Thursday, April 2, 2009

Traffic Cameras

A couple weeks ago I handled a call on my radio show (Thursdays, 11:00 AM CT, WTNK Hartsville) about the use of video cameras to issue tickets for running traffic lights. At the time, I expressed concern about the fact that, once we start down that road, we would find it easier to use cameras for other law enforcement tasks until one day we find ourselves living our whole lives under the watching eye.

Well, I recently read an article detailing the plans of several cities across the country to use the cameras, and special software, to read license plate numbers and check them against a database of insured drivers. No insurance? A ticket will be mailed to you.

The officials quoted in the article made no bones about it - it's not safety, it's revenue. They just want the additional money.

This is why the trend is so bothersome.

~Tim

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