An editorial in the WaPo today makes an interesting point about the growing acceptance of "surveillance" by third parties in our lives.

By reality TV, I don't mean C-SPAN's coverage of Congress. Rather, it's programs such as "Survivor" and "Joe Millionaire" (which scores of Americans watch for dating tips and a soap opera-like fantasy) that soften us up to accept increasing levels of governmental surveillance and that chip away at our belief in the sanctity of privacy. Strange as it sounds, "Queer Eye for the Straight Guy" may be doing some of John D. Ashcroft's dirty work.

As most of us are well aware by now, surveillance cameras are everywhere. In fact, the American Civil Liberties Union found that as early as 1998, about 2,400 cameras were recording New Yorkers in a multitude of parks, stores and other public places. Recent estimates say the number of cameras has reached 7,200.