Security and the Modern City, Essay Example

Security has become one of the main aspects of today’s society, especially after the attacks of 911. There is more surveillance, more security and more officers on the roads within all of the United States and Canada. Laws are stricter and people are more leery of doing specific things. Our privacy has been taken from us in order to make an attempt to keep people safer. Charles Sykes in “Privacy and Surveillance” couldn’t have said it better. He states that “privacy is like oxygen. We really only appreciate it when it’s gone” (Code and Keall, “Privacy and Surveillance”). This is very true. However, the modern city has gone overboard with security and continues to take away privacy as well as other forms of security in our people.

Surveillance is high in the modern city now, especially surveillance in places such as Toronto. The police, government, military, and multiple companies are consistently using surveillance cameras and surveillance media in order to “protect” the public. The use of CCTV’s (small cameras used to watch patrons in banks, shopping malls, and other places) are used more commonly in the modern city. Police are now using these cameras at the majority of street lights in cities in order to capture people breaking the laws of the road. This is a big change as many cities did not have this technology before 911. These cameras are used to combat crime and are much cheaper than using police officers to do the work for them (“Example: Surveillance Cameras in Public Places”). Eavesdropping is another form of surveillance that is more prevalent in the modern city these days. Police and the government use “bugs” in order to overhear what people may be talking about. These bugs are put in vehicles, on telephones, and even through our email (Code and Keall, “Privacy and Surveillance”).

Since 911, security specifically has been heightened. There are a great number of security officers and security measures in airports, shopping malls, travel destinations such as Disney World, and many other places. Security in airports is probably the most prevalent today as we have seen a huge difference in the security measures in the last 12 years. There are more cameras, more security officers, and more security measures being put into place in these airports all over the world. “The traveler is identified, probed and monitored in ways that would never have been tolerated a decade ago” (Code and Keall, “The City in Crisis: Terrorism and Other Challenges”).

Fortification has also been heightened by the military in order to protect boundaries in both Canada and all of the United States. More and more military personnel are building walls per se in order to keep intruders out of our country. This is important to do; however, just like surveillance and security, there has to be boundaries. It is important for the military and government to understand what they are truly doing to the country.

There are many advantages to the heightened security of the modern city. However, there are just as many disadvantages. There are economic, social, political, technological, and administrative repercussions in the midst of the trying to secure our cities, our people, and our country. Economically, more companies are paying for cameras, officers, and ways in which to keep their products and customers safe. This is costly to the companies as well as its patrons. Socially, more and more people are afraid of talking to each other. We, in the modern city, never know when we are being watched, taped, bugged, or seen based on the security systems that have been put in and many are afraid to speak their own minds. Politically, many are fighting the new security measures saying that they are unconstitutional or unfair which makes it difficult for officers and the government to do their jobs. Technologically, more and more people are working harder to maintain equipment that suits the government’s standards of security. This means more labor, more pay, more equipment, and more money. Administratively, there are more people watching cameras, taking notes, spending hours reviewing security measures and laws. All of this creates some form of conflict. As stated, there are advantages and disadvantages that many have to consider as we continue to build security and surveillance in the modern city.

Works Cited

Example: Surveillance Cameras in Public Places.”. N.p., 22 Apr 2000. Web. 3 Apr 2013.<http://debate.uvm.edu/handbookfile/pubpriv/208.html>.

Lewis Code and Peggy Keall. Privacy and Surveillance. 2012-2013. Print.

Lewis Code and Peggy Keall. The City in Crisis: Terrorism and Other Challenges. 2012-2013. Print.