As I was passing through customs upon arriving in Australia I noticed a sign informing everyone that there was some television show being filmed today and that if we didn’t wish to participate we should inform somebody. Aside from the reference to the elusive ‘somebody’ it made me wonder just when exactly did privacy become something I had to opt-in for?
It got me thinking about the need for no-call lists and other such things that only exist because privacy does not exist courtesy of the gradual erosion of our rights. This case in particular frustrates me since Customs is funded entirely by the tax payer yet is attempting to profit by allowing film crew to insert themselves into security process and basically exploit travellers, be they guilty of whatever infraction or not. Some people would say bring up the old “if you’re not guilty then you have nothing to worry about”, but I already find going through customs stressful enough being completely innocent and I do believe the correct response to such a statement would be that we should be considered “innocent until proven guilty”.
There are people who are far more invested in the battle for reclaiming our privacy but I still intend to contact my local representative to inform him of my thoughts, despite knowing full well it will be a complete waste of time.
