It's Not Just the NSA: Police Are Tracking Your Car 201
New submitter blastboy writes "Every day in Britain, a vast system of cameras tracks cars on the road, feeding their movements into a database used by police. And because that data is networked, cops can use it to go back in time — or even predict your movements. But even though there are serious concerns about the technology, and it's regularly been abused by law enforcement, it has now been exported by the Brits and put in place by police departments around the world."
Re:State Abuse... (Score:5, Interesting)
I could have sworn it wasn't meant to be taken as an instruction manual. Possibly the worst mistake since that whole fiasco about serving man.
Which, coincidently is the movie reference that pops into my head whenever I see a cop car with "to protect and serve"
Re:State Abuse... (Score:4, Interesting)
Thank you. I was waiting for a 1984 reference to appear... It provides me with a lame excuse to plug another British writer (sort of) I've stumbled across recently:
Arthur Koestler [wikipedia.org]
He wrote about totalitarianism as well, but much more subtle and less dramatic then Orwell. To each his own, but I have a new favourite dystopianist.
Re:And I'm enjoying the benefits (Score:2, Interesting)
I believe it's because of the proliferation of ANPR and other cameras that I had a major reduction of my motor insurance premium this year. Society pays for the crimes of the minority, so using technology to take the crooks off the road pays dividends to all.
I won't even try and remove the cloud of ignorance hovering all around you that helps you think you're not paying for that entire traffic camera system through the many, many other taxes you pay, but feel free to enjoy the 15% off your motor insurance premiums in exchange for a 50% increase in your medical insurance costs. After all, those traffic cams do a damn good job in keeping track of just how many times you drive to stuff your face with junk food, which they turn around and sell that information to your healthcare provider. Even in socialized medicine, those costs are buried. Enjoy your taxes.
Where's the "-1 hilariously wrong" mod?
The UK spends less that half the GDP per capita on healthcare compared to the USA, which is where I assume you're from.
Those costs may be "buried" but they're still *enormously* cheaper than the alternative. Plus, the bonus effect of not going bankrupt when you get sick, and being able to change jobs without having to worry about losing coverage.
I'll take it.