Oh, it’s for my “safety”. Why didn’t you say that before? That changes everything! Here, take my privacy, my dignity, and my culture of mutual trust and respect.

I suspect that this type of thing actually increase anti-social behaviour in society as a whole, even if they might give a temporary local dip when they are introduced. These systems degrade trust and respect between people. They ‘dehumanise’ interactions and places.

… and also they are yet another massive chunk stolen from our privacy.

What is with these dead behind the eyes psychopaths that want to watch every single thing we do and make nazi style dossiers on everyone for future retrieval for inevitable dictator leaders. And if one thinks my comment is hyperbole, one only has to look at the current US shitshow to see what will happen to us given enough bad election choices.

“It grossly disproportionate for retailers, especially food retailers, to be using that technology,” he [Tom Sulston, the head of policy at Digital Rights Watch] said.

“Supermarkets are pretty safe places where ordinary people need to go in order to feed themselves and we shouldn’t have to pay with our privacy to do that.”

Pretty much sums it up. Fulfilling basic needs like food shouldn’t be a sum game of choices like “Will I be added to a database?” Or going hungry.

I’ll definitely be avoiding stores that decide to implement this. I recognise that’s not going to be an easy decision for some people and many just won’t care.

There’s a point in the not-too-distant future where I’m just wearing my covid mask whenever I leave the house. I already wear it in Bunnings. And it won’t be long before camera glasses are so prevalent that my assumption is I’m always being filmed in public.