An interesting examination of citizen "spying" and policing in the United States. Including a number of examples from throughout American history, Reeves examines the ways in which the general public has been recruited to help in policing itself. An interesting conversation/debate starter, with plenty of food for thought.

I greatly enjoyed this book's technological and cultural history of police attempts to use citizens to look for and report crime. The discussion of the way the police grappled with the telegraph as well as the history of neighborhood watch (which was negatively contrasted with more violent neighborhood protection movements) were both particularly excellent.

After reading the introduction and the first two chapters, then flipping through the upcoming pages that contained more of the same, I could no longer bring myself to continue. It read like a student's report on government incompetence and a blending of conspiracy type quotes to prove the point.
Netgalley. Full Disclosure: I was allowed to read a copy of this book for free as a member of NetGalley in exchange for my unbiased review. The opinions I have expressed are my own and I was not influenced to give a positive review.

Spy and Snitch Nation

Citizen Spies is two very different books: one a failure, one a success. The failure is the bizarre restriction of the evidence Joshua Reeves allows readers to know. The success is that he uses this limited evidence to show that Americans should work to avoid being spies for the authorities.

It fails because citizen spying is demonstrably a true evil all over the world. It is a standard tool of authorities. East Germany had everyone spying on each other. China is probably the worst of the worst, as neighborhood widows are charged with spying on everyone, and denouncing anyone they please. The USA did it in the Philippines. The Nazis did it in WWII. So Reeves’ case can be proven with certainty, really easily, by looking outward. Instead, he examines a small number of (by comparison) tame American programs that debatably head in that direction. Things like Neighborhood Watch, D.A.R.E. and “If you see something, say something.” He argues the spying is worse than the poor and often negative results the programs obtain. Americans call in millions of anti-terrorism tips each year – which actually “prevent authorities from acting on them in any meaningful way”. This includes 40 alleged terrorist plots every day. Many lives have been ruined for absolutely nothing but a clue or an accusation. Just like China.

In Citizen Spies, we learn that the proper bureaucratese is “lateral surveillance initiative”. We learn that various paranoid agencies are busy instilling pointless fear. For example, for DHS, suspicious activity includes ”talking on a cell phone, using cash, or frequently checking a wristwatch.” Reeves reserves some of his most damning rhetoric for D.A.R.E., the public school program by which the police turn children into informants against their parents. Essentially brainwashing them into telling everything, they convince children they are there to help their parents if they take drugs. Police instruct them never to tell their parents they’re talking to the police because parents routinely beat children who do(!). The kids rat on their parents, whereupon they lose their jobs, go to prison, and split up the family. The state seizes all their assets, and the children can then be rotated through foster homes. A win-win by D.A.R.E. standards. D.A.R.E. has a billion dollar budget to promulgate this family values spy program.

The hypocrisy of a supposedly free people is stinging. It could be said that Edward Snowden was just following the Americans Golden Rule: if you see something, say something. 77% of Americans don’t approve of their surveillance by the government. Reeves says don’t co-operate, and leave your personal tracking device home.

David Wineberg