Do you ever feel like you’re being watched as you walk around the city? Chances are that you are.

Beyond the many security cameras that dot the city’s urban landscape, the Metropolitan Police Department employs 19 Closed Circuit Television cameras (known as CCTV) to monitor traffic-heavy or sensitive areas:

The Metropolitan Police Department uses its CCTV system to support public safety operations in the nation’s capital during major events, emergencies, or times of heightened alert for terrorism. The CCTV system monitors public spaces only, with a focus on critical installations that have been identified as potential terrorism targets.

The 19 cameras — recently increased from the original 14 — are wirelessly connected to a $7 million Joint Operations Command Center (JOCC), where police can monitor the comings and goings of city life on 22 flat-screen TVs and 50 computer stations.

While the network of cameras are only used in specific instances, civil libertarians have expressed concern that they questionably straddle the fence between public safety and domestic espionage. If you think so, or even if you have no objection to the cameras and would like to see more in place around the city, the city is seeking your comments.

The Metropolitan Police Department today announced that it was accepting the public’s comments on the system, so if you have anything to say, now’s your chance. Of course, if you do say anything to criticize the system, they may well start watching you to teach you what’s what. Maybe they’re watching you already. They probably know you’re reading DCist. They have your IP address. They’re looking through your dressers and closets. Trust no one.

Can you tell that we recently saw “Enemy of the State“?