San Francisco Surveillance Camera Debate


Buried in an article reviewing the debate over the efficacy of security cameras in San francisco is this paraphrasing of a statement from the head of the housing authority:

Fortner said he knows that criminals don’t like the cameras, because someone in the Sunnydale public housing development recently ripped one off a telephone pole with a rope tied to a car. When the camera returned, vandals turned to an electric saw, cutting through concrete, steel and finally the camera’s wiring.

I suppose that someone becomes a criminal by definition when they destroy public property else what justification is there for this generalization.

However, this seems like perfectly fine behavior for anyone who thinks it is not appropriate for governments to be spying on them. Which should be, well, everyone except the government big brothers. Even they should know better.