Video surveillance cameras in your neighborhood, on the streets...

[marzzo]

http://www.washtimes.com/metro/20021213-96845895.htm

Cameras mulled for neighborhood watch
By Brian DeBose
THE WASHINGTON TIMES
December 13, 2002

The D.C. Council yesterday debated a bill to put District
neighborhoods under video surveillance under a pilot program to test the
effectiveness of cameras on street crime.
"It is almost out of necessity that I support them because we don't
have meaningful police presence in our neighborhoods," said council
member Jim Graham, Ward 1 Democrat.
Adrian Fenty, Ward 4 Democrat, and other council members said that
they feared such a pilot program would lead to an unstoppable
proliferation of the technology in the District.
"I am struggling to find support for these cameras, given the
constitutional issues being raised," Mr. Fenty said.
He added that not counting the cameras installed downtown by the
Metropolitan Police Department, federal agencies have cameras --
"possibly hundreds" -- that Congress and the council are not aware of.

[JFK]

BIG BROTHER is alive and well

[Kimmykim]

And to think it all started with those damn traffic light cameras.

[Cohen]

I lived in Annandale right inside the Beltway, and know how bad it is DOWNTOWN DC. Hell 2 of my freinds got held up at the Crystal City Mall (the mall connected to pentagon) the city is fucked up and i think the cams might be a thing that could save a FEW lifes.

[EscortBiz]

Welcome to the New Soviet

I wish thwere would be a nice country where I can move to with no worries like this smallpox shit etc.

[UncleJimmy]

Haha KK, yeh I got 'snapped' a few times in Germany



What the hell, we should expect cameras in our houses soon enough....1984 finally showed up...

[UncleJimmy]

EscortBiz,

I'm still trying to convince the wife to move to somewhere in S. America or BC....

damned stubborn woman doesn't wanna leave the US

[fnet]

Originally posted by UncleJimmy
What the hell, we should expect cameras in our houses soon enough....1984 finally showed up...

Cheap Draganflyer style drones everywhere should take care of that...

Although right now if you have a webcam all someone has to do is hack you. ...or sit outside your house in a van and listen to your video card on an old UHF tv set, or grab your wireless packets. not to mention that even without a microphone plugged into it, your soundcard picks up ambient noise. hee hee. fun.

The only way around 1984 is to be a Little Brother.

[[Labret]]

You elected the republicans. You only have yourself to blame.

[jammyjenkins]

Originally posted by EscortBiz
Welcome to the New Soviet

I wish thwere would be a nice country where I can move to with no worries like this smallpox shit etc.

what are you talking about? there's shitloads of nice countries

[EscortBiz]

Originally posted by jammyjenkins


what are you talking about? there's shitloads of nice countries

tell me

[Ludedude]

Originally posted by [Labret]
You elected the republicans. You only have yourself to blame.

Sad but true.

Say Labret, do you get the EPIC Alert?

[jammyjenkins]

Originally posted by EscortBiz


tell me

depends on what you're looking for I guess

and the language

I'd happily live in France, Spain, Italy, Canada, Australia, New Zealand ...

Japan could be interesting

Caribbean sounds nice but might get a little dull.

That's just the tip of the iceberg.

There's so many great and interesting countries. If I actually had to pick up and leave, and pick one to move to ... I would have a hard time choosing.

[421Fill]

Originally posted by [Labret]
You elected the republicans. You only have yourself to blame.

No I didn't.

[Greg Atherton]

this world is really going to hell in a handbasket

[Pornwolf]

Originally posted by EscortBiz


tell me

You would have more freedom in The Soviet Union now-a-days!

Actually, having too much freedom seems to be their problem now.

[Beastiepoo]

Funny, I don't know how I would have reacted 5 years ago living in the US but now I've been living in the UK for nearly 4 years I have to say that this wouldn't bother me too much.

There are cameras in the busiest parts of most UK towns now. Not everywhere by any means; I certainly haven't got a camera on the lamppost outside my house in a very residential area, but in the major shopping areas and any other areas that have been identified as 'high risk' they are there. They don't intrude on our lives - Shit you don't even notice them. They are useful in catching criminals and helping track down lost/missing children. Granted, with our significantly reduced availablilty of guns to the general public (basically you've got to be a major criminal or know a big shot criminal just to get hold of one) the cameras are mainly used to catch theives, drug dealers, and other small timers as well as track down lost/missing children as I said before. I have to say though that IF the UK had a similar gun policy to the US and gun crime was as rampant here as it is there I'd be even happier that 'big brother' had an eye on things. Fuck, if someone I knew got shot on the street where there was a camera and the footage helped track down the murderer and bring him/her to justice then I'd be pretty happy about it.

I'm not saying that all surveillance is a good thing. The government here has some fucked up ideas about e-mails being 'public domain' and open to surveillance 'just in case' but regular letters are still private. And don't get me wrong, I don't want cameras down my residential road having a peek at my everyday comings and goings - if I choose to protect my home with cameras its my business but the local authority has no need to intrude. I'm just saying that a few cameras in high crime commercial areas can't do any real damage to the average honest citizen can they?