By the time that happens, the deal – so to speak – is usually done. Meaning whatever the "feature" is, it's become a kind of fait accompli that people generally just accept.

ASS is an example. No one asked for ASS (automatic start-stop) but all of a sudden – so it seemed – every new vehicle had this "feature." It is important – because it matters – to point out that ASS was never offered as an option, so that people could decide whether they wanted their vehicle's engine to shut down automatically every time the vehicle wasn't actually moving. It was just embedded – part of the package. Never mind the fact that ASS is almost universally detested.

This brings us to the latest "feature" which you have probably not encountered yet – unless you have recently bought a new vehicle. You may not see it at first, because unlike ASS this system is harder to see. But it's watching you, nevertheless.

Climb behind the wheel of almost any new car and look closely at the steering column. You will see a small housing that looks like it might be a secondary warning lamp cluster of some sort. If you look at it with a camera, you will see it is something else. Your eye can't see the infrared cameras in that housing that are watching your eyes – ostensibly for signs of distraction; i.e., that you might not be looking straight ahead or are "drowsy."

If the all-seeing eyes think you might be "drowsy" – or "distracted" – you will be hectored to "sit up straight" and "keep eyes on the road" or to "consider taking a break."

You can probably see where this is going.

Especially now that's it's getting closer. Next year, the federal requirement passed back in 2012 goes into effect that requires all new cars be fitted with "advanced impaired driving prevention technology" that effectively mandates the use of infrared cameras that "track your eyes, pupil dilation, and driving behavior." This is what I have been seeing in many of the new cars I test drive for the past couple of years, well in advance of the requirement coming online. In anticipation of the requirement is more precise. Probably the vehicle manufacturers recognized that if this "technology" appeared all at once, people would balk. They might not buy.

But introduce it slowly, incrementally – and there's less fuss. It seems like not such a big deal because it's only some cars that have it and all it does is pester you a little bit – and new cars have been doing that for decades already. What's a little more pestering? Most people don't like it, but they'll accept it. Just look at how most have accepted the "safety" rigmarole at the airport.

It's been normalized.

That's what's happening with the in-car monitoring, too. Most new cars have had cameras (and microphones) built into them for the past decade already. People have gotten used to the idea that the inside of their car may no longer be the private place it used to be. Most are aware that their car is transmitting "data" about them to various parties. That if they connect their phone to the car, what's on their phone is no longer private.

They shrug, most of them.

It's just the way it is. Indeed. It is the way it is, though, because people shrug and accept the way it is.