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-   -   Living car free can enhance your level of privacy (https://www.bikeforums.net/living-car-free/987892-living-car-free-can-enhance-your-level-privacy.html)

Walter S 01-01-15 05:59 PM

Living car free can enhance your level of privacy
 
I'm glad my bicycle has no license plate. I'd just as soon not have people tracking my whereabouts and using that information in ways I can't safely predict.

Smallwheels 01-01-15 06:50 PM


Originally Posted by Walter S (Post 17432778)
I'm glad my bicycle has no license plate. I'd just as soon not have people tracking my whereabouts and using that information in ways I can't safely predict.

This is one big benefit of being car free. Unfortunately unless you live totally off the grid you already have a big footprint into the government ID world. It is almost not worth the effort of trying to disappear from the prying eyes of the government.

This always makes me think about Max Headroom and the character Blank Reg. He was a blank to the government because he was off the grid.

wolfchild 01-01-15 07:07 PM

You may not have a license plate but you have internet, maybe you even have a cell phone, what about a bank account, there goes your privacy.

Roody 01-02-15 12:56 AM

Sometimes being carfree takes away privacy. I've often had colleagues and friends tell me "I saw you yesterday afternoon riding your bike down on the south side." If I'd been driving, they probably wouldn't have seen me. On the bus I run into people (like former patients) who I don't particularly want to talk to.

wahoonc 01-02-15 06:36 AM


Originally Posted by Roody (Post 17433597)
Sometimes being carfree takes away privacy. I've often had colleagues and friends tell me "I saw you yesterday afternoon riding your bike down on the south side." If I'd been driving, they probably wouldn't have seen me. On the bus I run into people (like former patients) who I don't particularly want to talk to.

This...

When I was car free everybody saw me everywhere... I was probably better know locally then than I am now.

Aaron :)

Ekdog 01-02-15 06:52 AM


Originally Posted by wahoonc (Post 17433757)
This...

When I was car free everybody saw me everywhere... I was probably better know locally then than I am now.

Aaron :)

That wouldn't work here, I'm happy to say. Too many cyclists and pedestrians. :)

Dahon.Steve 01-02-15 08:41 AM


Originally Posted by Walter S (Post 17432778)
I'm glad my bicycle has no license plate. I'd just as soon not have people tracking my whereabouts and using that information in ways I can't safely predict.

There is so much criminal activity in the country today that law enforcement is setting cameras practically everywhere. I am all for these them since they have often led to the capture of numerous criminals. These cameras are to protect everyone including the carfree from the motor centrist who are using their vehicles to commit violent crime.

Walter S 01-02-15 08:52 AM


Originally Posted by Dahon.Steve (Post 17433990)
There is so much criminal activity in the country today that law enforcement is setting cameras practically everywhere. I am all for these them since they have often led to the capture of numerous criminals. These cameras are to protect everyone including the carfree from the motor centrist who are using their vehicles to commit violent crime.

That's a good boy. You've understood just like you're supposed to. Keep letting your fear give up more and more of your privacy and freedom in the world. The government will protect you. Nevermind that they don't need to keep this information on innocent citizens indefinitely. They'll use that information wisely and always in your best interest.

Robert C 01-02-15 09:39 AM


Originally Posted by Walter S (Post 17434026)
That's a good boy. You've understood just like you're supposed to. Keep letting your fear give up more and more of your privacy and freedom in the world. The government will protect you. Nevermind that they don't need to keep this information on innocent citizens indefinitely. They'll use that information wisely and always in your best interest.

Does it matter that crime is down so much that even the Economist was recently running articles titled Where have all the burglars gone?

Trying to explain the dramatic fall in crime rated has turned into an entire field of science by itself. The fall in crime rates is a given, anywhere other than popular media. The question remains, Where have all the criminals gone?

Walter S 01-02-15 10:46 AM


Originally Posted by Robert C (Post 17434176)
Does it matter that crime is down so much that even the Economist was recently running articles titled Where have all the burglars gone?

Trying to explain the dramatic fall in crime rated has turned into an entire field of science by itself. The fall in crime rates is a given, anywhere other than popular media. The question remains, Where have all the criminals gone?

They didn't get born, because of row v. wade.

Robert C 01-02-15 10:55 AM

1 Attachment(s)

Originally Posted by Walter S (Post 17434433)
They didn't get born, because of row v. wade.

That is part of it; but not all. One other factor was something that was also totally unexpected; removing the lead form the gasoline is also a large part of the explanation.

Steven Levitt, an economist at the University of Chicago, has argued that the legalisation of abortion in the 1970s cut America’s crime rate by reducing the number of children growing up in inner-city poverty and thus predisposed to criminality. But that cannot explain why rates have kept falling long after such an effect should have tapered off, or why crime rates in Britain, where abortion has been legal for longer, began falling later. Jessica Wolpaw Reyes, an American researcher, has argued that the cognitive effects of exposure to lead were a primary determinant of violent crime, and unleaded petrol is to thank for the improvement.
From the linked article

Another factor is that they are still at home:

In most countries young people are increasingly sober and well behaved. They are more likely to live with their parents and to be in higher education—across the European Union 28% of adults aged 25-34 still live at home.
There are still other explanations; but, basically, the news is good:

The period of rising crime from the 1950s through to the 1980s looks increasingly like an historical anomaly.
http://bikeforums.net/attachment.php...hmentid=426041

Walter S 01-02-15 11:00 AM


Originally Posted by Robert C (Post 17434464)
That is part of it; but not all. One other factor was something that was also totally unexpected; removing the lead form the gasoline is also a large part of the explanation.

Interesting. Thanks.

Robert C 01-02-15 11:10 AM


Originally Posted by Walter S (Post 17434488)
Interesting. Thanks.


What's more, by torturing the topic long enough, we can make it relevant to Living Car Free!

Walter S 01-02-15 11:52 AM


Originally Posted by Robert C (Post 17434530)
What's more, by torturing the topic long enough, we can make it relevant to Living Car Free!

It's relevant to LCF history, or lack thereof. Lead in gasoline would not be an issue were it not for cars! (a little relevancy can be found anywhere).

Dahon.Steve 01-02-15 08:55 PM


Originally Posted by Robert C (Post 17434176)
Does it matter that crime is down so much that even the Economist was recently running articles titled Where have all the burglars gone?

Trying to explain the dramatic fall in crime rated has turned into an entire field of science by itself. The fall in crime rates is a given, anywhere other than popular media. The question remains, Where have all the criminals gone?

That was a very good article. They didn't mention the widespread use of cameras since the technology didn't become inexpensive until the past 15 years. Some streets in New York City (ie. Wall Street) have hundreds of cameras installed and most are not visible. Make no doubt about it, the manhunt may have taken months or years to arrest the Boston bombers but on street cameras caught them in the act.

You better get used to it because we are not going back. I feel safe because I'm not going to rob or kill anyone on the street. The people who need to worry are those breaking the law.

The technology is only going to get better and it's being used to make the streets safer. The motor centrist do not want cameras because they enjoy speeding or making illegal lane changes etc. Speed cameras reduce accidents both serious and non-serious while saving lives. If this means the motorist loses some privacy so that we can walk or ride our bikes on the street safely, so be it. Driving is a privilege, not a right.

If the motorist doesn't like cameras and prefers to keep their identity a secret, the solution is simple.

Become carfree.

>>>>>>
The 2010 Cochrane Review of speed cameras for the prevention of road traffic injuries and deaths[56] reported that all 28 studies accepted by the authors found the effect of speed cameras to be a reduction in all crashes, injury crashes, and death or severe injury crashes. "Twenty eight studies measured the effect on crashes. All 28 studies found a lower number of crashes in the speed camera areas after implementation of the program. In the vicinity of camera sites, the reductions ranged from 8% to 49% for all crashes, with reductions for most studies in the 14% to 25% range. For injury crashes the decrease ranged between 8% to 50% and for crashes resulting in fatalities or serious injuries the reductions were in the range of 11% to 44%. Effects over wider areas showed reductions for all crashes ranging from 9% to 35%, with most studies reporting reductions in the 11% to 27% range. For crashes resulting in death or serious injury reductions ranged from 17% to 58%, with most studies reporting this result in the 30% to 40% reduction range. The studies of longer duration showed that these positive trends were either maintained or improved with time.">>>>

http://www.racfoundation.org/assets/...sop_181110.pdf

Walter S 01-03-15 02:55 AM


Originally Posted by Dahon.Steve (Post 17436119)
The people who need to worry are those breaking the law

The information can still be misused. I have no reason for blanket-trust of all individuals in law enforcement! We need regulations on how long the information can be retained on citizens that are not charged with a crime.

But for me personally it is not an issue - until bicycles are required to be registered and display a tag.

Roody 01-03-15 03:20 AM


Originally Posted by Robert C (Post 17434464)
That is part of it; but not all. One other factor was something that was also totally unexpected; removing the lead form the gasoline is also a large part of the explanation.

From the linked article

Another factor is that they are still at home:


There are still other explanations; but, basically, the news is good:


http://bikeforums.net/attachment.php...hmentid=426041

That's something that a lot of people don't understand. I often have people tell me they wouldn't be carfree because of "all the the crime these days." They just can't believe that the streets are much safer than they were in their grandparent's or parent's day.

I believe traffic fatalities are also down. Does anybody have figures on that?

Rowan 01-03-15 03:29 AM


Originally Posted by Walter S (Post 17432778)
I'm glad my bicycle has no license plate. I'd just as soon not have people tracking my whereabouts and using that information in ways I can't safely predict.

You'r employed, aren't you? Do you have a bank account of any sort? Use a credit or debit card, or even a checking account (do people still use them???)? You care for you mother, don't you? Do you or she receive any support? Do you rent or own? Do you have electricity connected? What about your internet connection? And you don't honestly think you are entirely anonymous to the commercial entities that own Bike Forums and advertise on them, do you?

Some of the wealthiest companies in the western world are virtually unknown to the average punter, but they are very, very good at tracking people and their habits.

Everything you do creates an identity trail of some sort that gets converted to digital data. You can either accept it and get on with living your life, or be paranoid about it.

Ekdog 01-03-15 03:30 AM


Originally Posted by Roody (Post 17436573)
I believe traffic fatalities are also down. Does anybody have figures on that?

[h=2]http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_motor_vehicle_deaths_in_U.S._by_year[/h]

Roody 01-03-15 03:32 AM


Originally Posted by Rowan (Post 17436581)
You'r employed, aren't you? Do you have a bank account of any sort? Use a credit or debit card, or even a checking account (do people still use them???)? You care for you mother, don't you? Do you or she receive any support? Do you rent or own? Do you have electricity connected? What about your internet connection? And you don't honestly think you are entirely anonymous to the commercial entities that own Bike Forums and advertise on them, do you?

Some of the wealthiest companies in the western world are virtually unknown to the average punter, but they are very, very good at tracking people and their habits.

Everything you do creates an identity trail of some sort that gets converted to digital data. You can either accept it and get on with living your life, or be paranoid about it.

This all seems like a good argument for trying to preserve what little privacy we do have. I don't think it's paranoid to want and expect the right to lead a private life. The laws that protect our privacy need to be strengthened, rather than people just surrendering their rights. Of all people, I would expect you to get this!

Walter S 01-03-15 04:58 AM


Originally Posted by Rowan (Post 17436581)
Everything you do creates an identity trail of some sort that gets converted to digital data. You can either accept it and get on with living your life, or be paranoid about it.

I choose to limit the amount of data and its potential misuse. Just because many of my activities can be tracked doesn't mean that I can't have a substantial impact on limiting the degree of that. And with the prevalence of data collection in modern times there's a lot to be said for placing regulations on how the data can be retained and distributed.

Dahon.Steve 01-03-15 11:54 AM


Originally Posted by Ekdog (Post 17436583)
[h=2]http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_motor_vehicle_deaths_in_U.S._by_year[/h]

A total of 3,581,039 lives lost in auto accidents since 1899. Incredible.

I-Like-To-Bike 01-03-15 12:10 PM


Originally Posted by Walter S (Post 17436562)
The information can still be misused. I have no reason for blanket-trust of all individuals in law enforcement! We need regulations on how long the information can be retained on citizens that are not charged with a crime.

But for me personally it is not an issue - until bicycles are required to be registered and display a tag.

"I Will Give Up My Unregistered Bicycle When They Peel My Cold Dead Fingers From Around It." Eh?

Walter S 01-03-15 12:21 PM


Originally Posted by Dahon.Steve (Post 17437481)
A total of 3,581,039 lives lost in auto accidents since 1899. Incredible.

I read that as 3.5 million. We lose that many every couple years.

wahoonc 01-03-15 12:57 PM


Originally Posted by Walter S (Post 17437552)
I read that as 3.5 million. We lose that many every couple years.

More like every 3 years world wide. In the US is dropped to around 36,000 annually.

Aaron :)


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