I returned acouple of days ago from a week in Tokyo. I was there partially for work, and partially for pleasure.

A coworker stationed there took me out acouple of nights to show me around a bit and have some dinner. I kept noticing all these camera looking things over the streets (one per lane on a pole across the road), but wasn't sure what they were. I asked. He told me with enthusiasm "Those cameras take pictures of everyone in every car coming into Tokyo. That way, the police will know if someone who isn't supposed to be in Tokyo is coming into town! Its those things that keep us all safe from bad guys."

That absolutely floored me. I would never imagine giving up that much privacy, let alone thinking that would actually keep me safe. I so wanted to come back with "How many bad guys have they caught with this?" or "So the cops are disarmed now since no bad guys can get into the city?" He was born and raised in Japan, and this is part of the slow creep they've done, like they have in England, to watch everyone and everything going on in their country and large cities.

I'm waiting for someone to try to recommend that here. It lets them watch you come and go, all in the name of keeping us safe..

Everyone should read 1984 at an early age.

I think they were taught its the norm in school, so they don't complain about its arrival.

Silly gaijin, cameras keep you safe.

For Japan that was no slow creep. Policing there has been highly invasive for decades, if not centuries. Ask your friend about police surveys. That's where they go door to door asking for personal details like who lives in the house and what they drive and where they work. The can ask whether your daughter has a boyfriend. The Japanese think nothing of it - it's normal if you grow up with it.

Japan is (and has been, for a long time) a police state. The justice system does very little too protect citizens from the cops, who has far greater powers than ours do here.

There are no grand juries, the police and prosecutors indict with out such.

Access to your attorney is very limited.

It's very hard to get bailed out, once arrested.

Conviction rates are very high.

Almost all cases go to guilty pleas on the basis of confessions obtained while in custody.

Trial by jury is extremely rare, almost all trials are done with judge only.

Cops have routine access to peoples' homes, and make frequent "visits".

Each resident must keep updated info on residence, employment, relationships, and identity in the local police station's database.

Naturally, no working weapons are allowed in the hands of citizens. Even if you are one of the few allowed a working firearm (hunters and sport shooting team members, there are >1000 in all of Japan), your weapon must be kept at your local police station. Family heirlooms and the like must be de-miled, but are registered, nevertheless.

We have that here now. The police have camera's that read lisense plates and will check DMV for "Hot" and such. What it doesn't tell the police is if the DRIVER is good or bad. I guess here they figure if the plate is on the "Hot" list the driver is too.
So a bad guy can drive a stolen only until it is reported. My nieghbor across the alley lost a truck for 6 weeks befor this system came to town. I know Minneapolis has a squad or two with this as I have seen it on Broadway just east of the Mississippi, or NE minneapolis. I am told it can cruise parking lots and read plates off to the side, allowing them to scan an entire parking lot if needed.
If you ever pointed a laser at a lisense plate, you will see it reflect Brightly, but not the numbers, just the plate background. Add some Technology, (non visible laser and camera) and your reading plates and feeding them into the DMV or a local "Hot" sheet.
Put one of these "Cameras" at all major bridges and key points and add a Cray Super Computer, now your wifes divorce lawyer can track you wherever you may go with time dates, maybe even pictures of who's in the car.
The future looks Bright!

de ka0old

KaOold is right, that's why we have all been getting the new higher contrast license plates.

There's also this: Minneapolis Surveillance Camera Project

http://mpls-watched.org/map/map.png

Hmmmm. There are things here that I agree with and things I don't. In the 3+ years that I lived in Japan (regular joe gaijin, not armed forces) no policeman or official ever came to my apartment asking me any questions about anything. I am not aware of it happening to anyone I know in Japan (not saying specifically that it doesn't happen, but if it does, I am not aware of it).

With that said, Japan has a far stronger degree of control over "the people" than any other place I've lived. If someone in authority says 'do something' you do it - no questions asked. you would get some slack as a foreigner, but not much. As noted above, this has been ingrained over centuries. Private ownership of weapons is unheard of. my benchmade pocket knife was looked at in awe by a number of people. There is a huge level of 'trust' that the government, your employer and the police will take care of you. This is changing though. I have no idea how long that change will take or if it will ever change completely.

Still, with all of these restrictions and compliance, Japan, Tokyo in particular, has by far the lowest level of violent crime of anyplace I've been. Other places like New York, London or Paris are filled with opportunities for violence. In Tokyo I will ( and have on many occasion) walk down some alleyways in the middle of the night, by myself, that would have certainly ended in violence in NYC.

In the end, it's their country - they can do what they want. If we expect them to respect our laws, customs and norms, we need to do the same for them.

That is how SkyNet starts.