On Fri, 2 Jan 1998, F. Leon Wilson wrote:

> CHOMSKY List Members:
>
>
> What are your thoughts in regards to our rights relating to government
> surveillance?
>
> Both covert and overt government surveillance.
>
>
> F. Leon


Well, it would seem self-evident that a free society is one with a minimum
of government surveillance. So, supporting the former, I oppose the latter
as a general principle. Did you have anything specific in mind?

It would also seem to me that, increasingly, the threat of surveillance is
coming from the corporate sector, as opposed to the traditional government
forms. Employees in the US increasingly take it for granted that
surveillance cameras (often hidden) are part of a workplace environment,
all in the name of Maximizing Efficiency by deterring theft and general
goofing off.

But the ability of employers to monitor the lives of employees takes many
forms. How about drug testing, frequently required as a condition of
employment in a wide range of jobs? In essence, the employer has the power
to monitor employees off-the-job conduct through random searches of bodily
fluids. It's hard to think of a more profound form of surveillance....

I'd be interested to know if these practices are present in other
countries....they're widespread here in the land of the free.

Bob Goodby
Barrington, NH  USA