Thread: To see or not to see, that is the question...

Show of hands of those who either support a police state always watching you in public, or, those of you who disagree with this.



I personally object to having my every move filmed everywhere I go as if I were a criminal.

I think pommie land needs it with some of the dickhead shit there young people do mindless acts of crime just for kicks. So yes its a good thing. But in a country area I dont see the point but any hi crime area yes put a camera in which you wouldnt need to many as england is only a tiny place

I agree, pommy land is full of thugs and your only defense while taking public transport there is to get a skinfull before you hop on and hope your Dutch courage will pull you through.

Wonder why people have such a dull impression of young Brits?

Might be the direction Brit society seems to be taking, of tolerance if not abject understanding that anti-social acts are not the doer's fault but that of his parents, peers, or the goldfish next door.

Originally Posted by surasak

I personally object to having my every move filmed everywhere I go as if I were a criminal.

So do I, though it does make sense in high-density crime areas. But thi s is just the thin end of the wedge!
Coming from a country where people like to make it their business what others are up to, and report it when neighbours' cars are parked the wrong way, any kind of public surveillance makes me very uncomfortable.

It's finally approaching 1984!

Originally Posted by keda

Wonder why people have such a dull impression of young Brits

My impressions have come from TV and dealing with them here in Thailand nearly ended up in a fight in the airport with 4 drunken poms as they tried to push in front of me at imagration they had no respect for anyone or anything also from watching them in pattaya. Mind you I have seen plenty of dickhead Aussies down there as well.
Mind you I have met some decent young Poms as well but they seem to be from the up class areas

I really don't care about those cameras, there are much bigger intrusions to our privacy to worry about.
No one is watching those films anyway, unless a crime has been comitted there.
So let them register my appearance, my look.
They can't register my opinions !!

Wiretapping, email scanning, and opening snail mail post is so much more worrying..

Originally Posted by Rigger

Originally Posted by keda

Wonder why people have such a dull impression of young Brits

My impressions have come from TV and dealing with them here in Thailand nearly ended up in a fight in the airport with 4 drunken poms as they tried to push in front of me at imagration they had no respect for anyone or anything also from watching them in pattaya. Mind you I have seen plenty of dickhead Aussies down there as well.
Mind you I have met some decent young Poms as well but they seem to be from the up class areas

Seen plenty of rowdy Aussies and of course Eurotrash, but the (young) Brits seem almost united in their determination to let everyone know what dickheads they are. Or it may just be there's more of them, and that's why it seems so pronounced.

I think wiretapping, mail scanning, etc. are simply part of the overall scheme including cameras (which are popping up here in the states too). Do we really need government monitoring everything?

Slightly off topic sorry but one of the most disgraceful things I have ever had the misfortune to witness, coincidentally or not, involved a group of young Brits.

When in Cambodia I visted the infamous Toul Sleng ("S-21", the school that was used as an interrment camp)and as I'm sure anyone who has ever been there will agree it's a pretty sobering (not too mention horrific) experience - actually a friend who was with me had to leave halfway through the 'tour', just couldn't take it.

So there I am strolling around absolutely agog at this place and there's suddenly a huge commotion of shouting and the like. I turn to see a group of Brit tourists (5 or 6 of them I think), shirts off and (I shit you not) open drinks, making complete arses of themselves yelling and 'joking' around. Few times have I ever been that angry or embarrased - both for them and myself, 'guilt' by association with these wankers.

If you can't find it within yourself to show a modicum of decency and respect at a place like that then, in my opinion, you've pretty much failed as a human-being and might as well give it up.

Originally Posted by AntRobertson

I turn to see a group of Brit tourists

English I'm sure.

Originally Posted by ChiangMai noon

English I'm sure

Well, yeah they were actually. I was trying to be a bit 'kind' though. I usually don't use the term and find that 'Brits' are only 'Brits' when it suits them

Originally Posted by Rigger

Mind you I have met some decent young Poms as well but they seem to be from the up class areas

That's called 'The South'.

All these CCTV cameras every where is a great idea keeps me busy , lets have more.

At prersent there are 4.2 million cctv cameras in the UK thats 1 for every 14 people.

Originally Posted by AntRobertson

I turn to see a group of Brit tourists (5 or 6 of them I think), shirts off and (I shit you not) open drinks, making complete arses of themselves yelling and 'joking' around

sounds like Americans travelling. Brits cousins. Must be something in the gene pool.

Originally Posted by AntRobertson

Slightly off topic sorry but one of the most disgraceful things I have ever had the misfortune to witness, coincidentally or not, involved a group of young Brits.

When in Cambodia I visted the infamous Toul Sleng ("S-21", the school that was used as an interrment camp)and as I'm sure anyone who has ever been there will agree it's a pretty sobering (not too mention horrific) experience - actually a friend who was with me had to leave halfway through the 'tour', just couldn't take it.

So there I am strolling around absolutely agog at this place and there's suddenly a huge commotion of shouting and the like. I turn to see a group of Brit tourists (5 or 6 of them I think), shirts off and (I shit you not) open drinks, making complete arses of themselves yelling and 'joking' around. Few times have I ever been that angry or embarrased - both for them and myself, 'guilt' by association with these wankers.

If you can't find it within yourself to show a modicum of decency and respect at a place like that then, in my opinion, you've pretty much failed as a human-being and might as well give it up.

In Cambodia for a couple thousand dollars you could have had them all lined up and used them for target practice.

Originally Posted by Butterfly

Originally Posted by AntRobertson

I turn to see a group of Brit tourists (5 or 6 of them I think), shirts off and (I shit you not) open drinks, making complete arses of themselves yelling and 'joking' around

sounds like Americans travelling. Brits cousins. Must be something in the gene pool.

Seems to me the gene pool can often use a good dose of chlorine.

In Cambodia for a couple thousand dollars you could have had them all lined up and used them for target practice.

For a generous drink you could have their smiles pasted on each others' asses.

Ok, back on topic, please!

I don't have a problem with cameras, I have a problem with who's watching. If everyone had equal access to the feeds then I wouldn't mind so much--actually think public safety would increase if more eyes were watching the images. An idea would be to have all camera feeds available on the internet and maybe put up public kiosks where citizens can view any camera location at any time.

good idea.

No it's not, it's a terrible idea. We'd turn our world into the biggest voyeuristic experiment you can imagine. Get rid of the lot. Tackle the causes, not the effects.

The cost of installing traffic cameras in the UK could only be justified on the basis of the revenues they generated from fines from speeding motorists. The whole thing was a cynical exercise in self-justification. It hasn't reduced traffic accidents and in some areas accidents have increased as motorists slam on their brakes just as they see a speed camera causing the person behind to smash into the back of them.

No speed cameras = no cost = no need to fine motorists for doing 45mph in a 40mph area.

Once someone had decided that speed cameras were a good idea, then they simply had to make sure that enough drivers were caught to pay for them. Talk about a brave new world, it's the biggets motoring con in history.

When police start using street cameras to arrest people for buying a bit of grass, or a few pills, then you know it's gone too far. What's next - the thought police? Don't rule it out.