> and with the intent that they would never know if they were being surveilled or not. [...] there's no chilling effect caused by the selective and unknown application of surveillance; the cameras and computers "watch" every car equally.
I disagree. Nobody expects all camera footage to be reviewed by a person, so you never know if what the camera caught will ever be seen (or used against you). In that sense, it's just like the panopticon. You feel watched so you behave, but whether you are watched or not in that moment is unknown.
That's part of my point, though: these cameras are basically never reviewed by a person. So you are reliably watched constantly, but never by a human.
This does lead to the problem that the post I replied to was pointing out, namely that people often get automated fines for cloned plates. It's kind of like the opening of Brazil, if you're familiar with that film, but obviously for much lower stakes.
I disagree. Nobody expects all camera footage to be reviewed by a person, so you never know if what the camera caught will ever be seen (or used against you). In that sense, it's just like the panopticon. You feel watched so you behave, but whether you are watched or not in that moment is unknown.