posted
Like I have said before. They'd send me sympathy cards for such a disgustingly boring drab life. If they'd put money in them I guess it wouldn't be so insulting.....
-------------------- "You are a terrible human, Ritten." Magnus "Urgh, you are a sick sick person..." Austin Powers A leek too, pretty much a negi.....
Registered: Sep 2000
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posted
A fun story to link to whenever this subject comes up; but did anything actually come of it?
quote: Britain is to become the first country in the world where the movements of all vehicles on the roads are recorded. A new national surveillance system will hold the records for at least two years.
Using a network of cameras that can automatically read every passing number plate, the plan is to build a huge database of vehicle movements so that the police and security services can analyse any journey a driver has made over several years.
The network will incorporate thousands of existing CCTV cameras which are being converted to read number plates automatically night and day to provide 24/7 coverage of all motorways and main roads, as well as towns, cities, ports and petrol-station forecourts.
posted
Hey, I wonder if all the members of the opposition party go straight home to their spouses at the end of the day?
Registered: Mar 1999
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Which basically says that they'll use, CCTV footage to issue people parking fines. On the same news article they had a woman who literally pulled into a parking space for 10 seconds to let a bus pass her, and she pulled out of the parking space, but got sent a parking fine because she appeared on two frames of CCTV footage as being parked there.
Registered: Oct 2007
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posted
Given the vast expanses of empty highway in NB, they'd be hard pressed to track all vehicles here... Same applies for most provinces, too, actually.
-------------------- I haul cardboard and cardboard accessories
Registered: Mar 1999
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posted
I know that when my family goes to Ontario to vacation each summer, we use a highway that uses cameras to track your progress on it to see how far you travel, and then sends you the bill for the toll, instead of having toll booths every exit.
-------------------- "Kosh, I'd like to introduce you to our Resident schmuck and his side kick Kick Me."-Ritten
"Fighting for peace is like screwing for virginity". -George Carlin
Registered: Jul 2007
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quote:Originally posted by OverRon: I saw this on BBC News last night clicky
Which basically says that they'll use, CCTV footage to issue people parking fines. On the same news article they had a woman who literally pulled into a parking space for 10 seconds to let a bus pass her, and she pulled out of the parking space, but got sent a parking fine because she appeared on two frames of CCTV footage as being parked there.
My local council are the only one in the UK (outside of London) that has applied for this. The only one!
Funny thing is, I heard on the news this moring that only 1% of parking tickets are contended in England and Wales, but of those 60% are upheld in favour of the driver.
-------------------- I have plenty of experience in biology. I bought a Tamagotchi in 1998... And... it's still alive.
Registered: Apr 2005
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posted
But sod's law says that if it was 60% of tickets being contested, it'd be 1% of them in favour of the driver.
Registered: Oct 2007
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Da_bang80
A few sectors short of an Empire
Member # 528
posted
quote:Originally posted by Sean: I know that when my family goes to Ontario to vacation each summer, we use a highway that uses cameras to track your progress on it to see how far you travel, and then sends you the bill for the toll, instead of having toll booths every exit.
What highway is that? I was thinking of taking a bike trip this summer. Haven't decided whether to go east or west yet. It'd be nice to avoid those toll highways and take the back roads. Of course I might get off scot free anyway seeing as my license plate faces the left side.
-------------------- Grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change. The courage to change the things I cannot accept. And the wisdom to hide the bodies of all the people I had to kill today because they pissed me off.
posted
My concern is the erosion of rights, to include privacy. Single items at a time don't appear to be intrusive, but once they become common, an escalation of the violation becomes more acceptable.
Example: cameras by businesses can be rationalized. It is their business they're protecting, sure. Next, police (or 'civil') cameras are rationalized by referencing the previous business cameras. Afterall, the police can already review the business cameras; why not just put those cameras in more public spots, where they're more likely to do some good.
Next, cameras on highways, to monitor license plates. Afterall, if someone is committing a crime, why should be they be allowed to go unidentified. That 'crime' includes speeding isn't too far a reach.
True story: last month Comcast (a US cable television company) revealed a pilot program where a small camera built onto the cable receiver would be used to identify customers by basic body shapes (not facial recognition). The idea is to bring profiles of TV viewing up automatically, according to that customer's previous viewing habits. Sounds cool: it could immediately identify the latest Law & order episode for me or Bob the Builder for my son. Sounds convienent.
Why not expand upon that? Parolees...they already wear anklets in some cases. What if we put cameras over their doors, to monitor their comings and goings? You know...to make sure they're not gaming the system?
Oooh...what if we set up a camera system to replace the med-alert necklaces. That way, when my 93 year old neighbor falls and hits her head, the system can recognize a sudden and unlikely movement to alert a person to the monitor, see if she's okay.
Hell, why not put up a camera system like that for everyone? Its not like only old people need it. What about that single pregnant mother? What if she experiences sudden complications and can't reach a phone either. In fact, wouldn't it make it cheaper to subsidize it and require it for all new homes.
Its not the police asking to do this, afterall. Its for the common health of all society. Sure, if a crime is committed within a home, why shouldn't the police have the right to review it. Afterall, a crime was committed.
Wow, with a little modification, that movement software could be altered to report any strange activity by anyone, and alert a 'monitor.' Now, we can all have an unblinking eye in our home.
I mean...there's NO reason to be scared of this technology. Its here to protect us.
See...its the mission creep that concerns me. We get used to the small changes. There no reason to issue a blanket "No" on these societal changes, but you must always review and be a master of your own government. Ask, "does it make sense?"
What would your parents, at your own age, think of these developments?
Registered: Jan 2003
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posted
Why stop with roads? How about we put the cameras in our homes and make them in the form of television screens that work both ways and can show news or entertainment or government propaganda? These "telescreens" could let the government make sure you're not committing any sort of crime in your home.
Seriously, the whole vehicle movement database idea is creepy to me. It seems to make the assumption that any citizen is a potential criminal who has to be monitored. If it's ever put into place someone will have to put up a few "Welcome to Oceania" and "Big Brother Is Watching You" billboards.
-------------------- "Having is not so pleasing a thing, after all, as wanting. It is not logical, but it is often true."
Registered: Apr 2005
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