Britain - The Official Thread

[Famine]

Again though, how will they actually help convict someone if they can't even identify them?

The constabulary send a letter to the vehicle's "registered keeper" (owner... sort of) requiring them to identify the driver of the vehicle at the time. The penalty for failing to do so is pretty much the same as being caught speeding, although it can be worse depending on how much speeding was happening.

 

[TenEightyOne]

So how would it prove that someone stole the bike? Surely you guys have due process over there?

Driving a stolen vehicle is prosecutable in itself regardless of whether there's evidence that you're the original thief.

I'm just trying to figure out how cameras are going to do much good while it's still going on. By the time you track down someone that was wearing a helmet the whole time by using cameras it would seem like a very weak case unless they were stupid enough to still be in possession of the bike.

It's not that they're stupid, it's a sense of invincibility (or so it seems). Well, a bit stupid too. I'm not sure why you think dress or helmets aren't identifiable or obvious bio-markers like height, gait, tattoos and so on. To be honest I don't quite get where you're going with this. Are you saying that CCTV isn't helping to track down crimes or criminal vehicles? Presumably police cars in the US can alert their occupants to criminal vehicles nearby?

 

[ASH32]

All that talk is almost irrelevant though, they can't track most of these bikes. These criminals are not totally stupid, they simply remove the number plates so they are not picked up on any ANPR camera.

This is why they have to stop them whenever they see them, otherwise unknown rider on unknown, likely stolen bike, is gone because they are not going to pull over nicely when the police tell them to.

 

[Northstar]

Driving a stolen vehicle is prosecutable in itself regardless of whether there's evidence that you're the original thief.

Don't they still have to prove it was you driving though?

Are you saying that CCTV isn't helping to track down crimes or criminal vehicles?

I wouldn't say it doesn't help, but it seems like it's not something that should be relied heavily upon either for this type of thing.

I'm not sure why you think dress or helmets aren't identifiable

Of course they are identifiable, but very rarely are they unique.

or obvious bio-markers like height, gait, tattoos and so on.

What kind of resolution do your traffic cams have where they can track someone using their tattoo's?

Presumably police cars in the US can alert their occupants to criminal vehicles nearby?

Of course they can, but what are they supposed to do if they can't pursue them?

 

[TenEightyOne]

Don't they still have to prove it was you driving though?

In the case of automated tickets there will normally be a picture of the driver. In any case the registered keeper of the vehicle has to name the driver or else they also get a ticket (as Famine noted).

To the rest of your comment... the shortcomings of CCTV aren't really my problem, the original point was about targetted operations using CCTV (amongst other things) to target moped gangs in London. CCTV is very much part of that whether it's street cameras, mobile cameras, cameras in police vehicles and so on.

If a US police vehicle saw a criminal vehicle nearby then why wouldn't the police attempt to stop the vehicle? Usually those callouts are a slam-dunk unless something about the vehicle has changed very recently.

 

[Northstar]

To the rest of your comment... the shortcomings of CCTV aren't really my problem, the original point was about targetted operations using CCTV (amongst other things) to target moped gangs in London.

The original point was using CCTV to track these perps instead of chasing them.

They do? A rider on a stolen bike with a helmet on, and they somehow know both who they are and where they're going?

Could you share how this magic trick is performed with the rest of us? I don't get it.



Sure, but they can't just ignore crimes in progress. Preventing rape is great, but the police aren't going to ignore cries for help just because you're already bent over a dumpster. Well, they shouldn't. Some places might (and lots of places are apparently more than capable of ignoring reports after the fact) but I'd argue that that's poor policing rather than something to aspire to.

CCTV is absolutely everywhere, observations from the control rooms are often the catalyst for police arriving in an area. At that point the Road Policing units have a description of a bike and quite probably a registration number. If a bike fails to stop then it's a fair presumption in the current climate that it needs to be stopped. If the riders take their helmets off then there's also a chance of IDing them - and they do take them off as until recently it was commonly believed that the police wouldn't chase a helmet-less rider. Not so any more.

If a US police vehicle saw a criminal vehicle nearby then why wouldn't the police attempt to stop the vehicle?

I don't know, you're the one arguing that they shouldn't.

 

[TenEightyOne]

I don't know, you're the one arguing that they shouldn't.

Nope, I never said that.

 

[Liquid]

The government's amendment to avoid being held in contempt of Parliament regarding legal advice over Brexit has been defeated 307 votes to 311.

This therefore means, unless I am mistaken, that the government is or will be found in contempt of Parliament.

Edit: It isn't automatic but it does mean that the House can now vote on whether to specifically hold the government in contempt of Parliament.

 

[baldgye]

A slight aside from the political talk... O2's data network and parts of its phone network have been totally broken for a whole day for across the whole country... Telefonica's called out one of their 3rd party software suppliers on the O2 twitter account (or it's been retweeted by)... I don't know that I've ever know an outage on this scale for so long??

 

[TenEightyOne]

TLDR; Ericsson's fault

 

[Famine]

A slight aside from the political talk... O2's data network and parts of its phone network have been totally broken for a whole day for across the whole country... Telefonica's called out one of their 3rd party software suppliers on the O2 twitter account (or it's been retweeted by)... I don't know that I've ever know an outage on this scale for so long??

Other countries are also affected - "Y!Mobile" in Japan is also reportedly down.

 

[baldgye]

Other countries are also affected - "Y!Mobile" in Japan is also reportedly down.

Crickey!

Apparently 25m users have been affected

 

[Tired Tyres]

Including me. Data was back at 3 AM. My phone woke me up.

 

[baldgye]

Including me. Data was back at 3 AM. My phone woke me up.

Yeah I’m also an o2 customer and it made my commute a little bit more... relaxing?

But you should use ‘do not disturb’

 

[MatskiMonk]

I hadn't realised it had gone down...

 

[Touring Mars]

I hadn't realised it had gone down...

I shouldn't laugh - nobody ever calls me on my mobile unless it's a scam.

What is really depressing is when it gets to 4.55 pm on a Friday and you get a text message, hoping it is one of your mates asking you out for a pint, only to find it's a text from your mobile phone provider to tell you that you've now used up 80% of your data allowance.

 

[Tired Tyres]

Yeah I’m also an o2 customer and it made my commute a little bit more... relaxing?

But you should use ‘do not disturb’

I do normally. I forgot...

I shouldn't laugh - nobody ever calls me on my mobile unless it's a scam.

What is really depressing is when it gets to 4.55 pm on a Friday and you get a text message, hoping it is one of your mates asking you out for a pint, only to find it's a text from your mobile phone provider to tell you that you've now used up 80% of your data allowance.

Mine said 97.6%

 

[MatskiMonk]

a text from your mobile phone provider to tell you that you've now used up 80% of your data allowance.

Mine said 97.6%

Mine's more like 100%


... but it's from HSBC....


... and it's talking about my overdraft.


Think I might just switch my phone off.

 

[Robin]

To those concerned according to the BBC O2 will be issuing the following compensation for the outage...

I can imagine though it will be little consolation for those who lost earnings or had other additional expenses due to the outage.

26% of the entire UK mobile user base... Ouch.

 

[MatskiMonk]

To those concerned according to the BBC O2 will be issuing the following compensation for the outage...



I can imagine though it will be little consolation for those who lost earnings or had other additional expenses due to the outage.

26% of the entire UK mobile user base... Ouch.

O2 users will have had this message...

 

[Famine]

O2 users will have had this message...

Tesco Mobile users will get an additional 2GB data package for January.

 

[MatskiMonk]

Tesco Mobile users will get an additional 2GB data package for January.

Well... Every little helps.

 

[baldgye]

Tesco Mobile users will get an additional 2GB data package for January.

That sounds way better, though I guess it wasn’t a real issue anyway

 

[Robin]

Tesco Mobile users will get an additional 2GB data package for January.

And yet it seems O2 members won't, thats a kick in the teeth.

 

[baldgye]

Hot take on BBC Sports Personality of the Year; if Lewis Hamilton was white he would have won.
The best athlete this country has produced in a life time wins his 5th world title in F1, has the most composed and complete season anyone has had since Schumacher and still isn’t enough to overcome a welsh cyclist no one has heard off... ridiculous.

 

[Famine]

Hot take on BBC Sports Personality of the Year; if Lewis Hamilton was white he would have won.

More likely he'd have won if he had a personality...

Other non-white winners include 2017's Mo Farah, 2004's Kelly Holmes, 1999's Lennox Lewis, 1993's Linford Christie... and 2014's Lewis Hamilton.

Geraint Thomas won the Tour de France in 2018. I don't like cycling and even I've heard of him.

 

[TenEightyOne]

Hot take on BBC Sports Personality of the Year; if Lewis Hamilton was white he would have won.
The best athlete this country has produced in a life time wins his 5th world title in F1, has the most composed and complete season anyone has had since Schumacher and still isn’t enough to overcome a welsh cyclist no one has heard off... ridiculous.

He's won it in "lesser" years, and Britain's mad for cycling right now. The old dear at the end of my Dad's road still has a blue/yellow TdY bicycle in her front hedge.

 

[MatskiMonk]

Hot take on BBC Sports Personality of the Year; if Lewis Hamilton was white he would have won.
The best athlete this country has produced in a life time wins his 5th world title in F1, has the most composed and complete season anyone has had since Schumacher and still isn’t enough to overcome a welsh cyclist no one has heard off... ridiculous.

 

[Johnnypenso]

Hot take on BBC Sports Personality of the Year; if Lewis Hamilton was white he would have won.
The best athlete this country has produced in a life time wins his 5th world title in F1, has the most composed and complete season anyone has had since Schumacher and still isn’t enough to overcome a welsh cyclist no one has heard off... ridiculous.

What is your evidence of racism? That's quite a serious charge. Do you really think he's a better athlete than a triple World Championship, double gold medal and Tour de France winning cyclist?

 

[Liquid]

Hot take: Ingerlund milked a World Cup dud for SPOTY more than the Kim's personality cult. And they said we milked the Euros.

Lewis Hamilton is one thing but there are people out there saying Harry Kane had a bigger impact on British sport this last year than Geraint Thomas. Literally no.

Additional take: Tyson Fury drew the only boxing match he had this year. Puh-lease.