On Observation

I've been silent for a few weeks, and busy with other endeavors. Still, I would not be one to forsake my true calling.

There has been a lot happening in the news lately. A new Supreme Court Justice was nominated, General Motors became Government Motors, The Obama's decided to have a date night, The Republicans complained because they were not invited on the Obama's date night. You know what? For this posting, I am going to lay off of my traditional targets, and focus on something else that caught my eye today.

Raise your hand if you were not aware that privacy in our nation was severely reduced after the attacks of September 11, 2001. Come on now, don't be shy, I am certain there are a few of you out there who can not understand why our every move is being monitored. Well now, there are not too many hands up, are there?

Recent news has revealed that two states are using highway speeding camera, and it is creating an uproar from many in our country. One AOL reader classified the use of highway speeding cameras as "Big Brother Gone Wild". Some are claiming the highway speeding cameras to be an assault on American Civil Liberties. As if saying the cop in the bushes with the radar gun was not. These highway speeding camera is the highway patrol's way of unmanning the front lines. Think about it from a cost perspective. They average highway patrol officer spends as much as 20 hours per week monitoring speeders. At an average wage of $25 per hour, the state is spending $2000 per month per highway patrol officer monitoring speeders. The average cost of operating a speed camera is actually less that $5.00 per hour. Using the same 20 hour factor, the state ends up pay approximately $400 a month for the camera. $1600 may not be much to you, but it sure impact the bottom line of many state budgets.

Here's the bottom line America; Most of us speed on the highways, and that creates situations where accidents occur and people die. Someone has to monitor the speed on the highways, and ensure the safety of all who drive them. If you were the governor of a state, what would you rather pay for that protection, $2000 per officer per month or $400 per camera per month? I am not a financial analyst, but it seems to make sense to go with the more cost effective option. Now, about this whole big brother thing. News flash, the government has had the ability to monitor Americans since just prior to World War II. Phone lines have been monitored for decades, cellular communication is tracked, as is the use of the internet. Think about your Social Security Number, and how easy it is to find you with that. It is the government's way of maintaining a database record on you. Big Brother has been watching since 1940's, and perhaps even earlier. Problem is, many people in the past were not aware of the Big Brother concept until Orwell wrote his book 1984. For all we know, Big Brother could have been watching us since 1498, 1849, 1894 or 1948. One never knows, does one?