Electronic surveillance
A hypothetical question suggests itself. Suppose all crime was preventable by ubiquitous, all-inclusive, 24/7 surveillance. Nothing obtrusive, no omnipresent “telescreens” a la “1984,” no Orwellian “boot stamping on a human face, forever.” Simply — as now, only more so. Now, you walk into a convenience store or into a train knowing that cameras may be in operation, and think nothing of it. Their purpose is to catch (better still, thwart) shoplifters, gropers, pickpockets, explosive depressives or terrorists; if you’re not one of them, it’s got nothing to do with you; if anything you feel more secure — are the cameras not called “security cameras” more often than “surveillance cameras”? If you’re grateful for the heightened security, and it’s hard not to be, it stands to reason you’d be still more grateful for still more security. Total surveillance, total security.
A hypothetical question suggests itself. Suppose all crime was preventable by ubiquitous, all-inclusive, 24/7 surveillance. Nothing obtrusive, no omnipresent “telescreens” a la “1984,” no Orwellian “boot stamping on a human face, forever.” Simply — as now, only more so. Now, you walk into a convenience store or into a train knowing that cameras may be in operation, and think nothing of it. Their purpose is to catch (better still, thwart) shoplifters, gropers, pickpockets, explosive depressives or terrorists; if you’re not one of them, it’s got nothing to do with you; if anything you feel more secure — are the cameras not called “security cameras” more often than “surveillance cameras”? If you’re grateful for the heightened security, and it’s hard not to be, it stands to reason you’d be still more grateful for still more security. Total surveillance, total security. 
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