Tuesday morning, I went to get my copy of Grand Theft Auto V. I managed to pick up something else along the way that I wasn’t expecting.
A speeding ticket.
No, I’m not kidding!
Graphic courtesy Rockstar Games.
Category: crime Page 2 of 4
From: Rick Pali <rpali@alienshore.com>
To: Stockwell Day <Day.S@parl.gc.ca>
Subject: New prisons.
Date: Wed, 4 Aug 2010 20:17:01 ‑0400
Sir,
I read with great interest the CBC article describing the news conference in which you announced the government’s intention to spend billions of dollars to build new prisons.
The article says that the government has “received indications” that an increasing number of crime victims do not report the crimes committed against them. Of particular interest was a quote of something you said:
It shows we can’t take a Liberal view to crime which is, some would suggest, that it is barely happening at all.
Ignoring your dig at the Liberals, they claim crime is declining because they have police statistics that say so. It’s not a mere ‘view’ if they’ve got numbers to prove their point. Of course this doesn’t mean they’re necessarily correct. If you wish to correct an error in their reasoning, you need to have proof that they’re wrong. The reporters questioned you on where you’re getting this information, and you blew them off, saying you’d provide figures later. Canadians expect and deserve better.
The CBC did their homework and contacted Justice Minister Rob Nicholson, and he cited a 2004 Statistics Canada report which estimated that 34% of Canadian crime victims aren’t reporting crimes against them. I hope the information backing your claim is more substantial than a six-year-old estimate that sheds no light on whether unreported crimes are increasing, decreasing, or unchanging. You know that if the percentage of crimes that aren’t reported is constant, and the reported crimes are declining, the crime rate is indeed declining, right?
So okay, lets imagine that you have these amazing statistics proving your point (and all we can do is imagine because you expect us to take your word over the people with numbers backing them) that crime rates are not declining. I’m still waiting to hear how building more prisons will help bring people to justice when the crimes aren’t being reported. It will be difficult to get the perpetrators into those new prisons if the justice system knows nothing about their crimes.
Rick.
cc: http://www.alienshore.com/2010/08/a‑leap-to-prison/
Have you ever felt an internal conflict over what appears to be a fairly straight-forward issue? A Slashdot posting I read earlier today is a good example, at least in my view. It describes a high-school prank in which students get back at people they don’t like. The Montgomery County Sentinel describes it this way:
Originating from Wootton High School, the parent said, students duplicate the license plates by printing plate numbers on glossy photo paper, using fonts from certain websites that “mimic” those on Maryland license plates. They tape the duplicate plate over the existing plate on the back of their car and purposefully speed through a speed camera, the parent said. The victim then receives a citation in the mail days later.
Students are even obtaining vehicles from their friends that are similar or identical to the make and model of the car owned by the targeted victim, according to the parent.
Yes, I agree that they should not be doing this. But my inner conflict is highlighted nicely by another portion of the news story:
The parent said that “our civil rights are exploited.”
A means to identify drivers who exceed the speed limit should identify the drivers who exceed the speed limit. Automated cameras that take a photo of a speeding car and an automated system that delivers the fine to the car’s owner through the mail, without anyone ever seeing the paperwork as part of the process, is itself a civil rights issue. It also really bothers me that these cameras are not about safety. They’re an automated revenue source for the municipality.
The students are certainly doing something they shouldn’t, but they’re also showing a significant weakness in the system. It’s also incredibly amusing.
It’s amazing what one can see out one’s own window, though I suppose it doesn’t say good things about my neighbourhood.
CRW_4448.CRW: Digital Rebel, EF 70 – 200mm 1:4L @ 200mm, 1/6, f/4, 1600 ISO
There certainly is an excess of violence and intolerance in the world today. Still, in my personal estimation of appropriate behaviour, I allow generous leeway to someone protecting their family in their own home.
I don’t own a handgun. I have a hunting rifle. My job is to protect my family. If someone comes into my house? Game’s on.
Kevin Mawae
Centre, Tennessee Titans
Hat tip to Kevin.