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Billions Spent on Britain's Cameras Haven't Cut Crime

timesonline.co.uk — Billions of pounds spent on Britain’s 4.2 million closed-circuit television cameras has not had a significant impact on crime, according to the senior police officer piloting a new database. Detective Chief Inspector Mick Neville said it was a “fiasco” that only 3 per cent of street robberies in London were solved using CCTV.

Who dugg this? Made popular May 7, 2008

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  • anaesthetica, on 05/07/2008, -1/+87When I lived in central London, I would go on a 20 min walk every day to school and could count no less than 60 CCTV cameras along the route. I'm sure there were numerous others not immediately apparent to me. It was more frightening than comforting.
  • inactive, on 05/07/2008, -6/+86Of course, they aren't up there to stop crime but to spy on people.
  • swrostmore, on 05/07/2008, -0/+57The reason this doesn't work is the same reason the NSA wiretapping every cell phone network in the US doesn't work, the same reason Orwellian surveillance-state tactics will never work - its like trying to find a needle in a haystack by increasing the size of the haystack.
  • refreshers, on 05/07/2008, -1/+49I thought the amount of stupid ***** on youtube showed people aren't afraid of doing anything in front of a camera
  • whyufail, on 05/07/2008, -2/+44It's like DRM for the streets. Annoys the ***** out of everyone but the people it's targeted for.
  • govsucks, on 05/07/2008, -14/+52Government knows best sheeple, shouldn't you be grazing?
  • inactive, on 05/07/2008, -2/+36We have caught the suspect on camera. Look for an average sized male wearing a hoodie.
  • inactive, on 05/07/2008, -3/+33we need that Gomer Pyle soundbite here: "suh-prahz suh-prahz suh-praahhhhzzzz"
  • jivatmanx, on 05/07/2008, -6/+34Why would the state care about cutting crime?
    The cameras are only there to remind everyone who's in control.
  • moldykorn, on 05/07/2008, -3/+30Nothing more cameras cant fix, right?
  • swrostmore, on 05/07/2008, -2/+27You say "unfortunately," I say its evidence that there is still hope for Britain.
  • elscorcho717, on 05/07/2008, -1/+20The motivation to commit serious, violent crimes is such that it has no deterrent -- otherwise the years of lost freedom via prison would be enough to fix things. A lot of the kind of people that would break into your house and possibly hurt you are most likely going through drug withdrawal too, making that motivation even greater. No camera is gonna stop a crackhead from doing what he thinks he needs to do to get his fix. It's time that we worked harder to solve the problem at the source.
  • Infidelcastr0, on 05/07/2008, -3/+21If you want to imagine the future, imagine a boot stamping on a human face forever.
  • vw2005, on 05/07/2008, -3/+21In other news.... sales of 'Voyeur British Pornos' are at a record-time high
  • Lumbeekid06, on 05/07/2008, -2/+19It hasn't cut down on traffic issues either, as Top Gear States in almost every episode.
  • protogenxl, on 05/07/2008, -1/+18Well what did you expect? Criminals in the UK are defeating a 500 pound camera with a 15 pound Hoodie.
  • Hefelumpman, on 05/07/2008, -2/+19Britain, no.
    Birmingham, yes!
  • snugsoho, on 05/07/2008, -1/+18Something like this came up a couple of years ago when a Judge from Humberside (I think) talked about how the quality of the images captured of suspects by CCTV cameras was so poor that 99% of the time any such evidence had to be discredited.

    I'd do a Google search so I could be more specific about all this but I'm using Opera Mini right now.

    But yeah, basically CCTV is about is much use as a Chocolate Fireguard.
  • bigj480, on 05/07/2008, -1/+17 Not surprising at all, much like their "gun control". There is a saying about liberty and security that most should take to heart, but few will. I only hope that it is not to late for all of us. What's worse is that people willingly pay for the system that will ultimately turn them into subjects because of the mistrust they have of their fellow citizens when it is the government that should be kept at bay.
  • squeekyzebra, on 05/07/2008, -2/+18damn man, you got a heavy hoodie.
  • parax, on 05/07/2008, -0/+15I don't know why people thought tighter surveillance was going to fix something. CCTV is only the solution if you truly believe the problem is that people only commit crimes because they're not being observed. That's like trying to toilet train your kid by staring at them.

    It's the same reason stiffer penalties don't result in less crime, they result in higher recidivism. If stiffer penalties were a deterrent, the U.S. would be virtually crime free.

    The solution to crime is that you must instill criminals with whatever it is they're lacking that a normal person has. A sense of dignity, social responsibility, morality, opportunity, etc. Any method that avoids the premise of criminal behavior is a stopgap measure at best.
  • inactive, on 05/07/2008, -10/+24I've seen those camera's around Birmingham. Unfortunately most around 70% of them are either:
    Spray painted over.
    Have had their guts ripped out.

    Britain is el *****.
  • inactive, on 05/07/2008, -2/+15They spent billions for 4.2 million cameras and virtually no reduction in crime. RTFA
    and 1984.
  • notoneofus, on 05/07/2008, -4/+17You're implying that it's not already being done in the US?
  • BlackJackJester, on 05/07/2008, -5/+18I need to practice my stabbin! aHA aHA aHA
  • Lixie, on 05/07/2008, -2/+14Of course, the authorities answer to this is to call for more cameras.
  • scamper22, on 05/07/2008, -0/+12best analogy ever.
  • WiredLain, on 05/07/2008, -2/+13£
  • Nrvana423, on 05/07/2008, -1/+12*dug*
    I made an Andy Griffith reference in one of my college classes the other, and all of my classmates gave me the deer in head lights look followed by questions... "What's Mayberry?" "Who's Opie?"
    /facepalm
  • haydesigner, on 05/07/2008, -0/+10Oh, the wit! The undeniable wit!
  • jivatmanx, on 05/07/2008, -3/+12This will never do anything for crime, but I can guarantee you that if anything involving dissidents or political enemies happened in front of a camera... They wouldn't miss that.
  • inactive, on 05/07/2008, -6/+15eliminated the need for me to post the same. I have been thinking that same thing forever. You always here about crime, yet they have cameras on every corner. Call me paranoid, but the fact support it.
  • inactive, on 05/07/2008, -9/+17Cameras on the streets, banning of kinky porn, police paranoid as hell and shooting unarmed civilians (look up: brazilian kid). England went to ***** after the 2005 bombings. Spineless cowards.
  • h4mx0r, on 05/07/2008, -1/+9Shh, don't remind them.
  • inactive, on 05/07/2008, -4/+11These cameras could only have aided in combating what effectively is only symptom of the true illness - disrespect of one individual human being for another. Rather than pouring endless treasures into the bottomless drain treating the symptoms of the illness, perhaps we ought to spend our money treating the real disease and on illness prevention - nothing less than a full-scale all out education of the masses through mass media. The core lesson - "Respect your neighbor in return for respect." Lack of respect is the illness and always has been. Disrespect is predatory and savage and has no place in anything resembling "civilization." It is anathema to the concept. Cameras, fences, dogs, jack-booted stormtroopers and all of the weapons and tools imaginable do nothing to prevent the true disease. If you wish to spend millions or billions to change societies, cultures, people, individuals, consistently remind them to respect one another - always. That will yield the best return for the dollar ... or pound, or whatever you're spending. If you genuinely desire a bright and prosperous future for yourself and those you love, insist your government spend your monies wisely on disease prevention or, seen another way, spend your money towards a healthy and respectful society, and insist those around you behave in respectful ways in return for respect from you. Expect continued crimes and social illness if you do not.
  • itsthemechanic, on 05/07/2008, -12/+19Pardon to interrupt your racist stereotyping, but most of the problems in the UK stem from the all-British white trash.
  • squeekyzebra, on 05/07/2008, -2/+9come on man, get your facts straight. The camera project started long before the bombings. Also, are you going to say that America didn't get paranoid as ***** after 9/11. People wouldn't even ride in arab men's cabs cause they were so afraid. So I guess we're just spineless cowards too.
  • swrostmore, on 05/07/2008, -0/+7Real Britons deal with Chavs in exactly the same way they deal with CCTV cameras.
  • inactive, on 05/07/2008, -1/+8Yeah, maybe you should 'liberate' us. That'll have to help.
  • Crimsoneer, on 05/07/2008, -2/+9Who the hell is Detective Chief Inspector Mick Neville, and why is he more trustworthy than everybody else who claims they've actually done a great job?
  • dannyboy3020, on 05/07/2008, -3/+10Billions spent on cameras so they can just...spy on people? In public?
  • ladyarcher85, on 05/07/2008, -1/+7Death related to shootings may have lowered but people are being stabbed with kitchen knives and ordinary items found in a typical house. Others are beaten to death by yobs. Now, if someone can obtain a gun through legal means of course and use it to protect himself, I doubt these idiots would be so bold as to even touch your finger, but that is another story.
  • 0tis, on 05/07/2008, -3/+9In other news: Pope admits to "being of Catholic faith", bear ***** in woods.
  • Infidelcastr0, on 05/07/2008, -3/+9Treating everybody like criminals is a surefire way to reduce crime! Yea!



    Or not.
  • Look4Truth, on 05/07/2008, -6/+12The globalist surveillance being implemented is not to catch criminals but instead to control and intimidate law abiding citizens.
  • NoDitchDigging, on 05/07/2008, -3/+9We're all assuming that it was about cutting crime in the first place. I'm sure that the British police are really enjoying the boatload of cash generated by the traffic light cameras.
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