Tourist or Terrorist?

[THORHAMMER]

This is pretty bad guys. When a group or activity gets singled out like this its always bad for them.


http://www.memphisflyer.com/memphis/Content?oid=oid:41348


Thank God California doesnt have a stop and identify law.

This is truly sad as the real photographers who shoot for fun, art, or stock purposes will never be able to get any work done, they will be harassed every 10 minutes and expected to stand there awnsering questions for 20 minutes every other 30 minutes. This is ridiculous.

At least this does not trump the law, unless you are being detained you can walk away, and you can only be detained for specific reasons. Well, I know it gets abused, but thats supposedly the law... lol

 

[Overread]

Its happening in the UK as well. Its not really going to affect anything - the number of terrorists is few whilst the (comparative) number of amature and pro photographers is high. Chances are this won't even scare any terrorists away from shooting uless it somehow spreads into the populations thinking that all photographers are bad.
Once I would have said that would not happen, but with CCTV and the big brother feeling of society that is growing people don't want to be photographed anymore - once it was a novelty - now people are afraid

 

[skieur]

The only way such harassment will end is the involvement of a major civil rights lawyer in a substantial law suit and charges laid against a police department for the violation of someone's civil rights.

skieur

 

[MarcusM]

George Orwell was a prophet.

What a joke. Can't these guys running the show actually think of useful counter-terrorism tactics rather than waste everyone's time?

Guess they gotta look like they're doing something, right...

 

[usayit]

ah yes... welcome to 1984 where paper burns at Fahrenheit 451... Those authors of dystopic novels don't sound so paranoid any longer...

At what point do we start calling ourselves a police state? They should just declare it and stop the false pretenses...

Any fans of George Carlin?? We don't have rights... we have privileges which can be taken away at any time.

 

[Apex]

But we do ask people to be on the lookout for that individual who comes into the group and talks a little bit radical.

WITCH!!!! BURN HIM AT THE STAKE!!!

 

[CanadianMe]

Wow, they really think and say that, just amazing.

 

[Miaow]

I think governments & their security departments are starting to get way over paranoid about possible terrorism when it comes down to this sort of thing

 

[passerby]

There were two plain clothes cops came to my place while I was ready to go to work. I was called out on my day off that day therefore on short notice. They said they had few questions for me, but I said I can't do it right now. You know they showed me their badges to prove that they were genuine. Sure they were genuine but my work is more important than anything else, that where I got the money to pay the bills.

I gave them my phone numbers and I promised them a free time the next day. Sure they want to prove their worthiness to their superior whoever they are by collecting informations, that is quite fine with me - but only when it is suit me. Otherwise I won't bother.

We take picture whenever we like without forgetting to respect other people right. These people in uniform some of them are robotic humans on payroll just like you and me. They have their hey day, and one day they will turn yellow and dry and crumble to dust - just like you and me.

 

[Garbz]

Two things made the news today that made me question everything.

Firstly the UK CCTV cameras have helped solve less than 3% of the crimes that they were put in to prevent. That is muggings.

The other is that if you stack expenditure on counterterrorism vs expenditure to prevent a natural disaster, the money is strongly weighted on the former, even though the latter is far more likely.

 

[JHF Photography]

Report ALL SUSPICIOUS ACTIVITY to your neighborhood Political Awareness Officer. It is YOUR DUTY COMRADES.

I think that quote from the articles comments section sums it all up quite nicely.

 

[Socrates]

...if you stack expenditure on counterterrorism vs expenditure to prevent a natural disaster, the money is strongly weighted on the former, even though the latter is far more likely.

How much does it cost to prevent an earthquake? Volcano eruption? Tsunami?

 

[Overread]

Prevent - impossible
limit damage - possible
detect, warn and inform - possible

Also I take it those stats are from oz - come to the UK and we don't really get natural disasters like those we get terrible flooding though!

 

[Socrates]

Prevent - impossible
limit damage - possible
detect, warn and inform - possible

Also I take it those stats are from oz - come to the UK and we don't really get natural disasters like those we get terrible flooding though!

How much does it cost to prevent a flood?

 

[Overread]

depends how far back you go with prevention -- dams and leves as well as overspills can be used (along with other methods) to help control and channel water away from an area to stop it flooding.
However new legeslation on housing construction can also limit flood damage (something like limiting construction on floodplains). It depends where the problem is tackled - however most of the time its a case that an area floods and so after it is prodtected. The protection channel the water away from that site and further downstream which then floods another area and the cycle keeps going.

After a series of very bad coastal floods the UK spent vast amounts on a hard line (concrete) seashore defence - which also has to either be abandoned or maintained at high cost.

sorry I can't give figures, but its definatly expensive in the order of millions (possible into the billions)