The Transparent Society is considered by many to be the most thoughtful and insightful book on the privacy debate. Brin, an academic physicist as well as successful science fiction author, covers a lot of ground with wide ranging and endlessly creative thought experiments and insights. Brin cites studies showing that while people care about corporations collecting information on them, they don't care very much. When polls ask for a prioritized list of concerns, privacy is not near the top. For example, people use supermarket shopping cards that collect detailed information on their purchases, in return for discounts on the goods they purchase.
Cameras mean less privacy in public places, but most people prefer more safety.
Brin argues, however, that the cameras should not be only in the hands of the police. Neighborhood busybodies will be able to see more things that are none of their business. But since cameras are coming anyway, Brin argues it is better to have information flow in all directions rather than just from the public to government agents.