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Cameras To Watch Cameras In Maryland

Cornwallis writes in with a story reminding cameras everywhere that just because you're paranoid doesn't mean they aren't watching you. "Many people find speed cameras frustrating, and some in the region are taking their rage out on the cameras themselves. But now there's a new solution: cameras to watch the cameras. One is already in place, and Prince George's County Police Maj. Robert V. Liberati hopes to have up to a dozen more before the end of the year. 'It's not worth going to jail over a $40 ticket or an arson or destruction of property charge,' says Liberati."

14 of 297 comments (clear)

  1. Excellent! by rastoboy29 · · Score: 5, Insightful

    This is obviously the right way for our society to go.

  2. Except... by rwven · · Score: 5, Insightful

    There's no possible way someone would think of destroying the camera-observing-camera BEFORE the speed camera.

    Then you end up with TWO broken cameras, and didn't accomplish anything.

    1. Re:Except... by metalgamer84 · · Score: 4, Insightful

      Common sense never seems to be a factor in these "bright ideas" that some panel of people came up with. Wasting money is what they do best, fixing problems is the least of their concerns.

  3. Gee, that really increases the difficulty by oic0 · · Score: 3, Insightful

    If anyone sees you destroying the thing you're going to get in trouble anyway, so we are assuming the people are doing it when no one is around. In which case, wear a mask, park where the thing cant see your car, and walk right on up to it lol.

  4. First of all by king+neckbeard · · Score: 4, Insightful

    The camera watching cameras are an easy target, and I don't think people really buy the safety crap anymore. Its a money making teacher and we all know it

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  5. get rid of all the cameras by Dan667 · · Score: 4, Insightful

    getting rid of revenue cameras would be easier instead of watching Americans like paranoid communists.

  6. Re:um... by ByOhTek · · Score: 2, Insightful

    Sadly, knowing people, they'll move to a longer range mechanism of destruction, that will be much less feasible to observe with a detection net.

    And of course, some of these people will miss. Some of these misses will damage property of innocent 3rd parties, possibly harm innocent bystanders, and possibly even kill innocent bystanders. The sad part is, these people, will pass blame for their actions onto the government, rather than taking responsibility for what they've done, and feel completely justified in doing so. The response to this will be the government putting up more cameras...

    Not saying that a I approve of the cameras, either, but two wrongs don't make a right, especially when the second is done to an innocent bystander. This escalation is also scaring me.

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    Self proclaimed typo king, and inventor of the bear destroying coffee table (patent not pending).
  7. Re:um... by MitchDev · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Or wear masks. Dith the camera, we're sick of Big Brother. We're disgusted with the Police State America is descending in to. The terrorists won. There hasn't been a major terrorist attack on US soil since 9/11. Because of DHS and/or the TSA? No. The terrorists achieved their goal on 9/11, for the past 11 years they've been laughing as America destroys itself over that one day of attacks...

  8. Re:Good. by kilfarsnar · · Score: 3, Insightful

    The law is the law, and if the speed limit is 55 or 60 inside Baltimore City then that's what the drivers should be doing. If they find that objectionable rather than destroy the cameras, they should be lobbying to have the speed increased to 65.

    Except that my observation is that almost everyone wants to drive above the speed limit. If almost everyone wants to do something, should it be illegal? Perhaps yes, but I think it's a good question to ask.

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    "What the American public doesn't know is what makes them the American public." -Ray Zalinsky (Tommy Boy)
  9. Re:Who watches the watchers? by crakbone · · Score: 3, Insightful

    An automatic speed bump would work with an instant penalty be easier to setup, cheaper, and would not need you to go down to a courthouse to contest. Do you really want to trust the safety of your children to a company that gets paid more if you go past the speed camera?

  10. Re:Blind the camera by nschubach · · Score: 3, Insightful

    Besides... do you think they'd show everyone how to defeat a law enforcement device?

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    Every time I start to have faith in humanity, I ruin it by driving to work between 7 and 8 am.
  11. Police Brutality Cameras to Follow by ohnocitizen · · Score: 3, Insightful

    Many police officers find civil liberties frustrating, and some officers take out their rage on citizens. But now there's a new solution: cameras to watch the police.

  12. Re:um... by grantspassalan · · Score: 3, Insightful

    Nobody needs to get violent. There still is this thing called a ballot box. Anyone who has voted for an incumbent official no matter where or when is part of the problem. Don't hang the unresponsive officials, but just vote them out and let them get a real job in the private economy, if they can find one.

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    A sufficiently advanced simulation is indistinguishable from reality.
  13. Re:um... by BlueStrat · · Score: 1, Insightful

    in many cases most of the constituents are against them.

    Of course most people are against them. These cameras are impartial, and cause white, middle class lawbreakers to pay fines. Most of these people prefer the police to focus on teenagers and black people.

    Wow, do you actually believe that or is the threshold-control on my sarcasm-detector set too high?

    These cameras hurt the working-poor the most. A $50-$250 fine doesn't hurt the middle class family when the adults think nothing of, say, blowing that much at the local casino in a weekend, or even in a night.

    It does hurt the working-poor who are barely surviving paycheck to paycheck, struggling to pay rent, eat, and keep a vehicle on the road to get to work with, as a $50-$250 fine (or even more in some places) can mean loss/impounding of their vehicle (or at least their ability to drive it legally), losing their job, becoming homeless, etc in a cascading effect. I've done volunteer work at homeless shelters. I've watched it happen to a lot of people.

    The talk about how there are so many families one paycheck away from homelessness started when?...the '80s with Reagan?

    How many more do you think there are these days? Do you think the margin they're existing on has gotten wider or narrower?

    There's also a basic flaw with traffic laws and regulations that have a fixed fine amount with no means of having them automatically adjust for average income of the community. A fine set forth in a law that seemed reasonable for the community, say for example, during an economic boom (assuming that community saw an average increase in it's population's income) would become cruel and unusual during an economic depression/recession when the average income has fallen dramatically.

    Strat

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    Progressivism (aka US 'Liberalism'): Ideas so good they need a police/surveillance-state to enforce.