CCTV cameras in Sligo - Big Brother is watching!

Hail 2 Da Chimp

While driving through Cranmore, I noticed that there are huge poles with CCTV cameras on top of them.
When did they arrive and also why haven't they been burnt down yet?
Is there actually anyone watching them?

Basq

Thar ya go!

bobcar61

http://www.sligoweekender.com/news/story/?trs=mhgbkfcwey&cat=news

bobcar61

MoreHere

Hail 2 Da Chimp

Thanks for the links guys!
Hmm, interesting. The camera I seen in Cranmore can definatly see into people's bedrooms, it's the perfect height / position. So I'm sure there's going to be some pissed off people there. Although it's probably for the best, but I doubt anyone will be watching them.
I can't see thousands of euro's being spent on buying / installing the cameras, then paying tens of thousands to pay someone to sit in front of them...

AlmightyCushion

Big_Mac

Hail 2 Da Chimp wrote: »

Thanks for the links guys!
Hmm, interesting. The camera I seen in Cranmore can definatly see into people's bedrooms, it's the perfect height / position. So I'm sure there's going to be some pissed off people there. Although it's probably for the best, but I doubt anyone will be watching them.
I can't see thousands of euro's being spent on buying / installing the cameras, then paying tens of thousands to pay someone to sit in front of them...

I see no problem with them. If the camera can look into your bedroom then so can someone in the house accross the way. Close yer curtains I say

TequilaMockingBird

Hail 2 Da Chimp wrote: »

Thanks for the links guys!
Hmm, interesting. The camera I seen in Cranmore can definatly see into people's bedrooms, it's the perfect height / position. So I'm sure there's going to be some pissed off people there. Although it's probably for the best, but I doubt anyone will be watching them.
I can't see thousands of euro's being spent on buying / installing the cameras, then paying tens of thousands to pay someone to sit in front of them...

I see...

You happened to be "driving" through Cranmore.
And the CCTV "definitely" can see into "peoples" bedrooms.
They are "the perfect height/position"??

I think the cameras might be looking for YOU!!



I wouldn't imagine these cameras are manned, but could be used as evidence in the event of a killing, drug deal, beating, robbing incident.

Big_Mac

sueme wrote: »

I see...

You happened to be "driving" through Cranmore.
And the CCTV "definitely" can see into "peoples" bedrooms.
They are "the perfect height/position"??

I think the cameras might be looking for YOU!!



I wouldn't imagine these cameras are manned, but could be used as evidence in the event of a killing, drug deal, beating, robbing incident.

It's Cranmore y'know, not feckin Beirut

Hail 2 Da Chimp

sueme wrote: »

I think the cameras might be looking for YOU!!

Exactly... And where am I supposed to hide if they can even see into all the rooms?

Hail 2 Da Chimp

Big_Mac wrote: »

I see no problem with them. If the camera can look into your bedroom then so can someone in the house accross the way. Close yer curtains I say

There were examples of people abusing these cameras and videoing into peoples in the links Bobcar posted and in a thread in A.H. at the moment...
You shouldn't be forced to keep your curtains closed 24/7.

TequilaMockingBird

Big_Mac wrote: »

It's Cranmore

Fixed your post.

Basq

Hail..

Talk to Joe!

Big_Mac

sueme wrote: »

Fixed your post.

Grammar Nazi Wannabe


/looks for petrol bomb in the shed and heads for the windmill......

Xiney

...is there much point anymore to this thread guys?

AlmightyCushion

I doubt there is anyone monitoring them in real time. For 24/7 monitoring you'd be looking at getting 2 or 3 people (maybe even more). I'd say it's just recording and if their was any incidents or the gardai believe there was any suspicious activity then they could check the footage.

TequilaMockingBird

I think its great, its got to be a deterrent and it will help the relevant authorities target the problem families/individuals. More of them are needed in some areas of the town* in my opinion.





*mine

il gatto

Why not pay for someone to watch them? It may be thousands each year, but so is every Guard on the beat or pen pushing in the station. I would say with a useable evidence/money/conviction ratio, the camera operator is probably the most efficient use of resources. If they're not manned it's been a waste of money. If an incident isn't reported it's never known about as the footage won't be checked. If they're panning cameras, it's possible they'll miss a serious crime by mere inches if they're not manned. I would be extremely p1ssed off as a tax payer if I found they'd payed some contractor top dollar (as all government bodies do) and then don't utilise the cameras to their potential.

TequilaMockingBird

I agree, they should be manned, but if we're being realistic, its not going to happen. Why? That's a whole other thread (in politics).

I think things have got so bad here now, that residents are happy for any type of protection. It may not be admissible in court, it may not capture a crime directly "on screen" but it will give the Guards the evidence that such and such was in a particular place at such at time. It's not alot, but its better than nothing.

Big_Mac

sueme wrote: »

I agree, they should be manned, but if we're being realistic, its not going to happen. Why? That's a whole other thread (in politics).

I think things have got so bad here now, that residents are happy for any type of protection. It may not be admissible in court, it may not capture a crime directly "on screen" but it will give the Guards the evidence that such and such was in a particular place at such at time. It's not alot, but its better than nothing.

Well, I don't think they have gotten that bad. They are there, but how does one get the video if they want it? not gonna happen methinks. The deterrent is more powerful than anything really, but all you need is a hoodie and your sorted tbh. IMO, trouble is only caused and shit only happens for a reason and to someone specifically. I've never had any problems and anyone who has had things happen to them have generally been a part of a feud or some sort of row with someone else. Random stuff doesn't really happen

TequilaMockingBird

No, I agree, for the most part the town is grand, just your usual odd bits of anti-social behaviour, as you will get anywhere.

There are three, as far as I'm aware, corporation estates where this behaviour is far, far above the norm. Its these areas that need some help, CCTV isn't going to solve the problem, but it may well help. Hopefully.

il gatto

Big_Mac wrote: »

Well, I don't think they have gotten that bad. They are there, but how does one get the video if they want it? not gonna happen methinks. The deterrent is more powerful than anything really, but all you need is a hoodie and your sorted tbh. IMO, trouble is only caused and shit only happens for a reason and to someone specifically. I've never had any problems and anyone who has had things happen to them have generally been a part of a feud or some sort of row with someone else. Random stuff doesn't really happen

May be true with regards murders and some assaults, but an awful lot of crime in Sligo is random and doesn't stem from any long running conflict. If those cameras are PTZ (I.e. controlled via a joy-stick), a hoodie would not always be enough to save a criminal from detection. If an operator is zoomed in on his face, one glance in the wrong direction and they have a still photo. Clothing such as distinctive shoes, jacket or even tattoos to corroberate and your screwed. Modern video surveillance equipment, whilst not at the C.S.I. level day to day, is extremely impressive. They can operate in low light with iris adjustment from base. They can zoom in on an upper body shot from 200m. They can read the small print on a tax disc at 30m. Allied to that is the fact that the footage would be stored digitally and therefore with instant playback, clear freeze framing and quick duplication and distribution.
Used properly it could make the town a safer place for the average person. It'd be a disgrace if it turned into a white elephant. Community Alert areas anyone?:rolleyes:

gino85

i got 2 of the near my house and i dont have a problem with them, only people who would have something against them are the ones who have somthing to hide

Hail 2 Da Chimp

sueme wrote: »

More of them are needed in some areas of the town* in my opinion.
*mine

So would you be happy having one erected outside your house, knowing if whom ever was manning it wanted, they could point it into your bedroom / sittingroom windows. I think the lack of regulations governing the use of CCTV is a joke...

But as il gato says, they have the potential to do a lot of good, but it's very very doubtful they will... I can see them being vandalised and never fixed. Or just not manned and not being used in any way.

Hail 2 Da Chimp

basquille wrote: »

Hail..

Talk to Joe!

Hi Jim, I just can't help but feel people are spying on me.. No matter where I go, i always get the feeling someone is watching.

I'M NOT CRAZY!!! :pac:

Xiney

Well, the guards are always asking to see private businesses' CCTV when an incident has happened nearby (and have been, at least on one occaission where I worked, pretty pissed that we DARE not film the road beyond the front of our building. um, hello?)

So maybe it's about time they started putting up their own.



I don't think they're much of a deterrent. But they can help if they catch any evidence to use in court.

TequilaMockingBird

Hail 2 Da Chimp wrote: »

So would you be happy having one erected outside your house, knowing if whom ever was manning it wanted, they could point it into your bedroom / sittingroom windows. I think the lack of regulations governing the use of CCTV is a joke...

But as il gato says, they have the potential to do a lot of good, but it's very very doubtful they will... I can see them being vandalised and never fixed. Or just not manned and not being used in any way.

It doesn't bother me if cameras are pointing at my bedroom/sitting room windows as I live in a housing estate so I have made sure nobody can see through my windows. If I lived in house with a bit of space around it, long driveway etc. then I could have more open window dressings, but if you live in a densely populated area, then you need to cover your windows if your concerned about privacy, rather than complain about who is looking through your windows because you have given them access to do so.

The vast majority of people in Cranmore are decent people, living with alot of anti-social behaviour around them, if the CCTV helps to combat this in any small way, then it is a success.

TequilaMockingBird

Xiney wrote: »

Well, the guards are always asking to see private businesses' CCTV when an incident has happened nearby (and have been, at least on one occaission where I worked, pretty pissed that we DARE not film the road beyond the front of our building. um, hello?).

I was in Kaos hairdressers on Harmony Hill for about 2 hours, the Guards were viewing their CCTV footage for the entire time I was there.

Sun Headline:

Kaos Fights Chaos on Sligos Seedy Streets.

Big_Mac

Hail 2 Da Chimp wrote: »

So would you be happy having one erected outside your house, knowing if whom ever was manning it wanted, they could point it into your bedroom / sittingroom windows. I think the lack of regulations governing the use of CCTV is a joke...

But as il gato says, they have the potential to do a lot of good, but it's very very doubtful they will... I can see them being vandalised and never fixed. Or just not manned and not being used in any way.

Ok, but if your job is to monior CCTV cameras, and a number of them at that, why would you be bothered in possibly maybe getting a chance of seeing someone watching CSI Miami on TV?

elshambo

Hail 2 Da Chimp wrote: »

Hi Jim, I just can't help but feel people are spying on me.. No matter where I go, i always get the feeling someone is watching.

I'M NOT CRAZY!!! :pac:

chimp, your not crazy if they are all out to get you and btw they are out to get you, I was at the meeting!



Im both for and 100% against the nanny state depending which side of the bed i get out of.
most people should be left alone by the state but some should have there hand held 24/7.
U need a licence to get a dog!

Hail 2 Da Chimp

sueme wrote: »

I live in a housing estate so I have made sure nobody can see through my windows.

Thats what you think!

<_<

>_>

TequilaMockingBird

Hail 2 Da Chimp wrote: »

Thats what you think!

<_<

>_>

O hai is that the police?
Yes, I appear to have a chimp in my bushes.
Send ARU asap.
kthxbai.

brianthebard

il gatto wrote: »

May be true with regards murders and some assaults, but an awful lot of crime in Sligo is random and doesn't stem from any long running conflict. If those cameras are PTZ (I.e. controlled via a joy-stick), a hoodie would not always be enough to save a criminal from detection. If an operator is zoomed in on his face, one glance in the wrong direction and they have a still photo. Clothing such as distinctive shoes, jacket or even tattoos to corroberate and your screwed. Modern video surveillance equipment, whilst not at the C.S.I. level day to day, is extremely impressive. They can operate in low light with iris adjustment from base. They can zoom in on an upper body shot from 200m. They can read the small print on a tax disc at 30m. Allied to that is the fact that the footage would be stored digitally and therefore with instant playback, clear freeze framing and quick duplication and distribution.
Used properly it could make the town a safer place for the average person. It'd be a disgrace if it turned into a white elephant. Community Alert areas anyone?:rolleyes:

that all sounds wonderful,except they've been putting up cameras in britain for a decade now with no discernible impact on crime.Afaik the 'evidence' they provide is only useful in convictions 16% of the time.
Also,lolz at the tags.

Hail 2 Da Chimp

brianthebard wrote: »

Afaik the 'evidence' they provide is only useful in convictions 16% of the time.

16% of the time, they work every time!

il gatto

brianthebard wrote: »

that all sounds wonderful,except they've been putting up cameras in britain for a decade now with no discernible impact on crime.Afaik the 'evidence' they provide is only useful in convictions 16% of the time.
Also,lolz at the tags.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/2071496.stm
This link is a balanced report on the issue. The most telling point for me is the paragraph headed "money saving". Of course cameras aren't effective if they don't actually work. I suprised the fact that they're neither manned nor maintained reflects on the effectiveness of CCTV cameras in general. Why did you write evidence in inverted commas? I have first hand experience of CCTV footage gaining convictions where there was practically no other evidence as well as some serious crime where it was corroborating evidence. Considering the ineffectiveness of our local policing as it is, I'm suprised anyone would think diverting a tiny fraction of their budget to a diiferent approach is dubious.

Hail 2 Da Chimp

il gatto wrote: »

I'm suprised anyone would think diverting a tiny fraction of their budget to a diiferent approach is dubious.

Well the fact that this government has a habit of wasting money, there doesn't seem to be any clear laws governing the use of these CCTV cameras and the fact that I don't believe they are going to allocate money to man or repair the cameras spells disaster to me.
If the cameras are going to be manned, then I would have liked to have had more information on that...