Yesterday there was a wild brawl in the grounds of a high school in Sydney's western suburbs. Graphic pictures of the melee featured in the evening news - thanks to students using their photo/mobile phones to record the event - and happily forwarding it to the media.
We live in a different age from the hit or miss days when the only news coverage was by staff reporters and cameramen. Vast numbers of people have a mobile phone with camera capability and they are quick to record the event when something newsworthy happens during their day.
These cameras not only add to news gathering but have become a valuable help in solving crime. Crims running from a mugging or the holdup of a convenience store are likely to find themselves - in full colour - on someone's camera. Even a minor road crash is often recorded by strangers - and this valuable evidence may later be sought if the case goes to court and damages are involved.
Unfortunately there is also a down side. These useful little cameras have been used by paedophiles to record their sordid escapades and recently there has been a spate of perverts filming up women's skirts. Unlike old time rolls of film, digital photography leaves no developing traces and can be accomplished on a computer - or on cheap digital printers.
Times have changed from the comic book days of Dick Tracey when he supposedly had a miniature phone built into his shoe. But then the days of Buck Rogers have also actually happened. We have been into space - and a man has actually landed on the Moon.
There are more such miracles to come in the future - and it seems that the future is what is happening right now. Sit tight. Buckle your belt. It will be a wild ride - and just maybe your fondest dreams will become reality in your lifetime !
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