Free Republic

For the past couple of weeks, I have been dragging myself along, super-tired from jet lag from the Eastern Seaboard time zone change (that Maine trip), losing hours of precious sleep due to plane delays and plane diversions, and then forcing myself to rise early (3 a.m. early) each day of the work week to sync my hours with the rest of my departmentÂ’s team currently located in London (you do the math). A fuzzy brain makes writing an article on a single subject quite a challenging prospect. So, Traveler Editor-in-Chief Kurt Repanshek suggested a Q&A article. I liked that...

Chicago's first speed cameras at just four locations issued warnings to more than 233,000 speeders in 45 days, violations that would have totaled $13.8 million in tickets, according to data released by the city today. Mayor Rahm Emanuel has touted his speed camera program as a way to improve traffic safety for children near the city's parks and schools, but the early warning violations from Chicago's first speed cameras are the latest indicator that the fledgling program could be a financial windfall for the city. Emanuel has projected $15 million in speed camera revenue for the remainder of 2013, with...

"CNN reports that Jared James Abrahams, a 19-year-old computer science student, has been arrested for allegedly hijacking the webcams of young women — among them reigning Miss Teen USA Cassidy Wolf — taking nude images, then blackmailing his victims to send him more explicit material or else be exposed. Abrahams admitted he had 30 to 40 'slave computers' — or other people's electronic devices he controlled — and has had as many as 150 total. His arrest came six months after a teenager identified in court documents as C.W. alerted authorities. She has since publicly identified herself as Cassidy Wolf,...

Now Fatwa against photography! India's leading Islamic seminary Darul Uloom Deoband has issued a fatwa branding photography ‘unlawful and a sin’. Mufti Abdul Qasim Nomani, Mohtamim (Vice-Chancellor) of the institution, has said Islam does not permit videotaping of marriages or taking of pictures to save as mementos. "Photography is un-Islamic. Muslims are not allowed to get their photos clicked unless it is for an identity card or for making a passport," he was quoted as telling the Press Trust of India over phone. Saudi Arabia allows photographers inside Makkah and live telecast of namaz and Hajj on TV across the...

San Francisco's fire chief has explicitly banned firefighters from using helmet-mounted video cameras, after images from a battalion chief's Asiana Airlines crash recording became public and led to questions about first responders' actions leading up to a fire rig running over a survivor. Chief Joanne Hayes-White said she issued the order after discovering that Battalion Chief Mark Johnson's helmet camera filmed the aftermath of the July 6 crash at San Francisco International Airport. Still images from the footage were published in The Chronicle. ... Critics, including some within the department, questioned the chief's order and its timing - coming as...

The idea of fitting electronics into a film SLR in order to capture digital photos with it is not new. The thing is, most of the ideas we’ve shared ranged from April Fools jokes to promising concepts that never seem to advance beyond that. The DigiPod is the first product we’ve seen actually become a reality. It’s a digital cartridge that fits inside your old film SLR, and if it makes it to market, it could be quite groundbreaking.

Gov. Terry Branstad is ordering transportation officials to cut the number of special license plates issued to government vehicles that exempt them from traffic cameras. Branstad said Thursday it's unacceptable that 3,218 plates given to local, state and federal agencies have a designation that keeps them out of computerized databases. The designation is meant for those doing undercover work. Cities with red light and speed cameras typically let those with the plates out of tickets that would cost ordinary drivers $75 to $200. Branstad also said the review should look at how many tickets the cameras have issued and how...

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Chances are, your local or state police departments have photographs of your car in their files, noting where you were driving on a particular day, even if you never did anything wrong. Using automated scanners, law enforcement agencies across the country have amassed millions of digital records on the location and movement of every vehicle with a license plate, according to a study published Wednesday by the American Civil Liberties Union. Affixed to police cars, bridges or buildings, the scanners capture images of passing or parked vehicles and note their location, uploading that information into police databases....

He's looking to the private sector U.S. President Barack Obama said he wants a "smarter government" with a little help from the private sector yesterday.  When introducing the the “new management agenda” at the White House Monday, Obama told his Cabinet that he wants a high-technology and more user-friendly government. He feels that his campaign was the most technologically advanced to date, and that should lead to greater progress in the government's technology sector.  “We created one of the most inclusive and one of the most successful campaigns in American history,” Obama said. “Once we got to Washington, instead of an...

The other day, my college age son quietly went around the house and put electricians tape over the camera lenses on the displays of all our home computers.

Michigan lawmakers have introduced bills that would legalize unmanned red light cameras in the state. The bills, House Bill 4763 and 4762, were introduced May 22 by Reps. Wayne Schmidt, R-Traverse City, and Thomas Stallworth III, D-Detroit. The bills define running a red light that's caught on camera as a civil offense. That differs from a 2007 opinion from then-Attorney General Mike Cox, who said Michigan law recognizes red light running as a criminal violation, and the law was not authorized for photo ticketing. On Tuesday, the House Transportation Committee heard testimony on the matter. A representative from a safety...

Contrary to its claims, the City of Chicago’s red light cameras are not based on safety, according to an Inspector General (IG) audit of the program that brought in more than $71 million in revenue for the city last year. The audit, released on May 14, sought to determine if the city’s 384 red light cameras were installed based on the Chicago Department of Transportation’s (CDOT) “stated primary criterion of reducing angle crashes to increase safety.” The IG found no evidence to support the city’s rationale for the program, which is to “increase safety on Chicago streets.”

Michigan’s local governments would have the option to put cameras at intersections to spot drivers running red lights under proposed legislation in the state House. A measure recently introduced by Republican Rep. Wayne Schmidt of Traverse City would give local communities the power to put cameras in place. “This legislation will give more local control to our municipalities while offering a safer environment for the people who live in these communities,” he said in a statement. The bill has gained the support of local law enforcement officials, who say the cameras will act as an extra deterrent to prevent drivers...

Not sure but this may be my first "vanity" thread since joining in 1998. In any case, I know there's folks on here who are deeply involved in photography and know lots about camera's and digital camera's -- something of which I know about zero. I'm taking the better half on her dream vacation this summer to Alaska for her birthday. We have a small 12mp digital pocket camera, but are thinking we'd really need something better (better zoom, image stabilization for example) for some nice nature pic's. I've been reading up on different camera's from SLR to DSLR and...

Show us the data. That’s the message behind a joint lawsuit seeking to force the Los Angeles law enforcement authorities to release a massive trove of information collected by ubiquitous cameras that read license plates and can thus track the movements of millions of motorists not suspected of any crime. The cameras, called automatic license plate readers (ALPRs), are on fixed locations, including stop lights, street signs and in squad cars. Each camera can record as many as 1,800 plates per minute, and more than 160 million "data points" have been collected in Los Angeles County, according to one report....

Rafael Cuellar, the owner of a grocery store in Passaic, NJ, estimates he has spent around $350,000 to install and maintain his store's camera and recording devices. But it's not to protect him from shoplifters — it's to help him defend against lawsuit abusers.

What happens when Muslims live by the answer to the question WWMD? And what happens when Americans appease them?

To help improve the in-game experience, and get more people into the stadium, the National Football League will mandate their teams to install video cameras inside the home locker room before next season to provide content for use during halftime or breaks in the action, NFL executive vice president of business ventures Eric Grubman announced during a panel appearance at Wednesday's SBJ/SBD's World Congress Of Sports. While installation of the cameras is mandatory, the home team will be able to control what footage is used. "The content will be available only in stadium and the content will be available only...

Mayor Bloomberg admits soon NYPD surveillance cameras will be on nearly every corner and in the air. 'You wait, in five years, the technology is getting better, they'll be cameras everyplace . . . whether you like it or not,' Bloomberg said Friday. 'The argument against using automation is just this craziness that 'Oh, it's Big Brother.' Get used to it!' Big Brother is watching. Now get used to it! Envisioning a future where privacy is a thing of the past, Mayor Bloomberg said Friday it will soon be impossible to escape the watchful eyes of surveillance cameras and even...

El Cajon may be the next city to put a stop to red light cameras. ... San Diego removed its red light cameras last month