I smile at people all the time in London. I find it a lot more friendly/tolerant than it used to be back in the 80's and early 90's.

I know so many people with more than one mobile phone. Lets face it in order to keep up to date with the cheapest tarrifs most people change their phones on a regular basis and some times end up with a bunch of sim cards. I know loads of builders and I think all of them have at least two phones that they carry with them at any given time, sometimes more.

And as I'm studying photography at the moment, I'm always snapping away all over the place.

I don't see that making people this paranoid is the way to break terrorists. I remember being questioned in the 80's just because I have an Irish surname, because, yes, a 15 year old school girl could just be the lynch pin of the IRA! **shakes head sadly**

AWESOME! So here's the plan! You wash your teeth and hair, while I knit and take pictures of you doing it while answering my spare phone! Oooh! The evil that lurks in our hearts will put all others to shame. Muahahaha!

Sounds like a plan. Can I bring my cat? Oh. Oops. He IS a weapon of mass destruction. Sorry. Forgot that. (He is in the process of shredding my paper even as we text).

Well, at least Heathrow Terminal 5 has ditched plans to fingerprint all passengers. Seems that forcing people to br fingerprinted was 'illegal' or some silly little thing like that. These civil rights groups, putting up such a fuss...
(I don't travel by plane, I travel by coach- it's slower, yeah, but it doesn't need several kinds of photo ID and means I can bring liquids and entertainment on the transport with me)

It may be well intentioned but it is easily defeated: all the terrorists have to do is hire a model, and have her stand in front of various "vulnerable" locations and set up an expensive camera and act like they are doing a photo shoot, whilst in reality they will look at the background of the pictures to plot their dastardly deeds.

The last link is the most stupid.

I don't think the house one is so bad, people already report suspicious activity if they see it. Drug houses or whatever.

HP is right about the photo one, theres many ways of looking innocent. Small cameras aren't hard to get, I'm sure you could manage some surveillance without anyone noticing.

I think that the fact they use the word terrorist is worse than the fact these posters exist. Using harder to trace phones, suspicious activity at houses, or mapping security systems could be any kind of criminal, or an innocent person. Criminal would have better to use on the posters.

Seems to me that its to trick people into believing they're doing more than they are, and attempting to catch offenders without spending more.
Get the public to watch for criminals rather than more police than cost money. Call them terrorists so people feel scared and keep a better watch.

Looks like its happening in other ways too, getting speed cameras to watch for speeders rather than police, even though cameras don't pick up on dangerous drivers if they stay under the limit. Or the ban of replica weapons under the violent crime reduction act, but thats an annoying spot for me because it affects a hobby of mine thats similar to paintball. Obviously real guns are already illegal, they should have a shot at enforcing those laws properly instead of making placebo laws to make people think they're doing their jobs.

For their next trick! They will ban origami making, as terrorists can use it to sneak government secrets to their allies. While Bush spends a couple mill on a Dominoes pizza that will be built in to the white house.

One thing that no one's mentioned is the whole thing of reporting random people cuz they don't like them. That would give the person being reported a lot of crap, even if it didn't lead to anything.

It might do, but again that can already happen. Just have to hope that it won't happen more often with these posters in place.

Hmm so that Brazilian woman at work that has two phones that one rings every half hour and speaks in Brazilian could be a terrorist...hmm I thought she was more of a call girl actually. she does like her men.

A friend once noticed a bunch of Muslims going in and out of this house and carrying in and out boxes of something suspicious.

Hmmm. Madness.
but some how reminded me of Banksy
http://www.solsup.com.au/greenman/bansky2.jpg

Could be a call girl for terrorism!

Banksy :) Wheres that one from?

Wasted padding. It's only a matter of time before the cell phone goes away due to it's terroristic nature.

Maybe I just have a hard time detecting sarcasm but...

Pretty sure that's so you don't kill the pilot and fly the plane into any rather large or significant buildings.

If you smile at someone in London they freak out? I was raised in a small town in Alabama, and it is considered good manners to smile and say hello as you pass by. Guess my Southern charm would get me locked up, huh?

Would anyone be stupid enough to trust these?

Was anyone stupid enough to think that the terror alerts were a good idea?

What about tourists? Seriously, if I go to London, it'll probably be a once in a very, very long time. I'm gonna take some frickin' pictures dude! I could very easily be an evil American spy. There's no way I could disguise it. You should hear me speak spanish. It's atrocious! I sound very American, but I'd have a camera and a pay as you go phone, just so I don't happen to lose mine, or rack up roaming charges.

So yeah, the blonde American girl is actually going to be an evil terrorist, intent on destroying London.

Dear IR,

Yes. Sorry. I was being sardonic. You cannot bring knitting needles, but you can bring the knitting. (Sort of like in my home state where you are required to have adequate windshield wipers, but you're not legally required to have a windshield on your car. Go figure). I am aware that knitting needles constitute a weapon, but then so would the kntting (AkA ligature) --but, since needles would make a rather nasty projectile in turbulence, point well taken.

Using needles now? Your cute rainbow avatar won't fool me. I know you are a hardcore gangster, Jaye Jang Soprano.

WOW! What state is that?

Dear T&C or D,

The same state that requires all drivers to have at least one-quarter-inch tread on all four tires (police here check that with a penny), but you are not legally required to have tires on your car. Go totally figure.

Well, if you don't have tires you're not driving anywhere, so I can understand that to an extent. However the Windshield baffles me... Is it possibly you are not obligated to have one unless you are operating the car? That could make some sense.

Well, the tire thing makes perfect cents.. Get it. Penny. Cents. AH! I kill myself.

Actually you are not legally required to have a windshield. Why, I don't know. It snows here a lot, so that makes no sense. And, it is possible to drive a car with no tires, although it is not advisable. (One very well-known CW star tried it, set off sparks that started a forest fire, and got sued. My spin on that fiasco was if they did not want that to happen, then the law should not be on the books in the first place. But, unfortunately it is, and it is enforceable). Thus, go figure.

I read this today. Looks like photography in America is outlawed everywhere. Unless your the government who wants to put CCTV and spy drones everywhere - thats fine. Just don't take your kids to a National landmark and take a photo and now, don't get caught filming football or cheerleaders...

http://www.sacbee.com/101/story/820599.html

Bee writer pleads not guilty in porn case

WOODLAND – Gilbert Chan, a business reporter at The Bee, pleaded not guilty Friday to a felony charge of possession of child pornography.

Chan, 52, of Davis was arrested after trying to conceal a camera he was using to videotape a youth cheerleading competition at UC Davis on Feb. 3, police said.

Yolo County prosecutors filed a complaint alleging a single felony count of possessing obscene matter depicting sexual conduct of a person under 18.

Chan's lawyer, Steven Sabbadini, questioned the charge. "What he did was film fully clothed cheerleaders during a public performance," he said. "The question is whether that fits the definition of child pornography."

The charge carries a maximum penalty of three years in prison. It also can be reduced to a misdemeanor.

Chan, who was not on duty at the time of the incident, is on administrative leave from The Bee.


Thats right - filming cheerleaders is now considered filming child pornography.