The Watchers

The sensation of being watched, constantly, is a familiar one to urban dwellers, especially in Britain, where CCTV cameras are everywhere. Part of the pleasure of these high, open spaces may be a subconscious release from that oppressive feeling of supervision.

Of course, the watchers can't watch everyone, all the time, although they'd like to have you believe they can. There is no CCTV up here, and I doubt anyone wastes valuable satellite time on monitoring the movements of sheep, even the black ones. So, in the remoter, unwatched places, a stern notice has to do the job. Behave!

You may not be able to read the sign at this resolution.  It says:

POLICE NOTICE
DRIVING ON THE COMMON
WITHOUT LAWFUL AUTHORITY
IS A CRIMINAL OFFENCE
SECTION 34: ROAD TRAFFIC ACT 1988

It's a testament to something – I'm not sure what – that this notice is still there, unmolested, after what looks like some considerable time. Not a bullet-hole, not a stroke of grafitti, nothing. Perhaps the Welsh (or occasional hillwalkers) don't feel that English compulsion to subvert and mock self-proclaimed authority. Or maybe it was originally somewhere else entirely, and the subtle, sufficient joke is that it is here at all.