“Terence Yap, the vice chairman and chief financial officer of China Security and Surveillance Technology, said his company’s software made it possible for security cameras to count the number of people in crosswalks and alert the police if a crowd forms at an unusual hour, a possible sign of an unsanctioned protest.”

Beyond the obvious issues around American investment in companies that are supplying technology likely used to suppress democracy, the article touches on some other points. It mentions that London has a more advanced public surveillance infrastructure then China, at present, and brings up the fact that many New York public buildings, convenience stores, etc. have cameras. And the city is “experimenting with surveillance cameras in Lower Manhattan and other areas of the city”. Now, many of those are closed-circuit, but with more technology going wireless and the use of computers to control/coordinate these cameras, what kind of position will we be in it is every ‘justified’ to put co opt this massive surveillance network for ‘national security’, or better yet, the ‘good of the people’?