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So Crystal H. found this interesting article about how there are cameras now on the Texas border that allow you to watch the border along with the border patrol agents so that you can help report suspicious activity and illegal immigration.
(!)
I don't even know what to say about this technology. Where is it taking us? Vigilante border agents? Live shots of city streets so that citizens can help city police do their jobs?
The article clearly states that the website has only been effective in 4 arrests. How much money did this technology cost?
Anywho, please read the article and give me an opinion.
http://www.cnn.com/2009/TECH/03/12/border.security.cameras.immigration/index.html?iref=newssearch
Talk to me . . .
58 comments:
This is one of the best ideas I've heared of in a long time. Its a good thing to have cameras aimed at the border 24/7. It will make it harder for illegle imegrants to enter this country without being spot and hopefully deported.
Whaoh, thats totaly cool. The bad thing is, there is only 14 cameras... you only need like 3 or 4 people on one camera. with 43,000 registered users, we would need like 200 cameras.
Agustin says 'That offends me.'
$2 million...That's alot for border patrol stuff.
I personally think this is stupid. At least, it's stupid for people 'around the world' to be watching our southern border. Like some British guy is gonna log on and tell the police that some people are crossing the border.
i did not like this blog because i was born IN MEXICO (thanks Crystal if you dont like me just let me know i will understand it better) but oh well it is pretty expensive because it cost over 2 million dollars but they might be pretty awesome just to see some people that you know crossing the border haha.
THANKS JACOB FOR SAYING THE I FEEL OFFENDED
Whathappened "Give me your tired, your poor, Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free"?
Well, it kinda is a good idea for the cameras along the US/Mexico border. But with only 4 successful arrests, it makes you wonder whether or not the technology really works or not. It should be more productive since it has about 43,000 people watching live feed everyday
i think its crazy that they can do something like that. 1,250 miles is a long way and for something like this to help fight crime is a good deal really cool though
This is bad A. for use of a better word. This places power into the citizens hands to help protect themselves. They can if they want but no one is forced to.
It's also a form of hands-on entertainment. When you watch TV... you can't call or e-mail in and possibly help catch a drug-runner.
its a good idea but i think its money wasted u need at least 200 cameras like whats his face said ! then we could get some real arrest going!
I dont really know what to think, seeing as how i dont have a job, then i guess im not loosing it to the Mexican immagrants. But still, this cuts the chances of the immagrants making a better life for themselfs and their families atleast in half, just because some red-neck republican thinks that America should be reserved for only his kind.
There because of a two milllion grant from the state of Texas anyone in the world can watch grainy live video scenes of cactuses desert mountains and the Rio Grande along Texas portion of the international border.
I totally agree with this, I actually think this is the best blog yet. So now when I get home from work, and its like 12am, I have something to do.
Our boarders need to be patrolled. Yes, thats right BOARDERS. We have the Canadians coming over and buying all of our cheap gas in the north and then we have the huge drug problem in Mexico.
If they see someone trying to cross illeagally, I'm all for them reporting it and law officials going in and taking action. We have boarders and passports for a reason.
I'm not racist.
I think you should have a camera on every border also because you never know whats going on in the that type of problems. But i dont think they should keep you against your will to leave. You should have a right to have your say so.
I think that this is an perfect way for people that are sooooooo concerned about boarder control to feel important. Its not really going to stop people from coming over, but it will make more over-weight people because all they will do is sit in front of the computer doing there "civic duty" and eating cheetos.
I'm no politician but there has to be a better way at regulating illegal immigration, not that I could tell you what that method would be.
The camrea thing is cool if you want to sit and watch stuff like that, but what's the point if you are in New York watching cams of the border of texas?
You can't do anything other than contact the border patrol (somehow), but if they are already doing their job then you shouldn't have to.
Stopping a few here and there isn't going to stop the main problem just slow it down. I'll will wait and see how this plays out.
PART 2
Don't get me wrong I agree that the boarders are important to monitor but the $2 million could have been spent in other ways like hiring more boarder patrol agents or giving them better equipment. At least then the people monitoring the boarder would be active and getting paid. I think thats what the job market needs; more jobs as border agents and less people finding new hobbys to distract them.
I think its a good idea, it keeps us aware of what is good or bad things that are going on, and what is entering and leaving.
This is a good idea! we should have lots of these camaras. This will make us a little safer. Lets say that there was a pleage in a country and bring it and a person illgal trys to come here they can be stoped.
I think even though people cross the boarder every day illegaly. It can help out on that but if it only has mad 4 arrest then it dosnt do us any help out all. They need to find a more of a effort to think of a way to stop people of crossing the boarder illeagly. This project probally cost millions. If it only has made 4 arrest then it is not doing its job.
i think that's pretty neat......an incredibly boing activity for those participating, but a pretty cool thing obviously the day to day patroling isn't working well enough so this could turn out to be a really good idea
Batman, dun nuh nuh nuh nuh nuh nuh nuh Batman! Vigilante border patrol sounds cool, but 2 million dollars could be spent a lot better. And IF we do their job for them, what is the border patrol supposed to do? All in all I think the sentiment was good, but it was a wasted effort. ANd why only 14 cameras? 2 mil land the could only afford 14 cammeras? That is stupid in my book.
I kinda think the cameras are kinda dumb because it has a 5 second delay at least and also it would take people a while to get to the spot where the person reported. The other thing is that they are wasting more money on it that what their getting out of it.
i htinkits a great idea but they have only make 4 arrest..its also a waste of money. Its a way to fight immigration and drugs..
i dont think this is the best idea. there are alot better things we could be spending this money on than lettin people stare at a fence on see if they can find a few people trying to cross over. with all the people that are already watching and they have only cought 4 people. sounds like a waste to me.
its a good idea to have someone to patrol the border.its a really dreat idea
it is a good idea but not realy. would you like to spend 2 million of dollars for some thing that you are not going to get out of. it only has made 4 arrests. thats not good because millions cross the border every day and for only catching 4. it makes it sound even more stupid. it would have been a better idea if there would have been more cameras. but either way the illegal mexicans will find a way to cross basicly its yust a wast of money.
I understand all the reasons as to why it was emplaced but I don't really support it. I mean I don't think its a bad idea but I don't think its a good one. 2 million dollars just spent on a project like this and it feels somewhat discriminating. People putting so much effort just to prevent people from crossing. I do applaud the 4 arrests of those people who were trying to smuggle drugs though.
Not a bad idea, but hasn't put out very well for what was put into it. Even the 2,000 lbs. seized and four arrests don't come close to the millions spent and countless hours spent watching the live feed. How can someone spend over 4 hours watching a camera pointed at a cactus in the dark? People will get bored and probably start to hysterically imagine dark figures at the border; then call in false reports of illegal immigrants. Police will get tired of searching the border at every alerting email and give up the hunt for EXTREMELY DANGEROUS POT!!!
-Border Pat.-(O_H N_O!, they have pot and are going to cross the border with it!)
-Immigrants-(the diversion worked!, bring in the coke on the other side!!)
*((my thought on our priorities))*
This is the best ideas you've heared of in a long time. In Mexico, It will make it harder for illegle imegrants to enter this country without being spot and nice hopefully deported. Really nice.
i dont think this equipment stuff is neccesarry...especially not for 2 million dollars. we could do something else with dat money...like help get out of this economic reccession dat we are in, not look at ppl on cameras
This is a great I idea but like Chase said with too few cameras it is not affective. The y need more cameras to make this more affective.
i think its a really good thing for police and they can stop illegal immigrants now with this technology.
This is a pretty good idea but spending so much money on it might be kinda wasteful. i mean only 4 arrests? maybe they should try moving their cameras to different locations or something.
Well, i think that it is a good idea to spy on the border. And then again i have to put my foot in their shoes, i wouldn;t want people telling me when i can and cannot leave.
im not shure what to say to this idea 2million for a couple of cameras theres been worst ideas than this
WHY?!?! I mean idk what to say about all the [illegal] immigration stuff. I don’t want to offend any body, and I sure don’t want to sound ignorant (because I am just that to this topic). I do however feel that $2 Million is a hefty amount of money to spend so that people can sit, at home, and watch the border. I hoping I misread the article though.
Parte Deux
I agree with a few people on the idea of setting up more cameras. Anybody can make a free website with video feed sent to it. Sure, bandwidth might cost a bit, but not enough to warrant 2 million bucks. I can only imagine what they actually spent it on.
4 Cameras, along with any needed equipment: $600-$800 each?
The rest went to donuts and coffee used to feed the two technicians who set up the equipment and posted the live video feed on a website, maybe?
Wow the beginning was pretty stupid -_-.
I wonder if she has teenager too with whom
she has to fight to be able spend 4 hours doing that?
And then it gets worst when they say, "because of a $2 million grant
from the state of Texas, anyone in the world can watch grainy
live video scenes of cactuses, desert mountains". Wow then the woman has the audacity to put her picture on there! Oh good Lord!!!
I think this technology is great because it is designed to alert you to cars or objects in your blind spot during driving or parking, or both. Usually it will respond when you put on your turn signal; if it detects something in the way, it may flash a light in your mirror, cause the seat or steering wheel to vibrate, or sound an alarm. This is more of a short-range detection system.
ok, this is so dumb!! who wants to waste valuble time that you can never get back looking at cactus and dirt!! this should have never been funded especially for 2 mill. I will never use this i mean if your looking to pass the time go somewhere and do something instead of buying a $10 cop costume and pretending you are border patrol and have a life!! seriously this is soooo stupid!!
I don't really understand why people around the world would have any interest in watching our borders. And $2 million is a lot of money that I don't really think we have at the moment - especially if the cameras they are using now have only caught a few people.
I agree completly with Krystal. I like the idea of this but the price seems steep. I don't see how a couple of cameras and a website possible comes close to 2 million dollars. That money could be really used in the recession we are in.
personally i think the best way for citizens to help in stopping illegal immigration is to let people with land along the border to either apprehend them or take em out....its probably even cheeper
i think that that site is a waste of time, and that people who spend hours upon hours on that site need to do something else. i can see people wanted to help out their country, but when it costs that much money i think its a waste. the site should be closed down and instead they could use that money, or perhaps even less, to hire a couple guys to watch the border
These cameras put in the border so any person can observe and report mysterious activities is an ok thing i guess. But it doesnt appear to be very efficient to capture drugdealers which i think should be very important!!..I guess if people are bored they can do this
Well i think it's a pretty cool idea because alot of people will be able to see if somthing is going on and it'll make it much harder for illegal immagrats to get here without being seen....
okaay...well i think it is important to try to keep the country safe and what not ... but to use as much money as $2million that's just way too much for only 14 cameras...and do people seriously have enough free time to just sit and watch the southern border???
i understand that not all of the people that are tryin to enter the US are coming for good reasons.. but what about those people that just want to provide a better way of life for their families..
ok so yea i think it will help a little with border patrol but honestly i think it will waisete more money than help because even if we aee them running to america all we can do is smile
Really, they have got to be kidding me. That is a total waste of money. I don't even see why they have these cameras up just along the border. The worst idea I have hever came upon. Might as well place more cameras along every border in the US to prevent other people from comeing in too. See what it feels like. Truthfully, it's like very offending. Be racist against other people from around the world and see how it feels like.
Y'all are worried about 2 million?
For the government... what's 2 million compared to 800 BILLION????
Nothing. Maybe if we didn't spend a couple million developing ARCTIC VEHICLES... ya that's right. It's in the stimulus bill.
This is the good idea I'v ever heard. but the bad thing is that it got 14 cameras and there is only 3 or 4 people on the camera.
I think this is a unique and sightly cool idea, it is like a regular security camera system but instead of hiring poeple to watch the cameras they get the internet to do it. It might be cheaper this way, but I don't know.
I think what she is doing is a good idea. It's a lot better than what the government is doing with the Southern border.
I think its an good idea... but you would need a lot more cameras, because theres a lot of people registered.... but not a lot of cameras
ok...this is the not the greatest idea..
but hey if they think that this is goin to stop pleople from crossing the border...
i wolud not minde it but come on people theres camers ya but thats not going to stop people from crosing
This is a GREAT idea =)
No Drugs!
No Swine Flu!
No illegal people!
though the president doesnt
want to do much to stop it...
no comment on that...
i feel its a great idea!
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