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PaperclipPerfector  5d ago (text post)   22885 thread views

Culture War Roundup for the week of December 16, 2024

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An individual in a central control room (who can eventually be replaced by AI) can monitor dozens of man trap doors on CCTV to allow those with luggage or in wheelchairs to come through. This isn’t intractable.

… right up until roving gangs vibrant urban youth groups start smashing the CCTV cameras for laughs. Or even just start loitering around the station until someone with luggage or a stroller comes, and then they swoop in and prop open the gate so subsequent thugs delinquents persons of alternative socialization can stroll right through

Once in Shanghai there was a problem with my subway card. The scanner at the turnstile would not let me out for some mysterious reason. I went to the nearby help desk which is an enclosed room with glass panels you can talk to workers through. I gestured to the turnstile with my card and the woman at the help desk gestured me to use a nearby turnstile. It was unlocked when I reached it. She must have unlocked it for me.

There are simple systems that allow for manual override but are not susceptible to gangs of urban youths bypassing. Forethought and will the size of a mustard seed would let us have this in America. It's not like special Chinese-only DNA let them set up this handy and secure system. We are choosing to live this way andcanchooseto stop anytime.

Sure, but this is the general crime spiral. Some percentage of subway fare evaders will give up because they do not want to smash the cameras, are too short, don’t have enough time, etc.

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