Thousands, possibly millions, will watch Monday's 119th Boston Marathon from city streets amid heavy security. Among eyes trained on the event are those of Big Brother.
Paranoia meets preparedness and security overkill runs into safety demands where two years ago two siblings set off bombs that shredded more than 260 human bodies. Three people died on Boylston Street near the marathon's finish line. Others lost limbs, eyes and other body parts.
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Dzhokhar Tsarnaev will pay for his part in the carnage, having been found guilty on charges that could bring his execution. The Boston federal jury that convicted him begins deliberations on his sentence on Tuesday.
So of course security will be at an all-time high. And there lies the rub.
Those seeing the hand of overreaching law enforcement control of events, and not just the marathon, might well wonder why video camera presence is so heavy for the centerpiece of Patriots' Day. More law enforcement boots on the street, more eyeballs in the sky and unblinking sprouting on utility poles and buildings.
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The real question is: Do you want to be safe or sorry?
Curt Nickisch of NPR examined the security preparations in Boston. While Boston police didn't disclose the number of surveillance cameras in operation, it appears no one will be able to get near Boston Commons without being observed.
Heading for a drink at Cheers after watching the race? Smile and say hi to the person looking at the computer screen attached to the lens.
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And that creeps a lot of people out. Including, not surprisingly, the American Civil Liberties Union. NPR got this comment from the ACLU's Kade Crockford.
"What does trigger privacy concerns is the City of Boston installing a network of cameras — some in residential neighborhoods — that enable law enforcement to track individual people from the moment that we leave our homes in the morning until the moment we return at night, seeing basically everywhere we went and everything that we did."
Counter that with this comment from former Boston police commissioner Ed Davis.
"In my mind, the debate is pretty much past now. The cat's out of the bag. The video exists. The question now is, how do we protect people's rights in the everyday application of the technology that's already out on the street?"
There is a delicate balance in play. On Monday, no one wants to see another shambles created by a wannabe Tsarnaev. Concerns about what Big Brother watches after that deserve answers.
For one day, it will be better safe than sorry.
LISTEN: Marathon preview via WBUR-FM, Boston | READ: Spectators guide via WTNH-TV
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