The issue with streetview isn't so much a matter of public vs. private, but a matter of permanence. As Scribe of Slog said, what would have otherwise been a fleeting exposure of private life into the public space may now be preserved indefinitely and made available to anybody.

In an age with digital cameras and sites like flickr.com get used to it. Really, go to flickr and look at malingering's photostream. Especially one of her Ridiculous Los Angeles streams.

The things we allow to be public momentarily are much different than the things we allow to be public indefinitely.

That is your responsibility. And considering that more and more cities are putting in various CCTV systems and with the blessing of most people, I really don't see a big deal.

Is a public restroom public or private?

It is a matter of degree. You have a reasonable expectation of privacy in a public restroom. However, it is not the same as the bathroom in your house or any other room in your house. See here. You can expect to use the bathroom and not be photographed.

Massachusetts Ave/Russell Street/Cogswell Ave

Jesus Christ, I think I went out with that woman's mother.

If you want the privacy, go someplace private. Private...privacy, see how that works?

Is a public restroom public or private? If you allow someone to see you standing at a urinal, do you believe they have the right to take a picture of you there?

Still, camping on someone's front lawn because of a story is not good either. In fact, its tresspassing. Boot them on those grounds.

As for a public servant, not sure I'd go as far as Jeff does. Yes, how they spend their money, what they do in public, and even some other areas of their lives should be open to scrutiny. Still, children's lives, and such should be off limits.

Legally I believe, "reasonable expectation of privacy" is doctrine, and the difference between a fenced backyard and a front step easily visible from the street is not insignificant.

I think that's right. There's a difference, though, between being seen by one's neighbors and constantly monitored by cameras. Similarly, if I go out to eat at a restaurant, I obviously have less privacy than if I eat in my dining room. OTOH, I don't expect a crowd to gather around and watch me and start snapping pics in either place.

I’ve got no problem with any of that, although I do think there ought to be some sense of privacy even out in public.

Legally I believe, "reasonable expectation of privacy" is doctrine, and the difference between a fenced backyard and a front step easily visible from the street is not insignificant.

However, photographs that happen to capture for posterity something happening inside someone's living room, just because the drapes might not have been pulled at that moment, would seem to this layman a violation of that "reasonable expectation."

Then again, legal doctrine or not, I'm considerably more circumspect when the drapes are open than when they're closed.