Whack a mole

I hope this is not the case in Japan, but here is something to bear in mind should you ever find yourself using a changing room in department or boutique in US. It is perfectly legal for the store to spy on you while you are trying on clothes.
Long time ago someone found that she was being watched by a female shop clerk climbing on a stepladder while trying on clothes. She was sufficiently outraged and sued the store for invasion of privacy. She lost. The court held that it was reasonable for the shop to defend against shoplifting by engaging such surveillance.
You would think it is a bit too much but in Japan we can see more and more "street cameras" everywhere if not in a changing room. If you played hooky and went to see a movie you'd have a good chance to be videotaped where you should not be present.
Every convenience store is equipped with "safety camera" that not only shoots the act of shoplifting or robbery, but also ruthlessly records your wistful look at ice cream whether you are on a diet or not.
Every time crime occurs and there's no evidence, we think or even blame the authority for having not set up a camera at the site of the crime.
It is always a delicate and difficult matter where to draw a line between safety and privacy. The authority is always trying to draw it on a safer side and people privacy side. Currently most people agree to mount cameras where the crime occurred. But with this rate of crimes sooner or later we will have cameras all around us. This kind of whack-a-mole method is all too easy but somehow we like it.
Safety without a camera is our goal. But how?