Religion: A marvelous Panopticon

Recently it was in news how government security agencies in USA secretly collect private data of millions of people across the country. The social media caught hold of this issue and went gaga over it, and the innocent and gullible public fell for this spectacle. Millions of American citizens expressed their contempt for the government on social media platforms such as twitter and facebook, for they were made to believe that NSA looks, with great interest, at their everyday emails, snapchats and web history. I do partly sympathize with those opposing NSA, however I feel that the public uproar was much hyped. They completely failed to understand the importance panopticism plays in keeping a large society together. At the same time, the fact that having access to ones sensitive information doesn’t mean the same accessing and using it was ignored.

NSA has no right to keep a check on companies or organization in other parts of the world, but as an agency responsible for security of the country it should definitely have the authority to keep a check on its own people. We need to understand that NSA propagates panopticism, which is a tool used to check the behavior of various members of the society and helps in maintaining peace and stability in the long run. I feel that it is a very powerful tool and that the focus of the public should not be to target panopticism but to make sure that only a responsible power controls it.            

 I am made to ask myself how is that the public hold such contempt for panopticism, when they on other hand worship the most deceiving yet greatest form of panopticons ever. As a child, I remember being told by my mother to be conscious of my actions, for God is always watching. Yes, I believe that religion is an institution of panopticism which instills desirable behavior in the followers by making them believe that they are being observed all the time. This institution of religion has not only created a panopticon which is not physically present yet very effective but has laid down demarcations between good, favorable behavior, and bad, unfavorable behavior. Though I do not believe in this panopticon, I am impressed by this marvel of deception which I cannot deny has so far helped in creating a stable society.

Fig 1: The eye of providence on one dollar bill, What do you think it signifies?