Government Isn't the Victim; It's the Perpetrator
By J. B. Shurk In Jonathan Nolan's excellent television series, Person of Interest , stars Jim Caviezel and Michael Emerson intervene each episode to avert violent crimes predicted by an artificial intelligence. Receiving only Social Security numbers from their computerized accomplice, though, the heroes never know whether they are protecting a potential victim or hunting a future perpetrator. Emerson's character designed the A.I. system after the 9/11 terrorist attacks as a way to safeguard the country from future harm but almost immediately realized he had constructed an oppressive surveillance apparatus infringing all Americans' civil liberties. More than ten years ago, when the show debuted, Nolan's incisive critique of the PATRIOT Act was evident. However, with the emergence of more advanced computational systems approaching at least the mimicry of true artificial intelligence and increasing evidence that the national security surveillance State has