On 11/09/10 19:35, Andrew Morgan wrote: > Now lets get rid of all this spying technology and start treating each > other like humans.
A noble thought Andrew, but it is precisely because of human nature that we find ourselves in this state. There are humans out there who put precisely zero value on your peace of mind or your physical safety. When those people start to play nice with the rest of us I guess the need for physical and technological policing will be much reduced and we will all live in a much safer society. And whilst I don't like the idea of being spied on by the state or by my peers, I do appreciate that in order to cost-effectively police this country technology has been introduced in pretty much the same way it has throughout every other industry. There may indeed be a better way of doing it, but pulling the plug on every camera over night is unlikely to achieve that. Look at the county where the police, in a recent (admittedly political) move, did precisely that with their speed cameras. There was an immediate increase in speeding offences. I accept many of the arguments about the potential for abuse of camera technology, databases and biometrics, but rarely do I hear anyone state that they have suffered directly as a result of that sort of thing. Almost always, in my personal experience, the people most vocal in this debate eventually reveal that they were ticketed for doing 40 in a 30 zone, and then go on to complain about the cameras being revenue generators for the county, deviously placed, etc. And sadly, in another indictment of human nature, I suspect that hard-hitting TV commercials educating folks to the dangers of speeding have far less effect on the numbers speeding than the fear of punishment. Sean -- music, film, comics, books, rants and drivel: www.funkygibbins.me.uk -- Next meeting: Bournemouth? TBD, Wednesday 2010-10-06 20:00 Meets, Mailing list, IRC, LinkedIn, ... http://dorset.lug.org.uk/ How to Report Bugs Effectively: http://bit.ly/4sACa
