Watch the Watchmen - Reason Magazine

An article written by the rational John Stossel, of whom I am rapidly becoming a bigger and bigger fan. Whole point being, there ought to be more transparency in police matters, as they are public servants and given their special position in society, the potential for abuse of powers is great.

Personally, as I go into public teaching, I realize that I in many way give up my right to privacy, at least as an educator. I forfeit my right to anonymity as soon as I'm paid at the tax payers expense. The same ought to apply to any public employee, yet some institutions manage to get a special pass. Why is that, and why is it such a problem? Stossel writes:

Watch the Watchmen - Reason Magazine:

"I believe in the right to privacy.

Yet I can think of someone who deserves very little privacy—a policeman making an arrest. Unfortunately, in some states it's a crime to make a video of a policeman doing just that. People recording police have been threatened, detained, or arrested. Some were jailed overnight.

That's wrong. Police work for the public, they're paid with tax money, and most importantly, they have tremendous power. They've got the legal right to pull guns, detain us, lock us up and, in some cases, shoot us. The potential for abuse is great. So it's a good thing that modern video cameras are now so commonplace. Any abuse of police power in a public place is likely to be recorded. Why should that be a crime in some states?"