Watch Me

A few people have picked up on this story on the BBC today, about Britain being heavily under surveillance (Samizdata being one). I don't doubt its truth; nor do I doubt the willingness of this particular government and the left generally to extend that surveillance: whether it is monitoring your rubbish, tagging your car to charge you by the mile, making huge fines payable if you refuse to let Council Tax inspectors see your conservatory to charge you more money, encouraging academics to spy on Muslim students, extending the CRB check system to encompass 1/3 of the population, or encouraging, even, vets to keep tabs on pet owners they think might be likely to abuse their pets.

To name a but a few.

I don't doubt either the sincerity with which the left believes we should be watched: we cannot be trusted because of our innate selfishness or our innate stupidity, and so therefore we must be watched by the agents of the state,who don't make mistakes.

I do worry that in some increasingly deep sense, we want to be watched. Years ago most of us relinquished the idea that we were being watched by an omnipresent divine spirit who could see every time you had one off the wrist, but instead of freeing us a la Dostoyevksy, we seem all the more to be wishing to be seen. Celebrity culture, the obsession with image and appearance (yes alright I'm bitter because I'm short, overweight and losing my hair), the desperation of governments to look as if they are doing things - even, sort of, the popularity of radio phone ins - we want to be noticed.

The point is this: we want to be approved. That isn't going to change, god or no god. We want to be validated. Submitting to surveillance is one easy way to achieve that.