Hell is other people

I’ve read a disturbing article on BBC news. To make the long story short, the government in the USA plans to put cameras on the border with Mexico. Then it plans to stream the output of those cameras to the web. It gets better. Then you can watch illegal immigrants, call a toll free number, the government will be alerted, troops will be sent, and you will save the day, kicking yet another Mexican back to his state.
I’ve stated my opinion about the wall in a previous blog, but this takes the idea to a whole new level. It learns from the methods of the secret police of either the ex-Yugoslav, Soviet, or if you prefer, Nazi regime and combines them with modern day technology. What this regulation does is employ people to spy on other people. What makes it “right” is the fact that you’re actually spying on “others” and not on “us” and therefore it’s legitimate.
What’s the entire fret about anyway? What’s wrong with watching and reporting criminals and by that lowering the crime rate? There’s a really small step between watching illegal immigrants and illegal regular criminals, like thieves, bullies and drug addicts. I don’t worry about the criminals, much. When someone crosses the line and bullies someone in the street, he deserves to be prosecuted. The real problem, however, is that you cannot separate the streets used by the criminals (“them” in the above example) and regular citizens (“us” in the above example). It means that everyone can spy on everyone and infringe on everyone’s privacy, wherever they want, whenever. Just because you kiss a girl you like near the Mexican border, or maybe at some later stage in the middle of your home town, is it really your neighbor’s business to watch that? Would you be willing to make all life that’s not happening behind the close shutters of your basement totally public, just to have a higher chance to lower crime rates? Would you really feel safer? I know I wouldn’t. It’s none of your business who I kiss. It’s none of your business who my friends are. And it’s definitely not the government’s job to make it your business.