U.S. domestic surveillance grid goes orbital

surveillance_camera_1.jpgYou’re seeing the cameras everywhere, right? On the corner, over the intersection, in stores and public places, and a lot of locations we’re just never going to know about, there are likely eyes on you for a chilling percentage of your day.

When did all this become okay with everyone?

Now, the Department of Homeland Security is spinning off a new unit that will oversee domestic surveillance using high-res satellite imagery. Read more about that here. Plans are still a little sketchy, but evidently the pictures they’re taking of you could be made available to federal as well as local law enforcement, to aid in their criminal and civil cases. It all really hasn’t been sorted out yet, but they promise not to abuse this capability.

Really? They promise?

There are always those who say that since they’re not doing anything wrong, they have nothing to worry about. Ah, but the definition of “wrong” has gotten fairly blurry lately, too, hasn’t it? 

Congressman Ed Markey has written a letter to the DHS, and he asks some good questions. Let’s see if they get answered to his and our satisfaction, and I’d recommend we all continue to ask them until they do.