Here's video with sound from two cameras showing front view and driver's reaction when a minibus' steering linkage breaks, and the bus flies off an embankment over parked cars and lands in a parking lot. Pretty funny stuff.
The video is from DriveCam, a San-Diego based company that installs camera systems in fleet vehicles. About the video, DriveCam says, " It’s important to reinforce the positive aspects of the DriveCam program to gain driver acceptance. In this instance, the evidence is indisputable and the camera protects the driver of Vehicle #1 as well as ABC Parking from any legal responsibility. Culpability could be more challenging without this video." In other words, people don't like to be taped, so tell them it's for their own good.
Constant surveillance by private companies and individuals is just a fact of life as this technology gets cheaper. Naturally, people want to keep an eye on their stuff. Companies want to watch employees; parents want to watch children; everyone wants to watch their homes and cars. If DriveCam is profitable now, in a few years everyone will be able to install cameras that upload video to the web full time. Who sideswiped my car? Is Junior going straight home from school? Who knocked over my garbage cans? Log in and find out. Or companies might offer real-time aerial video surveillance featuring high-resolution cameras on stationary blimps for traffic reporting, mapping, agricultural or ship navigation purposes. Go outside and wave to the nice Google maps camera, dear.
We rightly fear the government as Big Brother, but like with other technology, video monitoring is primarily privately done. The United States needs a comprehensive privacy law like Europe's, so we can constrain the most intrusive corporate monitoring systems that may be coming down the pike.
What cracked me up is the half-a-fag riding the bus. He was obviously OK, but was completely unconcerned with the state of the driver. "Pwease wet me out. Wah, wah." How about an, "Are you OK?" to the driver? Pathetic.
Posted by: ted | April 23, 2006 at 11:33 AM
What cracked me up is the half-a-fag riding the bus. He was obviously OK, but was completely unconcerned with the state of the driver. "Pwease wet me out. Wah, wah." How about an, "Are you OK?" to the driver? Pathetic.
Posted by: ted | April 23, 2006 at 11:34 AM