Big Brother doesn't have enough manpower to watch you...at least not very intently

This thread is due in part as a response to the OP in the thread posted by Skyfloating titled:

Webcam is watching you


Wherein, I will agree that the technology mentioned in the OP seemingly allows for such surveillance to occur but, I for one question whether the manpower is there to actually pull this off to even remotely be considered Orwellian.

In my opinion, unless you are a blatant threat to national or global security in some fashion, then I don't think you're going to have to worry about having Big Brother spy on you in and among your daily living. If anyone will be spying on you they will do so to get you to buy stuff not to pry into or try to direct your behavior to that of being sure you're maintaining that which is considered to be a "model citizen".


Here's why I feel this is the case (and by all means please add why you agree or disagree to this thread with facts, opinions, or any other conducive information that you feel may warrant further discussion):

I don't feel there is enough Federal manpower to survey in a manner fitting anything close to that of Orwellian proportions as it were. I am aware of certain technologies in place that do indeed surpass anything the typical human could do as far as mass surveillance, but to the best of my knowledge this technology is more used to see what you're buying to sell you more stuff, more than it is used to see that you are maintaining your prime directive and living according to TPTB determination of what a model citizen should be, in so many words.


Let us just compare the overall numbers involved here on the Federal grand scale. At the time this thread was authored the US Population was 314,666,576 people (of course one would leave a little room for +/- percentage ratios in this number) (Source) of which I mention simply for the sake of comparison to the available manpower.


As of June 2012 there were a total of 2,115,707 Federal Employees in the US, US Territories, Foreign Countries, and "Unspecified" to include Cabinet and Large, Medium, & Small Agencies (Source).


So let us speak hypothetically for a moment...


Let us say that every one of the 314,666,576 people needed to be surveyed (man, woman, child). To do that, you currently have 2,115,707 Federal Employees (this number doesn't account for Individual State & Local Government Employees but it should at least and somewhat garner the point) at your disposal that would need to stop doing what ever their current job is and instead do nothing but survey people in a typical Big Brother fashion.

Each individual Federal Employee would be responsible for watching approximately 149 people each.


Don't blink...


Any of you that have kids, have chaperoned, or more, have worked security know that just watching after a person or two can be a very daunting task, but 149 people all at once, this would take a super hero.


The Federal Employees we're talking about here would need to be surveyed as well so they in turn would need to be included within the bunches being watched as being a Federal Employee doesn't negate your potential to be a security threat.


There are those that profess our US Government can't be trusted and there are those that will say our liberties and freedoms are being slowly chipped away at by the Gubment. I can see how certain attributes of these claims hold water and on the other hand I am of the notion that in order to change, evolve, advance, or whatever fancy term you want to use, things will have to change.


Take these old advertisements for example, obviously this sort of thing on the market would be out of the question this day and age. Why? ...because there was a change, in the knowledge we had of said product due to changes in medical advancements. How many people at the time do you suppose were totally against this change and considered it an act of oppression from their Gubment?


This is what was advertised on the box and during that era was used additionally as a remedy for teething babies.

COCAINE TOOTHACHE DROPS
Instantaneous Cure!
Price 15 Cents.
For sale by all Druggists.
(Registered March 1885.)
Cocaine is the new anaesthetic now used so extensively thoughout Europe and this
country by Physicians, Surgeons and Dentists.
This preparation of Toothache Drops contains Cocaine, and its wonderful properties
are fully demonstrated by the many recommendations it is daily receiving.
Take no other except Cocaine Toothache Drops.
For sale by all Druggists.
Prepared by the Lloyd Manufacturing Co., 219 Hudson Ave., Albany, N.Y

or this one...



Indeed, children under 6 probably couldn't hang with the big dog 8 year old asthmatic smoking kids.

So this somewhat went off on a tangent from where I originally began, but hopefully on the whole a point was made somewhere within and if you made it through this far in the thread I am sure it's not one of the worst threads you've read on ATS. With that, I wholeheartedly appreciate you taking the time to read it.

In closing, I realize there could be a slew of differences in opinion regarding this topic but I think the moral of what I was trying to relay here is don't fear change, it has to happen sooner or later whether we like it or not. But, I do feel confident in saying that we will be able to do so without worrying about the Gubment being all tied up in what we are doing in our daily lives.

Big Brother is not really as big as some would try to have you believe, it's the advertisers, marketing companies, and various corporations that you have to watch out for, those guys are the Bully that beats Big Brother up on the playground everyday and are constantly a part of your daily activities one way or another.

they have more than enough semi intelligent software to do most of the work.

get flagged, get watched by a person.

they DONT NEED manpower, in fact the less manpower, the less room for error. (and leaks)

they want autonomous surveillance.

stop counting heads, start counting tech $$

reply to post by okamitengu

they have more than enough semi intelligent software to do most of the work.

Any examples of this semi intelligent software?

reply to post by UberL33t


Blasphemy! Heretic! Heathen! (prepares stake with kindling to burn the heretic!)

You introduce the element of common sense into a world where paranoia and the sense we're all REALLY that important to be watched personally reigns supreme.

I agree with your premise, but wish you luck convincing people who have spent a great deal of time creating this world of Uncle Sam behind every bush, personally hunting them. The other site I mod at, I'd seen one member actually argue for an extended period that DHS Drones were focusing on HIS house, specifically. Well...the fact he went out with a rifle the first time DID probably account for the circle back that time.....but then it came out he lived next to a base. Doh! Go figure.

....as I said though, you're suggesting that Uncle doesn't really have a vast army of mindless agents to keep an eye on each of us as individuals. No offense now and this won't hurt too much...but just take these steps here to that big wooden post in the middle of the square. It's a roast in your honor!

reply to post by Wrabbit2000

It's a roast in your honor!

I wrote this with full awareness of the verbal tar and feathering potential I was making myself susceptible to.

...so an honorable roast is not offensive by any means good sir, and I accept it with pride!

www.keylemon.com...

if thats public, whats in the private domain?

its not only for big brother, its for hackers too.

there's probably a whole forum of hacked webcam porn from couples who have their computer in the bedroom in some corner of the dark web.

let me also add, that you are spot on with advertisers and corporations tho.

those are WAAAY more of an immediate threat.

reply to post by UberL33tIndeed, children under 6 probably couldn't hang with the big dog 8 year old asthmatic smoking kids.



Here's a page explaining what astma cigarettes are.

Originally posted by okamitengu
they have more than enough semi intelligent software to do most of the work.

get flagged, get watched by a person.

they DONT NEED manpower, in fact the less manpower, the less room for error. (and leaks)

they want autonomous surveillance.

stop counting heads, start counting tech $$

Yup! and its posts like yours and mine that will raise those flags.

Anyone who influences others will raise flags and be subject to closer EXAMINATION.

Big Brother doesn't have enough manpower to watch you...at least not very intently.

They dont need manpower, they have these....

AI Super computers......

www.bionicme.com...

reply to post by auraelium


From that link

Stocks, financial trends, consumer analysis, political projections, manufacturing costs, import/export patterns, even the likelihood of a particular song being popular.

Countless little pieces of data, that when coupled with other pieces of data will, at worst, make you more aware, and at best will give you an unassailable edge in the world.

Originally posted by UberL33t
reply to post by auraelium

 

From that link

Stocks, financial trends, consumer analysis, political projections, manufacturing costs, import/export patterns, even the likelihood of a particular song being popular.

Countless little pieces of data, that when coupled with other pieces of data will, at worst, make you more aware, and at best will give you an unassailable edge in the world.

This is the civilian version, Military computer technology using next generation nano technology is is 8-10 years (and thats a conservative estimate) ahead of this.

reply to post by auraelium


That's a fair assumption I suppose. What Big Brotheresque functions would you say this AI computer would be able to perform?

reply to post by boncho


Yeah I read a little as I came across the picture, I made a comical reference to the 6 year olds because I just thought it was funny. For the sake of intended awareness of posting those was to denote changes that were made and ultimately accepted whether people liked it at the time or not, more or less.

I felt I may have been teetering on T&C's with that first one, and the asthma cigarette one was a bit more milder than the heroine infant calming tonic

Originally posted by UberL33t
reply to post by auraelium

 

That's a fair assumption I suppose. What Big Brotheresque functions would you say this AI computer would be able to perform?

Monitering every phone call,fax,email,blog post,website,car registration numbers from CCTV, creditcard transactions and a lot more, in real time is currently no problem.the only problem they have had up until now is storage but thats being sorted...check here....

documentthetruth.com...

reply to post by auraelium


So the fear is what, that they're going to know for all time that one bought 1800 Microsoft points, then went to Starbucks for a coffee?

Is the fear that they'll tabulate all of this data and conform society based off things "they" deem as unconscionable?

I am truly trying to understand wear this fear stems from.

reply to post by UberL33t


The fear comes from the inability to dissent, if you write a blog post now thats critical of the system, you could end up on a no fly list, which inhibits your ability to travel, this is already happening and is only the tip of the iceberg.
This means the government can literly do anything they want and get away with it and there is nothing anyone can do about it.
Power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely, what you are saying in a round about way is if you are doing nothing then you have nothing to worry about, but that old line doesnt hold any water in a free society.

As someone linked to, the Utah Data Center will be online in 2013. It's important to understand the power of the Cray computer housed there. Bill Binney, an NSA whistle blower, said it will be able to house 100 years worth of the worlds information output. In addition, it's code breaking and pattern detection capabilities will be second to none, for a little while anyway.

Couple that with Stellar Wind, the dragnet surveillance program put in place after 9/11, and you don't need manpower. Everything will be recorded and patterns analyzed automatically.

reply to post by UberL33t


I agree for the post part.

Its too big of a job for them to monitor you with an actual human being. Hence the need for RFID tracking chips,phone bugs, GPS and embedded computer trojan monitorware.
They monitor remotely. Via drones,hidden wireless listening devices(like in Jesse Ventura's show), and satellites.

The DHS They don't watch everyone ALL the time. That is a waste of resources.
They subcontract out. They get goody-two shoes yuppies pay them well and tell them to keep an eye on certain low priority "extremists".
The DHS watch certain targets based on priority. People listed in their databases as a "terrorist" or "radical" or "extremist".

Fusion databases make that pretty easy nowadays.