2008 Woodie Awards
Praise for foreign grass roots remedy to CO2 emissions
Dan Keenan
Issue date: 2/19/08 Section: Opinion
If George Orwell were walking around London today, not only would he not be surprised at some of what he saw, he might even go so far as to say "I told you so." For all of the flack and that his 1949 novel "1984" received in causing panic, paranoia and suspicion among the masses, one cannot help but wonder whether London ripped off some of Orwell and Big Brother's ideas.
Although I have not read anywhere about their problem with re-assimilating one of their own back into society, the English have certainly found interesting ways to transforming and enforcing "Big Brother."
Over the past year the British have come up with, to say the least, innovative means to control the movements of people on foot. With the help of very advanced Closed Circuit TV, Britain, using 158 of these cameras, has been on a crusade to end, in more populated streets and parks, drinking, littering and fighting, among other inherent human actions.
Occasionally operators will use a camera's ability to speak and blurt out "Big Brother is watching you."
Loitering and even anti-social behavior around storefronts and their apprehensive owners, has, also, its own remedy: devices that emit high frequency "mosquito-like" ringing that is only audible to younger ears. The unbearable sound causes the "victim" to run away in pain.
Well, not exactly an unbearable pain for everyone. The automobile congestion problem in the innermost parts of the city, these days, is causing more than an eyesore.
The problem, caused by every car, is the ever-present crisis of very high carbon dioxide levels in the metropolis's air. As a result, London's air quality is one of the worst in Western Europe. But as seen before, to every problem, no matter how obscure for them, there is a manner in which to address it. And the mayor of London, Ken Livingston, has said the ways of the polluting motorists will be moderated.
The answer? More taxes -- as if Europeans weren't taxed enough already -- and bicycles, thousands of them.
Although I have not read anywhere about their problem with re-assimilating one of their own back into society, the English have certainly found interesting ways to transforming and enforcing "Big Brother."
Over the past year the British have come up with, to say the least, innovative means to control the movements of people on foot. With the help of very advanced Closed Circuit TV, Britain, using 158 of these cameras, has been on a crusade to end, in more populated streets and parks, drinking, littering and fighting, among other inherent human actions.
Occasionally operators will use a camera's ability to speak and blurt out "Big Brother is watching you."
Loitering and even anti-social behavior around storefronts and their apprehensive owners, has, also, its own remedy: devices that emit high frequency "mosquito-like" ringing that is only audible to younger ears. The unbearable sound causes the "victim" to run away in pain.
Well, not exactly an unbearable pain for everyone. The automobile congestion problem in the innermost parts of the city, these days, is causing more than an eyesore.
The problem, caused by every car, is the ever-present crisis of very high carbon dioxide levels in the metropolis's air. As a result, London's air quality is one of the worst in Western Europe. But as seen before, to every problem, no matter how obscure for them, there is a manner in which to address it. And the mayor of London, Ken Livingston, has said the ways of the polluting motorists will be moderated.
The answer? More taxes -- as if Europeans weren't taxed enough already -- and bicycles, thousands of them.
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