Yay!! I love stories like this because they point out how we can't trust authorities to understand what freedom is--let alone trust them to protect it. Way back in September Engadget.com posted [http://www.engadget.com/2006/09/02/australian-scientists-working-on-suspicious-behavior-monitorin/|a blog entry] about how "Australian scientists are working on automating this procress in software to track "inappropriate behavior" in public places, interpret that how you will." Well, I interpret it this way: bad. Sometimes I'm walking down the street and I realize I'm heading in the wrong direction. Do I stop and turn around? NOPE. I didn't used to. I felt that I'd look stupid if I did that. I felt like someone else on the street would see me and think "that idiot doesn't know where he's going!" Of course, the reality would be that I did know where I was going, I just made a mistake. Still, this concern used to be enough for me to not put myself in the right direction immediately. I'd have to walk around the block once. A little OCD? Probably, but that's who I am. The reason I bring this up is because someone else watching me might think up some other reasoning for why I suddenly turned around and they'd likely be wrong. Perhaps I just felt like walking the other way? Or maybe I just felt like a spaz and decided to explore my spazziness. The point is that, often, you can't tell what is going on in a person's head based solely on their behavior. Take [http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/15824096/|the story of the 6 Muslim Imams who were kicked off a plane because they were praying to Mecca before they got on]. The crazy suspicious Americans (probably mostly white folks) were freaking out because these Muslims were clearly praying for the last time before they blew up a plane. Or not. So, now we'll have software telling authorities who is behaving "strangely." Isn't that great? A computer deciding whether or not I'm about to blow up a plane. Hell, my Mac can't even tell when I want to listen to my iPod and when I'm just wanting the charge the damn thing and it's a Mac... I feel safer already...
Orignal From: AUTHORITIES TO JUDGE SUSPICIOUS BEHAVIOR
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