-|_|-|_|-|_|-|_|-|_|-|_|-|_|-|_|-|_|-

---------------------------------------------------------




Partial thread listing: