In case anyone checks back on this article. I live in the neighborhood, and have watched the park deteriorate from crime, thugs, and bums loitering, and lack of maintenance over the last few years. It's scary to see the kids playing amongst the thugs and the urine/alcohol smelling of the bums (I'm not talking displaced homeless, I'm talking bums). The cameras have made absolutely no improvement. In fact, Cal Anderson park is getting worse under the watchful eye of the cameras that can't do anything but spy. And for what? No one does anything to drive the bums and the thugs out. Maybe they just want to watch me walk through the park everyday to see what I'm listening to on my iPod? Maybe they will watch some thug mug me under their 'hoodies'. But they won't prevent it.
A lot of people on this are talking about how they have "nothing to hide". Do the American people have political alzheimers? The military commissions act, with the gutting of habeus corpus, declares that on the demand of the Bush Regime, ANYBODY can be detained and tortured and held indefinetely without the right to an attorney. Look it up. So what if your innocent? If you don't have any way to prove it that doesn't matter.
They came first for the Communists,
and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a Communist.
Then they came for the Jews,
and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a Jew.
Then they came for the trade unionists,
and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a trade unionist.
Then they came for the Catholics,
and I didn't speak up because I was a Protestant.
Then they came for me,
and by that time no one was left to speak up.
poem attributed to Pastor Martin Niemöller (1892–1984) about the inactivity of German intellectuals following the Nazi rise to power and the purging of their chosen targets, group after group.
There's no expectation of privacy out in public areas. If drug dealers are concerned about their (and others') criminal activity, they'll stay out of the limelight in order not to be caught. My family has a right to enjoy public space without criminal and dangerous activity. Let's give the parks back to the people - the good citizens of Seattle!
Eli - 16 years ago
I know many people are concerned about Big Brother watching them and claim that this is an invasion of privacy but this is not a home or a restroom. Parks are public places. I have small children and the idea of an extra level of protection in public parks makes me more comfortable if it means that criminal activity will be curtailed. If someone has a privacy issue which would be violated by a camera then that privacy will also be invaded by the other people in the park, including police and security.
Amelia - 16 years ago
Cops, Attorney's, Judges etc.. always seem to need more then a scared victim. So lets give them more! Put the cameras up and run them!
Right, if you're not doing anything wrong, let's all submit to a phone tap. I'm not doing anything wrong, yet I'm not comfortable with a 24 hour phone tap. I'm not doing anything wrong, but if a stranger with a badge shows up at my house and demands to search the place without any justification or warrant, I'm not going to let him do it. Yet why? I'm not doing anything wrong.
By the way, when those cameras are extensively distributed throughout, they can be positioned to see inside peoples apartments. This is already a widely used practice in cities like London, where cameras are ubiquitous.
Mary in Ballard - 16 years ago
The city doesn't have enough cops, so without the ability to respond immediately, what's the point?
N_End_Mike - 16 years ago
If you're not doing anything you're not suppose to be doing, who cares who's watching? People are watching us all the time. In our cars, walking down the street, walking by store fronts. I think it's those who want the 'freedom' to be up to no good who would oppose this attempt at curbing behaviors that sicken and threatens those of us who have nothing to hide.
In case anyone checks back on this article. I live in the neighborhood, and have watched the park deteriorate from crime, thugs, and bums loitering, and lack of maintenance over the last few years. It's scary to see the kids playing amongst the thugs and the urine/alcohol smelling of the bums (I'm not talking displaced homeless, I'm talking bums). The cameras have made absolutely no improvement. In fact, Cal Anderson park is getting worse under the watchful eye of the cameras that can't do anything but spy. And for what? No one does anything to drive the bums and the thugs out. Maybe they just want to watch me walk through the park everyday to see what I'm listening to on my iPod? Maybe they will watch some thug mug me under their 'hoodies'. But they won't prevent it.
A lot of people on this are talking about how they have "nothing to hide". Do the American people have political alzheimers? The military commissions act, with the gutting of habeus corpus, declares that on the demand of the Bush Regime, ANYBODY can be detained and tortured and held indefinetely without the right to an attorney. Look it up. So what if your innocent? If you don't have any way to prove it that doesn't matter.
They came first for the Communists,
and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a Communist.
Then they came for the Jews,
and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a Jew.
Then they came for the trade unionists,
and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a trade unionist.
Then they came for the Catholics,
and I didn't speak up because I was a Protestant.
Then they came for me,
and by that time no one was left to speak up.
poem attributed to Pastor Martin Niemöller (1892–1984) about the inactivity of German intellectuals following the Nazi rise to power and the purging of their chosen targets, group after group.
There's no expectation of privacy out in public areas. If drug dealers are concerned about their (and others') criminal activity, they'll stay out of the limelight in order not to be caught. My family has a right to enjoy public space without criminal and dangerous activity. Let's give the parks back to the people - the good citizens of Seattle!
I know many people are concerned about Big Brother watching them and claim that this is an invasion of privacy but this is not a home or a restroom. Parks are public places. I have small children and the idea of an extra level of protection in public parks makes me more comfortable if it means that criminal activity will be curtailed. If someone has a privacy issue which would be violated by a camera then that privacy will also be invaded by the other people in the park, including police and security.
Cops, Attorney's, Judges etc.. always seem to need more then a scared victim. So lets give them more! Put the cameras up and run them!
Right, if you're not doing anything wrong, let's all submit to a phone tap. I'm not doing anything wrong, yet I'm not comfortable with a 24 hour phone tap. I'm not doing anything wrong, but if a stranger with a badge shows up at my house and demands to search the place without any justification or warrant, I'm not going to let him do it. Yet why? I'm not doing anything wrong.
By the way, when those cameras are extensively distributed throughout, they can be positioned to see inside peoples apartments. This is already a widely used practice in cities like London, where cameras are ubiquitous.
The city doesn't have enough cops, so without the ability to respond immediately, what's the point?
If you're not doing anything you're not suppose to be doing, who cares who's watching? People are watching us all the time. In our cars, walking down the street, walking by store fronts. I think it's those who want the 'freedom' to be up to no good who would oppose this attempt at curbing behaviors that sicken and threatens those of us who have nothing to hide.