I think COVID really opened my eyes to what many of "we the people" have become - scared of pretty much everything, and thinking the government can save us from it all. Even if it was the government's job, no one can save us from everything except our Lord and Savior. Sadly there are many who do not even know Him.
"it is the government’s job to pursue the perpetrator, then once caught, prosecute the crimes, and when a suspect is found guilty, mete out just punishment."
Without resources, the government (police) can not pursue a perpetrator and catch them. If citizens report suspicious activity on their street, it is a good deterrent to have increased police presence (extra patrols) to increase the risk of any criminals being actually caught. That deters crime.
How much of surveillance (cameras) are actually privately owned and the government never sees the footage until after a crime has been committed?
No, I don't want to live in a surveillance state especially when that data is abused! (like trying to enforce unlawful and unjustified mandates) But I'm not opposed to individuals and businesses using surveillance cameras.
The second amendment is critical for many reasons. Criminals *should* be afraid of breaking into someone's home due to the risk that homeowner might be armed and might shoot them in self defence.
Overall, I agree with you. It is unrealistic, however, to believe the government can (or even should) provide enough police presence *everywhere* to be a deterrent *everywhere*. Living in a free society entails risk, risk that we must accept if we wish to remain free. This is part of the reason for the Second Amendment. Individual citizens bearing arms serve as much as, if not more of, a deterrent as does a police presence.
As for cameras, again, I agree individuals and businesses owning cameras for surveillance of their own property is not problematic; in fact, in many ways, it should be encouraged. This is another deterrent (not to mention assisting in identification of criminals). One of the issues with security cameras today (as opposed to in the past, when they were cabled, closed-circuit, or only recorded locally. Most camera systems now stream their data to "the cloud" in order that the data may be accessible from anywhere. The issue with this is that the data is accessible from anywhere. There is an adage in cyber security that, if it's connected, it's hackable. Beyond even hacking, most people don't think about things like the company that makes and markets "ring" video doorbells is a Chinese company storing the doorbell video in the company's "cloud." Can you imagine the Chinese government not having access? I can't imagine the U.S. government would have difficulty accessing the data either. People are setting up the surveillance state for the government. No longer does the government need to go through the difficult process of getting a warrant for a wire tap, then physically working to tap someone's home phone line. Between "smart" TVs, Alexa/Google dot/Siri/etc., ring doorbells (and other similar), wireless security cameras (again, WiFi can be hacked), and so many other devices, people are selling their data to tech companies who then turn around and sell it to the government circumventing the Constitution.
There is no question this is happening. It's been shown the government is purchasing data from tech companies. It's just too much. Way too much.
Of course it is impractical for everyone to hire their own personal security guard (massive police presence). However with moderate police at a local level, we no longer have the "six gun justice" days where it might have taken a day or two to even reach a sheriff to make a complaint.
Some of us still have local security cameras that don't send our data to the cloud. {smile} I do agree with you though, the people are *helping* to make the surveillance state! Many people think a surveillance state is actually a good thing. They watch it in a movie and are horrified, but don't even realize that is what they are living in currently (and it's rapidly getting worse).
Once again: small government is better government!
I've thoroughly enjoyed your commentary. We The People generally have looked up to the federal government as their Savior. Too many of our citizens have lived on their breastfeeding from our
socialist governments teats. This is the federal governments doing as the other levels of government are also at fault for setting up it's citizen-sheep unto compliance and dependence. In our compliance with the law I believe this has a corresponding responsibility that of doing our part in being self-responsible in every area of our life. All levels of government need to have an accurate and originalist understanding and administration of the Constitution both Federal & State.
We the People have been "nickeled and dimed" over the years to the point that we haven't noticed the government piecemealing our freedom down to the quick. Slowly and meticulously they have worked towards taking away more and more of our unalienable rights. Thing is, they have become impatient and glutenous and are taking much bigger bites at a time now to the point that we REALLY notice and it pisses us off royally.
I am at the point where I am questioning if the great American experiment is finally coming to an end. I don't know that we have enough able bodied and minded men and women to fight for our freedom at this point. I know our military is comprised of volunteer citizens, but even those numbers are divided on what side of the scales of Freedom and Justice they stand. I ask myself regularly, "Is there ANYBODY out there that will take up the mantle and actually LEAD the forces? Have our 'leaders' all turned out to be nothing but a bunch of talking heads that are all talk; no action? All bark with no bite?"
I have zero doubt that there is a sizable number of able bodied people that ARE willing and ready to fight. They just need the right leadership to put them into action. And then again, are there ENOUGH of them to actually make a difference at this stage?
Our founding fathers gave us an instruction manual on EXACTLY how to oust a defunct government and replace it with the body that is WANTED by the people. We just have to remember how to read and FOLLOW the directions in order to free ourselves once again from tyranny.
MichaelH: Storyteller, Interesting questions posed to us and I feel as you do. We need now more than ever Patriot Leaders to lead and comply with Our "Original" Constitution as written and executed by our Founding Fathers.
I for one do not have any expectation that LE can or should protect me. They place us at greater risk everyday by failing to stop illegal aliens from entering the nation and many are simply criminals. The government has its place but it has forgotten where it’s responsibilities lie. Congress could fix all of this but without term limits they forget who their masters are.
I seriously can't recall how many I've had to explain my comment about what the just duties of government should be. Simply put, protect us from foreign invasion - there's your Life and Liberty, and keep the roads, bridges, and rails open, thus promoting the general welfare, covering The Pursuit Of Happiness. It ought to really be that simple and I'll add to those I'm talking to that it is impossible in the current state of our governments, be they city, county, state, or federal, that no one can get through a day without violating some statute.
“The powers delegated by the proposed Constitution to the federal government are few and defined. Those which are to remain in the State governments are numerous and indefinite. The former will be exercised principally on external objects, as war, peace, negotiation and foreign commerce. ... The powers reserved to the several States will extend to all the objects which in the ordinary course of affairs, concern the lives and liberties, and properties of the people, and the internal order, improvement and prosperity of the State.”
Benjamin Franklin once said: "Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety."
That is what comes to mind for me when I think about giving ANY control over my life/wellbeing to the care of the government.
Only *I* can make the truly BEST care of ME. I have yet to find ANY person that I am in TOTAL agreement with on EVERYTHING. There are many that I share common ground in a multitude of ways, but there are ALWAYS differences of opinion on the finer details. This istrue in my personal relationships as well as business, and political standings.
There is NO WAY the government could possibly provide complete protection for EVERY citizen at all times without an insane amount of intrusion into our everyday lives. To such an extent even Mr. Orwell couldn't have imagined.
I am not my brother's keeper and BIG BROTHER needs to keep his nose out of my business.
You make valid points here Chad. Thank you!
I think COVID really opened my eyes to what many of "we the people" have become - scared of pretty much everything, and thinking the government can save us from it all. Even if it was the government's job, no one can save us from everything except our Lord and Savior. Sadly there are many who do not even know Him.
Lots of potential details for discussion here.
"it is the government’s job to pursue the perpetrator, then once caught, prosecute the crimes, and when a suspect is found guilty, mete out just punishment."
Without resources, the government (police) can not pursue a perpetrator and catch them. If citizens report suspicious activity on their street, it is a good deterrent to have increased police presence (extra patrols) to increase the risk of any criminals being actually caught. That deters crime.
How much of surveillance (cameras) are actually privately owned and the government never sees the footage until after a crime has been committed?
No, I don't want to live in a surveillance state especially when that data is abused! (like trying to enforce unlawful and unjustified mandates) But I'm not opposed to individuals and businesses using surveillance cameras.
The second amendment is critical for many reasons. Criminals *should* be afraid of breaking into someone's home due to the risk that homeowner might be armed and might shoot them in self defence.
Overall, I agree with you. It is unrealistic, however, to believe the government can (or even should) provide enough police presence *everywhere* to be a deterrent *everywhere*. Living in a free society entails risk, risk that we must accept if we wish to remain free. This is part of the reason for the Second Amendment. Individual citizens bearing arms serve as much as, if not more of, a deterrent as does a police presence.
As for cameras, again, I agree individuals and businesses owning cameras for surveillance of their own property is not problematic; in fact, in many ways, it should be encouraged. This is another deterrent (not to mention assisting in identification of criminals). One of the issues with security cameras today (as opposed to in the past, when they were cabled, closed-circuit, or only recorded locally. Most camera systems now stream their data to "the cloud" in order that the data may be accessible from anywhere. The issue with this is that the data is accessible from anywhere. There is an adage in cyber security that, if it's connected, it's hackable. Beyond even hacking, most people don't think about things like the company that makes and markets "ring" video doorbells is a Chinese company storing the doorbell video in the company's "cloud." Can you imagine the Chinese government not having access? I can't imagine the U.S. government would have difficulty accessing the data either. People are setting up the surveillance state for the government. No longer does the government need to go through the difficult process of getting a warrant for a wire tap, then physically working to tap someone's home phone line. Between "smart" TVs, Alexa/Google dot/Siri/etc., ring doorbells (and other similar), wireless security cameras (again, WiFi can be hacked), and so many other devices, people are selling their data to tech companies who then turn around and sell it to the government circumventing the Constitution.
There is no question this is happening. It's been shown the government is purchasing data from tech companies. It's just too much. Way too much.
Of course it is impractical for everyone to hire their own personal security guard (massive police presence). However with moderate police at a local level, we no longer have the "six gun justice" days where it might have taken a day or two to even reach a sheriff to make a complaint.
Some of us still have local security cameras that don't send our data to the cloud. {smile} I do agree with you though, the people are *helping* to make the surveillance state! Many people think a surveillance state is actually a good thing. They watch it in a movie and are horrified, but don't even realize that is what they are living in currently (and it's rapidly getting worse).
Once again: small government is better government!
I've thoroughly enjoyed your commentary. We The People generally have looked up to the federal government as their Savior. Too many of our citizens have lived on their breastfeeding from our
socialist governments teats. This is the federal governments doing as the other levels of government are also at fault for setting up it's citizen-sheep unto compliance and dependence. In our compliance with the law I believe this has a corresponding responsibility that of doing our part in being self-responsible in every area of our life. All levels of government need to have an accurate and originalist understanding and administration of the Constitution both Federal & State.
We the People have been "nickeled and dimed" over the years to the point that we haven't noticed the government piecemealing our freedom down to the quick. Slowly and meticulously they have worked towards taking away more and more of our unalienable rights. Thing is, they have become impatient and glutenous and are taking much bigger bites at a time now to the point that we REALLY notice and it pisses us off royally.
I am at the point where I am questioning if the great American experiment is finally coming to an end. I don't know that we have enough able bodied and minded men and women to fight for our freedom at this point. I know our military is comprised of volunteer citizens, but even those numbers are divided on what side of the scales of Freedom and Justice they stand. I ask myself regularly, "Is there ANYBODY out there that will take up the mantle and actually LEAD the forces? Have our 'leaders' all turned out to be nothing but a bunch of talking heads that are all talk; no action? All bark with no bite?"
I have zero doubt that there is a sizable number of able bodied people that ARE willing and ready to fight. They just need the right leadership to put them into action. And then again, are there ENOUGH of them to actually make a difference at this stage?
Our founding fathers gave us an instruction manual on EXACTLY how to oust a defunct government and replace it with the body that is WANTED by the people. We just have to remember how to read and FOLLOW the directions in order to free ourselves once again from tyranny.
MichaelH: Storyteller, Interesting questions posed to us and I feel as you do. We need now more than ever Patriot Leaders to lead and comply with Our "Original" Constitution as written and executed by our Founding Fathers.
Thank you Dr. Giovanni. I agree with you.
I for one do not have any expectation that LE can or should protect me. They place us at greater risk everyday by failing to stop illegal aliens from entering the nation and many are simply criminals. The government has its place but it has forgotten where it’s responsibilities lie. Congress could fix all of this but without term limits they forget who their masters are.
I seriously can't recall how many I've had to explain my comment about what the just duties of government should be. Simply put, protect us from foreign invasion - there's your Life and Liberty, and keep the roads, bridges, and rails open, thus promoting the general welfare, covering The Pursuit Of Happiness. It ought to really be that simple and I'll add to those I'm talking to that it is impossible in the current state of our governments, be they city, county, state, or federal, that no one can get through a day without violating some statute.
Marcus Tullius Cicero - 'More law, less justice.'
“The powers delegated by the proposed Constitution to the federal government are few and defined. Those which are to remain in the State governments are numerous and indefinite. The former will be exercised principally on external objects, as war, peace, negotiation and foreign commerce. ... The powers reserved to the several States will extend to all the objects which in the ordinary course of affairs, concern the lives and liberties, and properties of the people, and the internal order, improvement and prosperity of the State.”
― James Madison
Benjamin Franklin once said: "Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety."
That is what comes to mind for me when I think about giving ANY control over my life/wellbeing to the care of the government.
Only *I* can make the truly BEST care of ME. I have yet to find ANY person that I am in TOTAL agreement with on EVERYTHING. There are many that I share common ground in a multitude of ways, but there are ALWAYS differences of opinion on the finer details. This istrue in my personal relationships as well as business, and political standings.
There is NO WAY the government could possibly provide complete protection for EVERY citizen at all times without an insane amount of intrusion into our everyday lives. To such an extent even Mr. Orwell couldn't have imagined.
I am not my brother's keeper and BIG BROTHER needs to keep his nose out of my business.