Neil Hopcroft

Why surveillance cameras don’t reduce crime

This post is part of a discussion between pro and anti cctv camera people…but it raises a point which worries me: “cameras target only the most stupid criminals, for a while”. My worry is that we’re effectively selectively breeding criminals to be more clever….now, in an ideal world clever people don’t have to be criminals because they’re able to turn their cleverness to things which are useful to society, and get paid enough to not need/want to be criminal. We don’t live in an ideal society.

Hit me baby one more time

“Let the Dark Side defend your lawn from the ravages of summer heat or cool you off on a hot day with this Darth Vader sprinkler!“

Vote Doctor Doom…its the only choice

“According to Advertising Age magazine, the fast food chain will pay rappers up to £2.80 ($5) every time a song namechecking the burger is played.”

“Dennis Taylor got a call reporting a stolen house – “No, it’s a brick house,” the real estate company representative replied.”

And some more from rathavensmiff

1) In what way do you think you impact upon people around you?

I would like to think I’m able to inspire a commitment to ‘doing the right thing’, but I’m probably just another voice in it for their own ends, the same as everyone else.

2) What item of “female” clothing are you most likely to wear?

That depends a little on who it belongs to…no, I’m not particularly bothered by the ‘gender’ of clothes if they’re going to fit comfortably and not look too stupid, but then I’ve not really paid much attention to the way I look for a long time so I don’t suppose anyone would really care anyway. There isn’t anything I’m dying to try on, or anything, but I am a bit jealous that women get such a good choice of nice looking clothes while us guys have to put up with a boring suit livened up only with a loud tie.

3) What values are important enough for you to fight for?

Fight? Fight who? I wouldn’t go to war, nothing is worth that. I would defend my friends (indeed, I’d probably even defend complete strangers) if the situation arose where I could do something useful and understood enough of what was going on.

4) XXXXX is the root of all evil (what is XXXXX?)

Money. Greed. Religion. Stupidity. Advertising. Oil. Television. Education. Guns. Theres so many answers, I don’t know which is more important. Greed has to be high on the list.

5) Do you believe in a thing called love?

Yes, it works for other people. It’ll never work for me.

Some more questions from scifilittlemy:

1. Did you/do you read comics? if so what was/is your favourite?

No, I never really read any, though everyone else was very into them. I love the ideas they include, but I never got into them.

2. What record were listening to when you realised you were different. Love, Peace and Bananas :) ?

I’m not sure I am different – certainly some of the Medics music was good, but theres a whole load of things that could be said to have the same kind of feeling. I suspect I wasn’t paying enough attention to other people at the time to notice they were different to me.

3. Hot countries or cold countries?

Cold countries. I nearly melted in Japan. A group of us went on a business trip to Tampere while I was out in Tokyo, we flew in around October, when Japan is getting to be sensible British summer weather. Tampere was 6C. I was so happy being cold that I went for a walk in just a TShirt, and was found on my way back to the hotel by one of the Indians who was wrapped up in his big fleecy jumper and shivering.

4. What are you passionate about?

Very few things are worth the effort – I like cars and computers, not much has changed for a long time. I guess inginuity is something I could get passionate about, clever pieces of engineering.

5. What must a holiday include for you to make a good one?

I rarely go on holiday, and I’m not sure there is any kind of commonality to the things that make a good holiday.

Star Wars easter eggs

Some more questions, from toripink

1. If you could be any woman in the world, who would you be and why?

I can’t think of a famous woman I’d like to be, but I can’t think of a famous man I’d like to be either, so it would have to come down to characteristics rather than actual people. I’d like to be someone who was good with people, someone dynamic, someone successful, someone who didn’t believe in the bad things that many people think hold women back in careers.

2. Coffee or tea?

Coffee. White, no sugar.

3. If you could have done anything else as a job what would it have been?

Driving. Probably lorry driving.

4. Have you ever really regretted a decision?

Not yet. Which I take to mean I’m not doing it right. I’m not very good at decision making and tend to wait until there isn’t a decision to be made any more. There are, of course, things I’ve done which I’ve been unhappy about, and things I haven’t done that I’ve been unhappy about. But most of those weren’t really resolved to a single decision that I could say was bad – they normally come back to me saying a long series of low-level stupid things.

5. Are you happy?

Am I giving off unhappy vibes, or something? Thats the second time in as many weeks someone has asked me that after a hiatus of several years. No, I don’t think I’m happy. But equally I don’t think I’m unhappy. I am, however, learning a bit about happiness at the moment, since I’m not working and a lot of people think that that leads to happiness (in the context of an active decision to not work), thats not happening for me at the moment – I think I need more interaction with people, so I probably need to do something about my social life.