Calif. Politican Thinks Blurred Online Maps Would Deter Terrorists

Hugh Pickens writes "California Assemblyman Joel Anderson plans to introduce a bill to force Google Earth and similar services to blur images of so-called 'soft targets' like schools, hospitals, churches and government buildings to protect them from terrorists. 'All I'm trying to do is stop terrorists,' said Anderson. 'I don't want California to be helping map out future targets for terrorists.' Concerns that detailed satellite imagery and photographs available on Web services could help terrorists plan attacks are not new, with reports that terrorists have used such imagery to carry out attacks in Iraq and Israel, and an Indian court is considering a ban on Google Earth following reports that its imagery played a part in the Mumbai terrorist attacks." "Security expert Bruce Schneier recently wondered what other things legislators might consider banning to prevent terrorism: 'Bank robbers have long used cars and motorcycles as getaway vehicles, and horses before then. I haven't seen it talked about yet, but the Mumbai terrorists used boats as well. They also wore boots. They ate lunch at restaurants, drank bottled water and breathed the air,' wrote Schneier. 'Society survives all of this because the good uses of infrastructure far outweigh the bad uses, even though the good uses are — by and large — small and pedestrian and the bad uses are rare and spectacular.'"

Comments

Re:Blurring only targets makes them easy to pick o

[demonbug]

To be fair, the actual text of the bill only requires the images to be blurred if the Operator already identifies the building. Specifically:

This bill would prohibit an operator, as defined, of a commercial
Internet Web site or online service that makes a virtual globe
browser available to members of the public from providing aerial or
satellite photographs or imagery of places in this state that have
been identified on the Internet Web site by the operator as a school,
place of worship, or government or medical building or facility
unless those photographs or images have been blurred.

Still pretty dumb, though.

Re:Why stop online?

[Anonymous Coward]

Won't work here and now, of course. It's not, after all, hard to rent a car and drive past a place to take pictures years before you hit it.

Oh, we in the UK are well ahead of you! Hardened terrorists like this man are trembling in fear at our powerful new anti-photography laws, despite the efforts of some bleeding heart liberals.

Sigh. Even the Russians are scoring points off us.

Re:They can ban all maps, but not guns?

[Pinckney]

But if you dare say "Maybe we shouldn't put automatic assault rifles into the hands of anyone with a driver's license", then the gun freaks go ape-shit. Why is it that they'll ban and outlaw everything, except the obvious?

First of all, all legal automatic weapons require registration (including a background check, fingerprinting, etc) with the ATF, a signature from your local sheriff or chief of police, and payment of a (admittedly small) tax. They're also now obscenely expensive, as so few even exist that can even be transfered.
What can be obtained is a semi-automatic weapon---one that fires with each distinct pull of the trigger. There are few special regulations on such weapons, although California has actually done more to restrict them than most other states. For example, you can't own a rifle with a fixed magazine of greater than 10 rounds capacity.
As for why they don't ban guns outright, I refer you to District of Columbia v. Heller. To paraphrase, the basic conclusion of the supreme court was that individuals have a natural right to self defense, and that a ban of an entire class of weapons suitable for self defense is unconstitutional.

Medieval Stealth

[xixax]

Agreed. Plus, GPS devices should be outlawed -- terrorists could use them to navigate in lieu of maps. Actually, history books, almanacs, encyclopedias, these all tell terrorists what we care about. Those should be outlawed too. Plus the internet, which allows them to communicate, and possibly phones, the mail system, UPS, FedEx and other courier services. Then maybe we can finally feel safe!

Maybe the senator should move to Afghanistan and team up with the Taliban. Their ends goals of a meedieval society are remarkably consistent. Maybe that was the Taliban's plan all along!

Interestingly, be careful taking GPS to China. You need special approval from the government or you get arrested for espionage. Maybe here's a model for California?

Xix.