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Yellow Vests Knock Out 60 Percent of All Speed Cameras In France (bbc.com)

Posted by BeauHD on from the damage-control dept.

Thelasko shares a report from the BBC: Members of the "yellow vests" protest movement have vandalized almost 60% of France's entire speed camera network, the interior minister has said. Christophe Castaner said the willful damage was a threat to road safety and put lives in danger. The protest movement began over fuel tax increases, and saw motorists block roads and motorway toll booths. Some protesters feel speed cameras are solely a revenue-generating measure which takes money from the poor. The BBC's Hugh Schofield, in Paris, said evidence of the vandalism is visible to anyone driving around France, with radar cameras covered in paint or black tape to stop them working.

23 of 417 comments (clear)

  1. Glorious by Quakeulf · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Now knock out those who run the banks.

    1. Re:Glorious by Kokuyo · · Score: 2, Insightful

      So who do you think insures the government?

      Exactly, yellow vests. They are essentially keying their own cars.

    2. Re:Glorious by b0s0z0ku · · Score: 4, Insightful

      They were counterproductive because they weren't violent enough. Clearly, the American Revolution was violent enough to be productive. :)

    3. Re:Glorious by lgw · · Score: 2, Insightful

      It may come to that, but at the moment we're just trying to get a working lock on the front door.

      --
      Socialism: a lie told by totalitarians and believed by fools.
    4. Re: Glorious by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Insightful

      I'm 57 years old, black, and grew up in Baltimore.

      You have no god damn idea what you're talking about.

      The violence frightened good people out of our communities, and left us with a mostly desolate wasteland for years. My mom had to walk 8 blocks to get to a pharmacy. My parents eventually left because there wasn't a future for us there.

      Dr. King did so much for us that violence never could. He proved that misguided folks like you never actually solve anything. You're giving credit to violence for things that only non violence can accomplish. Safety and security, love, compassion, discovery and innovation don't happen during one of your riots. Nothing but destruction and fear happens.

  2. There are way too many cameras including LPRs by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Insightful

    The 2010s will be known for invasion of privacy and technology used for evil.

  3. Speed cameras = dishonest taxation by sinij · · Score: 3, Insightful

    Speed cameras are a dishonest and regressive way to tax the population. Don't let local politicians sell you on BS that it is for traffic calming and safety.

    1. Re:Speed cameras = dishonest taxation by religionofpeas · · Score: 3, Insightful

      Of all kinds of taxation, I'd prefer the speed cameras, because I can avoid paying by sticking to the posted speed limit.

    2. Re:Speed cameras = dishonest taxation by lgw · · Score: 3, Insightful

      Except for the ones that malfunction. Funny how often that happens. Funny how in the US you have no right to challenge the payment in court if you think the device is broken.

      Far better to have a lottery, if you want a tax you can avoid paying. At least there somebody wins.

      --
      Socialism: a lie told by totalitarians and believed by fools.
    3. Re:Speed cameras = dishonest taxation by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Insightful

      It is illegal to drive over the speed limit. If yu break these laws you can be fined. Speed cameras are an automated method of fining people for breaking the law. If you don't want to pay the fine then don't break the law.

    4. Re:Speed cameras = dishonest taxation by jabuzz · · Score: 2, Insightful

      Problem is that the greater the speed in an accident the more likely someone is to be seriously injured or killed. Further the *PUBLIC* roads are just that a shared public resource.

      Your rights to go as fast as you want stop at my nose.

      Get back to me when you are a happy for killing someone in an accident to be treated as murder.

      In the meantime speeding is a crime, and speed cameras only punish those who choose to recklessly endanger other people for their convenience and/or pleasure.

    5. Re:Speed cameras = dishonest taxation by Pascoea · · Score: 3, Insightful

      [outside perspective here, I live in the US] The autobahn is a limited access freeway system designed specifically for high speed with strictly enforced laws that are implemented to avoid crashes (no riding in the left lane, for instance)

      Most of the crashes I've witnessed or read about on our road system involve someone doing something stupid at an intersection, like turning left in front of someone (personally experienced that one), running a red light, pulling out in front of someone, improper lane changes, crashing into light poles, things like that. Most of those things aren't a problem on a limited access freeway system. I would guess that the vast majority of the freeway crashes we see here are the result of people not paying attention. It amazes me how I STILL see people texting, doing their makeup, reading, or one of 100 other stupid things while driving.

    6. Re:Speed cameras = dishonest taxation by kilfarsnar · · Score: 4, Insightful

      It is illegal to drive over the speed limit. If yu break these laws you can be fined. Speed cameras are an automated method of fining people for breaking the law. If you don't want to pay the fine then don't break the law.

      Simple solutions for simple minds. The speed limit on most highways is too low. Modern cars a requite capable; they handle and stop very well. The fact is, traffic flow in my area is regularly at about 80 MPH on the highway, even though the limit is 65. When ~75% of people see no problem with breaking the law, it's not the people who are wrong, it's the law.

      --
      "What the American public doesn't know is what makes them the American public." -Ray Zalinsky (Tommy Boy)
    7. Re:Speed cameras = dishonest taxation by shilly · · Score: 1, Insightful

      Just a wild thought here, but perhaps speed limits are set based on the likelihood of crashes that cause serious injury or death as determined by road engineers, rather than your wildly inaccurate perspective about what is the "right" speed for a particular road.

    8. Re:Speed cameras = dishonest taxation by Pascoea · · Score: 3, Insightful

      That's why stretches of highway will go from 65mph to 35 when going through a small town in places like central LA.

      You mean it isn't safe for highway traffic to flow as fast in a populated area? Holy shit, stop the presses, this must be some kind of conspiracy! Literally every highway (and I'm not talking about limited access freeways) I have ever been on lowers speed limits when you enter a city vs rural. Every single one.

      This is not a revenue thing, this is a safety thing. The fact that these speed change zones are prime locations for speed cameras (or police officers) is completely logical. On ever road, prior to speed limit changes there are signs that say "speed limit XX ahead" with plenty of time for you to slow down before you get there. I've been busted before when I've missed a speed change, so I understand people's frustrations, but you know what happened next time I drove past that area? I slowed the fuck down when I was supposed to.

  4. Re: disruptions lead to loss of jobs by bistromath007 · · Score: 2, Insightful

    Evidently, they believe there are more important things than having a job. It'd be nice if Americans thought that way.

  5. Speed cameras are needed by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Insightful

    To stop those speeders from killing you or your best friends.

    They cost far to much.... so I doubt there is any profit from the fines.

    I would have one on every street everywhere if I could.

    If you don't want to be 'spied' on with them, don't speed! simple.

  6. Re:speed cameras are a revenue source by religionofpeas · · Score: 3, Insightful

    Along with that, most are placed in areas where lower income people are. More than likely because they don't have the money or power to fight against it.

    Really ? How much money does it cost to drive slower ?

  7. Hit them in the pocket by Laxator2 · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Such a large-scale action is not done without some central organization.
    Obviously the union leaders know how much money the bosses pocked from the revenue generated by this cameras.
    By cutting this revenue the bosses are much more likely to listen to their demands.

    Also, it is a case of "You keep our pay low, we can lower your pay"

  8. Re: disruptions lead to loss of jobs by rastos1 · · Score: 2, Insightful

    Some of them do. See: the Trump's Wall.

  9. Re:And as a result drivers are speeding up by dfghjk · · Score: 5, Insightful

    "30% more french drivers are breaking the law and putting others life in danger"

    If you set the limit to 0 then 100% of drivers will break the law, yet that doesn't put "others life in danger". This is nothing but rhetoric.

    The percentage of drivers speeding is an indicator of the reasonableness of the limits, not of the behavior of the drivers. This has been known since at least the 70's, likely much longer.

  10. Re:Speed cameras by thegarbz · · Score: 4, Insightful

    You mean like this study which says they reduce accidents and fatalities? http://www.lse.ac.uk/News/Late...

    Or maybe the one that specifically looked at Arizona and found no difference in number of collisions (though didn't look at injuries) and certainly didn't find a negative impact? https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/p...

    Maybe you want a wide spread study of some 550 speed cameras which showed a reduction in accidents and fatalities and at the same time directly looked at the very speed cameras that the Daily Mail and some other worthless rags claimed (incorrectly) increased accidents? https://www.theguardian.com/uk...

    Or this one from America that said also accidents are reduced and overall driver behaviour in the area improves: https://www.dailysignal.com/20...

    I would give you result number 5 from my Google search but it's the same study as result number 2 and I don't want to waste your time.

  11. Re:Bout time by Z00L00K · · Score: 4, Insightful

    "Vive la France" is the correct writing.

    Overall this shows that there's a threshold on how high pressure the politicians can put on the population. They often tend to forget that they actually are placed there to serve the citizens, not being the masters.

    --
    If builders built buildings the way programmers wrote programs, then the first woodpecker would destroy civilization.