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You better watch your step in Cambridge, Brookline, Somerville, Winthrop and Quincy
By adamg on Thu, 08/14/2008 - 11:53am
They're installing street surveillance cameras for the first time, the Cambridge Chronicle reports. It's part of a $4.6-million Homeland Security grant (Winthrop as terrorist target?) to deploy 100 new cameras in greater Boston.
Boston, Chelsea, Everett, and Revere are also installing cameras under the program, but they already had cameras in place.
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Comments
Winthrop is a dandy terror target
Deer Island sewage treatment facility is quite literally a wicked pissah of a terrorist target! Were it sabotaged, the shit would hit far more than a fan.
Not to mention....
Not to mention the proximity of slow-moving, low-flying passenger jets from the top of the landforms at the Deer Island park.
Deer Island is actually in the city of Boston
The only way to reach it by land is through Winthrop, but the 'island' (now peninsula) itself is in Boston.
Similar situation to Long Island, which is not in Quincy but is only reachable from there.
Oh, no doubt
But would terrorists getting ready to blow it up be staging their assault on the streets of Winthrop?
The back beaches of Winthrop
The back beaches of Winthrop were used as a port of call for the bootleggers during prohibition. Joe Kennedy was especially fond of using those beaches.
So they have a history of illegal activity lol
OT: What's with people using
OT: What's with people using wicked pissa as a noun?
In this case ...
it is a noun. Deer Island is but one giant pissah for the entire arear. Or crappah.
I suppose...
We could get gussied up and call it a 'pissoir'.
Non?
I've been getting lunch a
I've been getting lunch a few times a week from small businesses in Union Square, despite the ugly intersection. But having to wait at the intersection beneath the watchful eye of Big Brother is decidedly unappetizing, and the last straw.
I suppose this is good news for businesses in Inman and Central, for now.
Hoo Boy!
Having lived in Winthrop for close to ten years, I can attest to the fact that nothing much happens in that town. (Oddly enough, given the town's total population, a higher than usual percentage of Staties seem to live there.)
But, the town government is about as effective Chelsea's used to be and about as honest. This is nothing more than a grab for a little freebie cash from the feds. Oh, sure, it was probably all prettied up to pass muster with the town, you know, homeland security and all that - wink, wink, nudge, nudge. Winthrop got tons of mitigation money from the state with the building of the treatment plant but the town's streets were still a mess and they had to pass two Prop. 2 1/2 overrides to get the new schools built once the money stopped. Someone's hand is in the till on this one, no doubt.
However, aside from the plant itself and low-flying aircraft, let's not forget about the LNG tankers that are staged in the harbor for access to Chelsea Creek and the tank farms. While actually anchored off Long Island near the shelter, Deer Island does have better sight lines. From the southernmost tip of the island you can watch the large cruise ships pass in and out of the harbor - it's pretty impressive just how much area is open out there. That's the part that might have people getting antsy.
Deer Island does see a fair share of people traffic, too. In summer the paths are packed, especially on weekends. Snow days have the kids out there with their sleds and even some cross country skiers on occasion. But I ran those paths all year round and it's pretty deserted on a cold February night. Most times it was just me and my other half out there, braving temps in the teens and a nice wind whipping off the water. Usually the only others we'd see were the security guards at the gates and even then they'd be huddled in their shack.
But, the town government is
Nothing crashes a hack party more than the state and feds busting down the door and cracking a few heads. Who would have thought 30 years ago that Chelsea would be in better fiscal shape than Winthrop which cant even keep its high school up to date enough to recieve a passing grade from the forces that be.
You really think this is about terrorism?
To me it's just really friggin 1984 .
.
I don't think its about terrorism. I think it's about money, specifically its about your and my money being spent on things we don't need, nevermind thnigs we don't want.
It is about the survellience state.
Before 9/11 we had no homeland security dept. The budget for 2009 includes a 7% increase in the homeland security budget, now $43 billion = $43,000,000,000.00
How does one reconcile survellience of the byways and street corners of the city with freedom?
right, because those cameras are invisible
In neighboring Somerville, city officials remain tightlipped on exactly where the 360-degree angle cameras would be installed, citing "public safety issues."
Riiiiiiight, because crims and ter'rists are so stupid *and* blind that they wouldn't possibly notice a pan/tilt, outdoor-housing security camera. Nevermind that unless someone is actively watching the camera, the footage of a crime is going to be nearly useless, as people's faces will be 2-3 pixels wide. Unlike in the movies, you can't push a magic button and turn 10 pixels into a license plate number or a crystal-clear face.
Christ. Where do they get these people from? And haven't any of them read of the utter failure of billions of dollars in cameras in Britain?
Sounds like Britain should
Sounds like Britain should have spent less on cameras and more on implementation. The police dont use it because its not convenient, but Im sure if there was a way to cross reference images easier it would get broader use. So instead of having 1 camera for every 14 people maybe they should drop down to 1 per 250 or more and actually focus more on making it easier to obtain quality shots in high traffic zones.
I highly doubt we are using these cameras in an effective manner either so maybe we should reconsider spending even more money on the venture. Especially if out goal is to cut back on terrorism on the home front as we seem to be dealing with people who are willing to kill themselves to get the job done, having it on film so we can watch it the next day doesnt do much for prevention.
Pro and Cons
In London, when that nail bomber killed people at the Admiral Duncan in Soho, the newspapers had photographs of the bomber on their front pages the very next day, and he was identified and caught. That was because he had been caught on the many police security cameras in that area. So they are useful sometimes.
"1 camera for every 14 people" may be overkill though. I have walked through the City in London on a Sunday morning when nobody else is around, and it is hard not to notice the cameras pivoting to follow me as I walked down the street and turned corners. I would not like Boston to become like that.
Ive never been to London but
Ive never been to London but Ive been inside a building with the motion cameras. I dont know how it sounds on the street but in the building you could hear the gears shifting with the elctronic swivel. It is much creepier than just seeing a camera.
Winthrop and Logan Airport
Part of the runways of Logan Airport are over the border in Winthrop, so if the Dept Homeland Security provides money to protect Logan, then you could argue that Winthrop should get some of that money.
When planes land on the Winthrop part of the Logan runways, and a stewardess says "welcome to Boston", a pedant could argue that they should be saying "welcome to Winthrop" instead.
Cameras
The people who think this is 1984 are foolish..everyday you hear on the news of kids getting kidnapped, or people being assaulted. What is the first thing the cops go after? Video of the incident and it it is usually, from an old crummy ATM or 7/11 Camera. One of the biggest news stories last summer was the abduction of a young female in Randolph VT , only because of video did they link her uncle o the crime. A rapist in Medford was caught and identified with video. I couold go on and on......These stories are on the news and in papers every day, you never hear from the ACLU about the success of video, only the repression of rights. etc blah, blah blah. Is Winthrop a target? probably not as a whole , but the infrastructure that is all around , and could be a target is, and Winthrop has some good views to possibly capture this. Homeland security is not pushing this, the grant money was decided by local Police who thought that this would be a good tool in the overall layer of protection of Public safety. Will CCTV cameras be the end all of stopping crime? NO but it is a good piece of the puzzle, and the Police should have a good working system and not have to rely on amateur video or grainy 7/11 cameras to solve potential cases. Let me tell you, NCIC checks far out weigh an invasion of privacy than any camera hanging off a traffic light. I know the ACLU doesnt have alot to fight aginst ion this Post 9/11 world, and this issue only gives them a soap box yell from the back of the room with no facts.
Not sure I'd want to see cameras on every street corner, but,
I do think, however, that there's a legitimate reason why they've long been implemented in stores and other places of business. Shoplifting's long been a tremendous problem, and the staff can't be walking around in the premises every minute to monitor what customers are doing, or not doing, so there's got to be some way to monitor what goes on.
Whenever I make long-distance road trips out of state that require stop-overs for the nights, the places that I've stayed in have cameras in the front lobby that enable the people working the front desk to monitor what's going on in the halls of the various floors of the premises, as a security measure. That's not so terrible.
Years ago, I remember visiting a co-worker who then lived in Huron Towers. Every single apartment had these video cameras, so that one could see whoever was trying to gain entry into their apartment.