“Track the Rebel Scum” – FLOCK ALL YALL

Our Take

Credit where it's due: theatrics get attention that policy memos never will. Rated R TV's Julian Dorey reacting to some guy named Roger Ralphs showing up in a Darth Vader costume to rail against Flock Safety cameras is exactly the kind of moment that breaks through the noise. City council meetings are where these surveillance contracts actually get approved or renewed, usually with a handful of residents in the room and zero press coverage. A guy in a Vader helmet talking about "tracking the rebel scum" is absurd enough to make people click, and that's the point — it gets the ALPR conversation in front of eyeballs that would otherwise scroll past another dry city council recap.

But the joke only works because the underlying fear is real. Flock's network doesn't care if you're a rebel, a Jedi, or just someone driving to a medical appointment you'd rather keep private — it logs your plate, time, and location and stores it, often for cops in cities you've never visited. San Diego is one of hundreds of jurisdictions where local officials quietly greenlit this infrastructure with minimal public debate, which is exactly why showing up in costume was necessary to get a reaction from anyone at all.

If you want to see whether Flock or similar ALPR systems are already watching your commute, check our camera map, and if you're ready to push back at your own council meeting — costume optional — our take-action page has the tools to help.