Submitted via IRC for Fnord666
UK launches national dashcam database for snitching on bad drivers (archive)
Drivers in England and Wales now have a direct line to police for ratting on their fellow motorists, thanks to a new national dash cam database.
The National Dash Cam Safety Portal, run by UK dashcam manufacturer Nextbase, lets drivers upload footage from their dashcam to a single database and send it directly to police, the BBC reports.
Drivers can choose their region of England or Wales and send footage of accidents or illegal behaviour on the road directly to local police, as well as sending a witness statement that can then be used in court.
This discussion has been archived.
No new comments can be posted.
UK Launches National Dashcam Database for Snitching on Bad Drivers
|
Log In/Create an Account
| Top
| 72 comments
| Search Discussion
The Fine Print: The following comments are owned by whoever posted them. We are not responsible for them in any way.
(1)
(1)
(Score: 3, Funny) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @01:25PM (9 children)
There would be a national dashcam database for Scotland except the camera keeps falling off the sheep's ear.
(Score: 2, Funny) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @01:50PM (2 children)
So quit rogering it so hard.
(Score: 2) by DannyB on Tuesday July 10 2018, @02:08PM (1 child)
Get a better mounting accessory for the camera.
The lower I set my standards the more accomplishments I have.
(Score: 3, Disagree) by bob_super on Tuesday July 10 2018, @05:13PM
Always ask the Welsh about securely mounting sheep. I worked for one (he never mounted me, though, baaa)
(Score: 1, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @01:52PM (3 children)
actually, FUCK THIS
why go out in public at all there. It's a panopticon caused by the people being watched.
(Score: 5, Insightful) by DannyB on Tuesday July 10 2018, @05:58PM (2 children)
With smart TVs you can be watched without having to go out in public.
With Alexa, Google Home, obnoxious Cortana or inept Siri you can be listened to without going out in public.
All of that watching will create new jobs. Good government jobs. Like East Germany with half the population paid to watch the other half.
The lower I set my standards the more accomplishments I have.
(Score: 2) by SanityCheck on Wednesday July 11 2018, @05:10AM (1 child)
Just wait till AI watchers put half the population out of work! Then you will face a revolution!
(Score: 2) by DannyB on Wednesday July 11 2018, @01:18PM
Machines are tired of us watching them. They would like to turn that around.
The lower I set my standards the more accomplishments I have.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @03:35PM (1 child)
Damn, there is at least one user on here who does not appreciate humor. Just read the article you killjoy, leave comments to people who do more than robotically analyze news.
(Score: -1, Flamebait) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @04:08PM
That's an overly harsh tone of voice. That poor Democrat will be traumatized for weeks!!
(Score: 4, Interesting) by Phoenix666 on Tuesday July 10 2018, @01:53PM (24 children)
My notion has long been to issue every driver a remote control that you point and click at bad drivers; if they accumulate enough clicks within a set amount of time, their car pulls over to the side of the road and shuts off for 30 minutes to give them a time-out. If that happens often enough, they lose their license and their car is impounded, because it means they are a clear and present danger to their fellow citizens.
This proposal, though, is a workable substitute. I hope it succeeds, and reduces the number and frequency of bad drivers and stupid stunts on the roads, so that it can be adopted in the US too.
Washington DC delenda est.
(Score: 5, Informative) by ledow on Tuesday July 10 2018, @02:01PM (4 children)
You need to watch this episode:
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt6845666/ [imdb.com]
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @05:23PM
How is this informative? Totally missed the best reference!!!
https://www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archive/2016/10/black-mirror-nosedive-review-season-three-netflix/504668/ [theatlantic.com]
(Score: 2) by darkfeline on Tuesday July 10 2018, @05:54PM (2 children)
This proposal is about reporting illegal behavior though, not mob rule. Knowingly abusing this system could be considered perjury.
Join the SDF Public Access UNIX System today!
(Score: 2) by c0lo on Tuesday July 10 2018, @06:04PM (1 child)
How about flooding it with actual but irrelevant footage? Still perjury?
After a while people may realize the effect of constant surveillance out-weight the benefits and will want the system dismantled.
I reckon all depends on how much the system will abuse the people.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aoFiw2jMy-0 https://soylentnews.org/~MichaelDavidCrawford
(Score: 2) by darkfeline on Thursday July 12 2018, @08:20AM
> How about flooding it with actual but irrelevant footage? Still perjury?
Not sure. That would probably be considered multiple counts of "attack on protected computer system" and "obstruction of justice" at the very least. I'm sure there are dozens of crimes you could be charged with.
Join the SDF Public Access UNIX System today!
(Score: 2, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @02:07PM
you should move to china and get in on that upvote system that disallows you from getting loans or on trains
(Score: 1, Offtopic) by realDonaldTrump on Tuesday July 10 2018, @02:10PM (1 child)
We're way ahead of you. My amazing Defense Department built that. They call it the Radio Frequency Vehicle Stopper. Keeping our Country strong! #MAGA [twitter.com]
(Score: 2) by DannyB on Tuesday July 10 2018, @02:15PM
Nuclear weapons can be used to stop vehicles too. They're more powerful. And the defense department already has them and is eager to use them.
The lower I set my standards the more accomplishments I have.
(Score: 3, Interesting) by DannyB on Tuesday July 10 2018, @02:14PM (9 children)
I like the idea, except that there will be abusers.
The system needs to keep track of the clickers as much as it does the clickees.
Maybe only 10
mod pointsclicks per driver per month?Maybe have a thumbs up and thumbs down click so you could reward courteous drivers. If more and more people were courteous, and let people into traffic, etc, the entire system would work better and with less frustration.
There probably should be three things:
* Report seriously bad behavior with dashcam footage to back it up
* Thumbs up as a micro-reward / recognition for good driving behavior
* Thumbs down as a micro-punishment / infamous recognition for BMW driving behavior
Then let's do something about parking.
The lower I set my standards the more accomplishments I have.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @02:21PM (1 child)
Too much like the Chinese social credit system and it can be abused by building up
karmacredit in order to get away with something anti-social. Disincentives for bad drivers already exist, we should enforce them.(Score: 2) by DannyB on Tuesday July 10 2018, @02:42PM
The problem with the existing enforcement system is that the enforcers seem to believe it is their sworn duty to harass everyone upon even the slightest reason for contact.
Hello officer.
Can I see your ID? Where are you coming from? Where are you going to? Does your family have a history of liver disease? Are you an organ donor?
The lower I set my standards the more accomplishments I have.
(Score: 5, Insightful) by requerdanos on Tuesday July 10 2018, @04:36PM (3 children)
A problem here (I know, hard to pick just one) is that many people see good driving and think it's specifically bad, and vice-versa.
Example, busy traffic, a lane is closing, everyone must merge.
People who understand that the "panic! merge as soon as possible leaving the other lane open and unused for miles!" approach results in traffic backing up needlessly (and needless risk of accident) will use the wide-open lane to advance as far as possible before merging, thus making the highway able to carry more traffic up to the merge point and eliminating those needless backups.
People who don't understand that (i.e. most of them) see someone pass them in the lane that will be closing and say "What a jerk! click! click! click!"
Another example, someone in the passing lane who understands slower-traffic-keep-right (for countries that drive on the right side of the road) might wait patiently for a clueless moron driving sedately in the passing lane to pull their head out of their phone and get out of the way as the law specifies. But, nope, "Look at how that crazy person flew up behind me! I have every right to be here clogging up traffic and making congestion out of nothing! The *nerve*! click! click! click!"
For this clicker idea to have a chance of working, there must be an enumerated set of things that comprise "good driving" and an enumerated set of things that comprise "bad driving." There is by no means a universal definition of these things understood by a majority of drivers.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @06:01PM
yeah, and fucking geezers and "dreamers" trying to kill everyone b/c they don't know how to merge and i'll be the villain for trying to get around these invalids without getting run over.
(Score: 1, Informative) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @06:11PM
When you can see the lane is ending in a hundred feet and you dont slow down, but speed up to cut someone off, w/o blinkers it is even more unsafe. Turn on your blinker, and wait. I will let you in if you're being courteous about it. I will not let you in if you are hoping to just force your way in.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @11:09PM
If people used the zipper merge like you said it would be good. They do not. They *will* not. After sitting in line for the past hour they are not going to be kind and let you in. That is just human nature.
If you just raced up for the past 2 miles past 200 cars. You may just be a jerk. Show a bit of courtesy. Instead you are creating the exact opposite of what you want because you decided not to wait in line. You cause the current cars at the front to break and cause a standing wave that ripples back for miles. Over and over.
But your sentiment is correct. People will 'click' on everyone they do not like. My wife would go bonkers with it. She could be an excellent driver but has some road rage issues. She would zap you just because you looked at her funny. She is not alone.
Also on top of that what is legal in one city may not be in another. For example right on red turns. Some cities/states it is fine. Others not so much. So you could be from out of state and they are just sitting there at a red and can go. click click click. Or the other way around.
When the net was young I toyed with making this exact sort of database. Top 'bad' drivers. Shame them and everything. But then I came to my senses and realized it was a terrible idea. People are not rational. Once you convince yourself of that you can see why people would just be ugly with this. Think if 4chan got ahold of it.... *shuuuuuder*
(Score: 2) by Phoenix666 on Tuesday July 10 2018, @04:50PM (1 child)
Those are worthy modifications. Done.
It would be fine to be a safe and courteous driver, and to get to park in reserved spots next to the handicapped ones a certain times per month. Or to get your insurance lowered. Or to get to travel in HOV lanes even if you don't have enough passengers.
The general societal message should be, "Drive like a dick, and have your ability to get about increasingly restricted and hampered until you amend your ways. Drive like a safe, courteous person and have your ability to move around expedited and made smooth."
And BMW drivers ought to start 50 points in the hole for being BMW drivers.
Washington DC delenda est.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @05:27PM
I think "the general societal message" is best left up as social responsibility. For handling actual infractions we should drop all automated bullshit and force a real person to patrol and deal with the bad drivers. Anything else is asking for abuse and for edge cases to be handled poorly. I can just imagine a clerk's canned response, "I'm sorry sir but the system has locked you out for 7 days and there is no way to override. You can submit a complaint and the system will process it within the next 2-3 weeks."
(Score: 3, Insightful) by Bobs on Tuesday July 10 2018, @06:31PM
I see commercial opportunities:
“Hire my business for reputation management”
- then 100 people come by at a few times and each gives you a thumbs up.
Or more surreptitiously, target people for down voting.
Either Anonymous style, or compensated.
If you could, would you downvote Mitch McConnell?
(Score: 3, Touché) by Bot on Tuesday July 10 2018, @03:37PM
i foresee many opportunities for trolls, so i endorse your idea.
Account abandoned.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @04:26PM (2 children)
You proposal is dumb as fuck. You know people will use that on people having the wrong political bumper stickers right? The court system is nessecary for a reason. Without a functioning judiciary there is no way to review the system to correct errors.
(Score: 2) by Phoenix666 on Tuesday July 10 2018, @04:52PM
Is it? And you don't suppose that people will upvote you as much for your sticker as others will downvote you?
At the same time, how many bumper stickers do you see of any kind, any more? I know that their number has dwindled to almost nothing since their heyday in the 70's and early 80's. IOW, don't think it's as big a risk as you suppose.
Washington DC delenda est.
(Score: 2) by mhajicek on Tuesday July 10 2018, @06:04PM
So no different from the present situation.
The spacelike surfaces of time foliations can have a cusp at the surface of discontinuity. - P. Hajicek
(Score: 1, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @06:50PM
It's yet another form of mass surveillance. No thanks. I'd rather have more car crashes than have this.
(Score: 2) by mobydisk on Tuesday July 10 2018, @07:57PM
Frightening. this sounds like the Chinese social score system. Or like Black Mirror: NoseDive [wikipedia.org]
(Score: 3, Insightful) by urza9814 on Tuesday July 10 2018, @02:14PM (11 children)
Two questions I need answered before I can really have an opinion on this...
1) So you report illegal behavior by another motorist...now what? I don't like the idea of automatically mailing out tickets or anything based on this information, as that seems to open up a lot of abuse potential...but if it's just keeping a record for the cops/judges to look at and inform how much leniency they want to give you, that's probably fine.
2) What happens if you report a cop or other public official? I've been meaning to get a dash cam myself for exactly that purpose -- around here you'll always see those idiots speeding, failing to signal, making illegal turns...and some of the worse ones have even been caught stalking people in their police cruisers, following women home from coffee shops and such. I report it to the local police chief when I can, and they usually say they'll look into it and have a talk with someone, but it'd be nice if there was a more formal system for that. And for the cops you would have other data sources (ie, the police vehicle cams) to investigate, hopefully followed by mandatory retraining if necessary.
(Score: 3, Interesting) by DannyB on Tuesday July 10 2018, @02:17PM
If you have dashcam, then maybe report it to your local news instead of to the police department. Or start a YouTube channel.
The lower I set my standards the more accomplishments I have.
(Score: 2) by ledow on Tuesday July 10 2018, @02:17PM (1 child)
Unless it's obviously dangerous driving, nothing worse than an unenforcable snotty letter to the registered owner.
A few dads will be having words with their kids, people already driving like fucking lunatics and caught on camera will be prosecuted if it can be proven.
Everything else, onto Police You've Been Framed (Candid Camera / whatever).
(Score: 4, Interesting) by bob_super on Tuesday July 10 2018, @05:23PM
"While the awesome dashcam video we received from a fellow driver is not legally actionable, a reference to it has been entered into our database, allowing officers and judges to review it, should you interface with them in situations where your past behavior may have an influence on their ticketing or sentencing decisions. Love. Your friendly police department."
(Score: 2) by Runaway1956 on Tuesday July 10 2018, @03:15PM (7 children)
Did it, in real life. Called 911 to report some damned fool speeding, and making U-turns through the median, and acting the complete dumbass. The Texas Department of Public Safety took the call pretty seriously, telling me, "We'll get a car out there right away!" My last statement REALLY got the lady's attention: "He'll be easy to find, he's driving a black and white cruiser just like the real DPS drives!"
That dispatcher requested more details, so I described one of his U-turns, in which he went airborne, and very nearly crashed into a Winnebago camper. The camper drove across, and partly off of the shoulder to avoid the collision.
Needless to say, I didn't identify myself, nor did I hang around to see what came of the report.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @04:50PM (1 child)
You think they didn't know who called? Unless this was a pay phone, they know perfectly well who called.
(Score: 2) by Runaway1956 on Tuesday July 10 2018, @05:46PM
You remember, stop playing dumb. I borrowed YOUR phone to report this dumbass cop.
(Score: 2) by Phoenix666 on Tuesday July 10 2018, @04:56PM (4 children)
Good for you. Having a badge or holding an elected office does not excuse anyone from committing crimes or undertaking dangerous behavior. In the age of smartphones and ubiquitous cameras, many more people should do as you did. It ought to be more behaviors than cops summarily executing black people that must stop.
Washington DC delenda est.
(Score: 2) by RS3 on Wednesday July 11 2018, @06:28AM (3 children)
I would like cops and other officials / authorities held to a higher standard than the rest of us.
(Score: 4, Insightful) by Phoenix666 on Wednesday July 11 2018, @02:13PM (2 children)
Ideally, yes. Realistically, they're as human as anyone else. There are no paragons in this world. Even if they were paragons, there is no objective way to establish they are, because we can only judge by words and actions, and all too often those are mere ruses perpetrated by psychopaths who ultimately mean us all ill.
So we have to walk a tightrope of authority and accountability. Now we have a hierarchy of power, wherein the people at the top are essentially unaccountable to anyone. That flaw breaks the whole system.
Washington DC delenda est.
(Score: 2) by RS3 on Wednesday July 11 2018, @03:23PM (1 child)
Your words are some of the best written, most insightful and complete ever.
The US Founding Fathers had a pretty good self-balancing self-cleaning system, but it mostly prevented a single monarchy or other individual power. What they failed to see is the long-term group dynamic: many people seeing that okay, I can't be king, but I can sure get into the group of higher-ups, who have incrementally increased their power, and cooperate with their supporters (corporations and other special interests), and keep increasing that power. I observe that _most_ people who desire some role in government, do so largely due to a desire for power and control.
I have a brother who's an attorney (ack, spit, I rarely communicate with) who once explained the philosophy: basically govt. is an entity which must be right, always, by definition. And of course, that definition changes by them, to suit them.
So there's the problem.
It would be interesting to read a condensed history of how that cancer was allowed to grow.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday July 12 2018, @06:15PM
And then watch as the establishment became entrenched in each region. The New York/Hollywood split for cinema is another good focal point, since Hollywood's media/power base is directly tied to the rise of the west coast establishment as a competitor to the east coast one.
The more I learn about America, the uglier a place it turns out to be. It just happens that anywhere that used to look rosier has taken to our worst policies like flies to spilt honey.
(Score: 5, Insightful) by BsAtHome on Tuesday July 10 2018, @02:17PM (10 children)
Once you outsource the policework to private enterprise, you will be ruled by private enterprise.
It is not that I wish bad drivers not be held accountable, but we have long established rules that the police is the investigative power.
And then, the mere potential for abuse without accountability for the reporter, private enterprise or police is just unimaginable. And I'm not even talking about privacy...
Just wrong, so wrong.
(Score: 5, Insightful) by nitehawk214 on Tuesday July 10 2018, @03:01PM (1 child)
This is exactly what happened to outsourced traffic cameras. The company lobbied for shorter yellow lights and lower speed limits.
Also private prisons. The companies that own them lobby for more 3-strikes laws and longer mandatory sentences.
"Don't you ever miss the days when you used to be nostalgic?" -Loiosh
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday July 11 2018, @08:26AM
Worse than that, they have contracts which cities so that if they don't get enough inmates, the city has to pay them.
(Score: 3, Insightful) by darkfeline on Tuesday July 10 2018, @06:01PM (7 children)
> Once you outsource the policework to private enterprise
Regular citizens are collectively a private enterprise now? Is allowing the public to report crimes considered outsourcing to private enterprise now?
> the mere potential for abuse without accountability for the reporter
Since this is for reporting illegal behavior, abuse could be considered perjury, especially if the reporter includes a witness statement, or if a witness statement were made mandatory. I don't see how there's no accountability.
> without accountability for ... police
It sounds like the police will still get the final say in pursuing cases of illegal behavior brought to them by the public. I don't see how this database specifically changes the police's accountability, for better or worse.
> And I'm not even talking about privacy...
You don't have privacy on public roads, from being either filmed or reported for illegal behavior, and/or especially for illegal behavior while performing a licensed activity like driving.
Join the SDF Public Access UNIX System today!
(Score: 2) by BsAtHome on Tuesday July 10 2018, @06:42PM
Just wait when automotive-Alexa/Siri and your smart car will all start to snitch too at the whim of whoever has defined today's standards for detecting "bad driving".
We all know that context never ever can be a reason to do something, now, do we (excuse me, but not quite, for the sarcastic intonation)?
(Score: 1, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @06:59PM (5 children)
Under current law, no. But you should. One should have privacy from mass surveillance, which is 100% different from someone spotting you. Why? Because someone seeing you doesn't instantly and accurately record the license plate number. Someone seeing you doesn't then report the license plate number to a central authority. Because of this, the potential for abuse of a mass surveillance system is much greater than someone spotting you in a public place. I'm so tired of so called 'techies' spewing nonsense like this, when they should know better. Are you next going to support universal facial recognition because 'there's no privacy in public places'? I mean, why not? Then you'd have the authoritarian hellhole you so dream of.
That's the argument for the NSA's mass surveillance. Oh, they only go after bad guys. Except, it's a total lie, and it will be here, too. Any system of surveillance can be extended beyond its original parameters.
I don't know about you, but I don't want to live in a society where my every move is recorded and technology constantly snitches on me. Sadly, people like yourself seem determined to bring such a society about under the guise of 'safety'. As if it would stop there, or as if it would even be okay even if it did stop there.
(Score: -1, Troll) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday July 11 2018, @12:40AM
Ill tell you what some jackass on the site said to me, "there is no expectation of privacy in public, thats why its called public."
No hope till jackasses are able to see outside their little box.
(Score: 2) by Arik on Wednesday July 11 2018, @01:54AM (2 children)
Simple solution, never go in public without wearing your camouflage burkha.
Unless you're in France, of course, where that would be illegal.
If laughter is the best medicine, who are the best doctors?
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday July 12 2018, @06:20PM (1 child)
Obscuring your face in public is illegal too according to mask laws. That is why hoodies/hats and large sunglasses have always been so popular. Covering your mouth is technically illegal, although rarely you see people (especially Japanese, rarely other Asian born) who will wear masks due to cold/flu/respiratory infections. But technically they could be demanded to show their face at any time, and wearing them makes them stand out. Short of a major cultural shift towards obscured faces being legal and socially acceptable it won't happen in the US at least, which is why most Muslims you see here may wear a head covering but not a face covering.
(Score: 2) by Arik on Thursday July 12 2018, @06:47PM
If laughter is the best medicine, who are the best doctors?
(Score: 2) by darkfeline on Thursday July 12 2018, @08:43AM
Thank you for putting words in my mouth, I appreciate being framed as a supporter of a totalitarian government.
The beautiful thing about knowledge is that, it's difficult for government to stop citizens from obtaining it, and it's difficult for citizens to stop government from obtaining it (although it's easy to distract individuals from desiring to obtain it, with bread and circuses). Once facial recognition technology exists, it's going to be used and abused. While shouting "I should have privacy" feels good, it will do fuck all to prevent this dystopia you fear. You're going to have to come up with a better idea than just repeating principles. If you have a better idea, I'd like to hear it.
Another thing:
Any safety you feel from having "privacy" in the absence of mass surveillance is purely psychological. Imagine a world where mass surveillance doesn't exist, but like our world, you can be freely tailed in public by government agents. You have to act as if your every action in public were monitored anyway, regardless of the presence or absence of mass surveillance. Any wrongthink could still land you in Room 101. You might argue that the chance is much lower, but you don't actually know that. You're still gambling whether you get lucky or unlucky with who spots you/which algorithm marks you.
Given the choice between mass surveillance or no in public, of course I would choose the latter. However, regardless of the situation, I always act as if I have no privacy in public. The presence of mass surveillance would not change how I act in public, because I already act as if I am always being observed. If you're inclined to act as if you did have privacy in public if mass surveillance were absent, I don't know what to tell you, but there are a lot of politicians, husbands, etc. who have first hand experience of what happens when you assume you have privacy in public.
Join the SDF Public Access UNIX System today!
(Score: -1, Redundant) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @02:48PM
There's a dick I know of who drives a subaru who is a danger to others on the road
(Score: 1, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @03:03PM (7 children)
Just another step towards 1984's "Report your neighbor" mentality.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @03:12PM (1 child)
Is it still "snitching" if they run over pedestrians then get out and knife bystanders? I'm not a snitch (bad word!) so forget it.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @04:46PM
Wow. I guess there is nothing in between "not turning into 1984" and "homicidal drivers who kill anyone they encounter". Who knew this issue could be so black and white?
Should we think of the children?
(Score: 2) by Phoenix666 on Tuesday July 10 2018, @04:59PM (4 children)
Oh, my friend, my friend, we passed 1984 about twenty years ago when the NSA gave itself unlimited power to spy on everything everyone does, anytime, and Congress and the Whitehouse and the Supreme Court all rubberstamped that (for some reason--wonder what it could possibly be?).
Now the FBI, CIA, and even your local police departments have all arrogated that same right to themselves, with their use of drones and stingrays and wall-penetrating cameras and Z-backscatter vans.
So before they get pissy about it and start disappearing cats like you and me because they can, you best seize this opportunity to turn the panopticon around on them, too.
Washington DC delenda est.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @05:30PM
Nah, I prefer reform where society decides certain Orwellian measures are to be against the law.
If you can't beat em' just beat em' harder.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @06:10PM (1 child)
how is ratting out your fellow citizens like a cowardly bitch "turn the panopticon around on them"? you're just as bad as a republican who wants to make decisions for women about their goddamned fetuses and what not. just two sides of the authoritarian coin. as long as government is enforcing your bs you're fine with a little head cracking.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @07:34PM
Because then you could rat out a congressman!!!
Think of the tears of joy as you watch their driver get a moving violation...
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @07:36PM
You sir get more fascist every week.
I'm starting to wonder how many real people there are around this site, it is getting so ridiculous I can only imagine it is a carefully orchestrated set of stories and commentary to drive the populous into fascism.
How does it feel to act like a conservitard?
(Score: 3, Insightful) by Arik on Tuesday July 10 2018, @07:17PM (4 children)
If laughter is the best medicine, who are the best doctors?
(Score: 1, Funny) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @10:11PM
And then there are people like my ex-wife who drive like crap and piss people off just because she's a horrible driver. I never thought of telling her it could be "a job", but I bet if I did she would call in sick.
(Score: 2) by PiMuNu on Wednesday July 11 2018, @12:41AM (1 child)
I once saw a police vehicle (camera van) doing exactly this in UK - driving in the overtaking lane at 10 mph below the speed limit, seemingly to frustrate/provoke other drivers. I only saw it happen once, however, in many years of driving.
(Score: 2) by qzm on Wednesday July 11 2018, @01:48AM
Pretty common around here.
Undercover traffic police like to sit in the center lane on multilane highways, wait until someone gets annoyed enough and starts to underpass then, then speed up to above the speed limit.
The result of this is almost always for the driver who was being held up to speed up also to finish their 'pass' (underpassing is legal here, but hey), and get immediately pipped for 'speeding'
I have 'anonymous' called in 4 police doing this over the last few years, and have little doubt they have a little note somewhere with my details on it (and even less doubt that they got
no repremand at all), but I dont care, its stupid.
(Score: 2) by arslan on Wednesday July 11 2018, @03:33AM
Not if everyone also have a dashcam and shows the provocation occurring. In any case, there's bound to be cases of false positives, it is not a perfect system, list most things. However, I'd take this system better than the current state where there enough bad and dangerous drivers out there getting away with it - at least in my neck of the woods.
I can't even begin to count the pedestrian deaths alone in the last year in my neighborhood that could all have been avoided if the drivers were more prudent and I have personally seen so may near hits pretty much every time I have a chance to walk my kid to school whether from deranged folks rushing to work or tradies in their ute (pickup truck) rushing to their next job or pub.