
Fake Signs On Bay Area Highways Say Drones Looking For Speeders - 1337biz
http://sanfrancisco.cbslocal.com/2013/07/19/fake-signs-warn-of-drones-patrolling-bay-area-highways/
======
alan_cx
Strikes me (no pun intended) as being a very good way to get the general
public to think about the consequences of the creeping use of drones.

"Think its just terrorists targeted? Well, it could now be you".

OK, terrorists get a missile, and drivers get a ticket, but do people want an
army of drones monitoring them for motoring offences, and more?

~~~
rayiner
I'd much rather the drone monitor things and just give me a ticket in the mail
than a potentially power tripping cop.

~~~
cobrausn
This is the worst (although power tripping cops are also pretty bad). Imagine
you are driving 5~10 mph over the limit for a long time, distracted by life
and generally unaware. How many tickets do you think you would get? You were
never stopped and corrected, how were you supposed to know?

Given the tendency of some courts in the SF area to make you _pay the ticket
before you can contest it_ (read this somewhere, not sure 100% on truthfulness
of it), this sounds like a nightmare shakedown scenario.

~~~
devingoldfish
> ...some courts in the SF area to make you pay the ticket before you can
> contest it (read this somewhere, not sure 100% on truthfulness of it)

Yea, that's false.

~~~
dotBen
In some jurisdictions there is a discount if you pay before a certain date -
but if you wish to contest then the time it takes to do that will expire the
discount period.

It's cleverly and obviously intentional practice that plays on people's time
to defend themselves being worth more than the discounted price.

~~~
finnw
And in some of these jurisdictions, the clock restarts when you are informed
that your appeal was unsuccessful (even if the collecting agency likes to
pretend otherwise.) So check the rules first.

------
confluence
Drones are the new Gods; in more ways than one it would seem (watch
everything/arbiters of life and death/random collateral damage).

I remember that when I was a kid, adults would always tell me not to do
anything wrong, lest I incur God's or Santa's wrath, and that they were
watching my every move, every minute, of everyday. Which was complete
bullshit, and struck me as extremely creepy behavior at the time, but that's
besides the point.

I guess it's time for the adults to watch out now, because the drones are
coming, and they can see (and kill) everything.

The robots are, or rather will be, watching you; so you better be nice,
because ARGUS
([https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=5273000](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=5273000))
has a kill list ([http://www.infowars.com/colbert-warned-he-may-be-on-
governme...](http://www.infowars.com/colbert-warned-he-may-be-on-government-
drone-strike-kill-list/)), and it won't won't be checking it twice
([https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=6061816](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=6061816)).
Robot Santa Claus is coming to town
([http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AizNTA3q7Fk](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AizNTA3q7Fk)).

Welcome to the future, kiddies.

Transcript for people too busy to watch the video:

> _He knows when you are sleeping, he knows when you 're on the can, he'll
> hunt you down and blast your ass from here to Pakistan. Oh, you'd better not
> breathe, you'd better not move, you're better off dead, I'm telling you,
> dude. Santa Claus is gunning you down!_

From here to Pakistan huh? Wasn't Futurama prescient. Merry Xmas everybody.

~~~
nsxwolf
The difference between an omniscient, omnipotent God and an omniscient,
omnipotent government is that God forgives.

~~~
confluence
Nah. The real difference is that God, if one exists, really doesn't give a
shit. The problem with governments is that they care way too much.

~~~
nsxwolf
Still compatible with what I said. After God forgives you he ceases to give a
shit about what you did. Governments never forgive you and keep on giving a
shit about what you did, forever.

------
freejack
I love the denial...

“Along with not having drones we definitely do not have any drones that would
fire any type of weaponry.”

Somehow I think the second class is already covered by the first class. A
conspiracy nut would have a field day with how this parses ;-)

~~~
Ygg2
"Also those drones definitely do not have any MSG-31 equipped. And their speed
is definitely not above the state limit. Well not by much anyway."

Damn, that makes for some fine ass comedy.

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devb
They're definitely a distraction? Excellent! Let's start getting rid of
roadside advertising, billboards, obnoxious fast food signs...

~~~
alanctgardner2
Don't be facile; surely a picture implying that the government is going to
blow you up with a Reaper for going 10 over the limit is more distracting than
a picture of a Big Mac. Especially in a state that (I hear) is on the verge of
bankruptcy.

~~~
alan_cx
Given American levels of obesity, Im not sure you are correct.

~~~
Zigurd
So the bad news is that Big Macs kill more Americans than drones, and the bad
news is that we're closing the gap.

------
kens
On the topic of fake road signs, there's the famous story of Los Angeles
artist Richard Ankrom making and installing a perfectly-crafted modification
to a freeway sign on the 110 to provide better directions to I-5. For months
nobody realized the sign was "fake". Caltrans ended up liking the sign and
left it up for 8 years before replacing it with a "real" one.

[http://www.laweekly.com/2009-12-31/la-life/richard-
ankrom-s-...](http://www.laweekly.com/2009-12-31/la-life/richard-ankrom-s-
freeway-art-caltrans-buys-into-the-prank/full/)

------
gojomo
We can only wish authorities would have to invest in fueling and maintaining
drones, visible in the sky, to enforce speeding law. The signs could say:

    
    
      SPEED ENFORCED
      BY TRACKING YOUR 
      MOBILE PHONE
    

...or even...

    
    
      SPEED ENFORCED 
      BY REVIEWING LOGS
      OF GOOGLE MAPS 
      INTERACTIONS
    

Eventually navigation apps could offer both an "estimated travel time" and a
"don't make the trip in less time than this, or we'll have to report you for a
speeding citation".

------
CodeCube
There are signs along I-4 here in Florida (between Orlando and Tampa) that say
that there is aerial surveillance looking for speeders for several years now.
Though, there's a picture of a cessna-type plane on the sign, heavily
suggesting it's a human pilot :P

~~~
chiph
Those are real. The pilot times how long it takes you to travel between two
lines painted on the road. If it takes too little time, he radios to one of
his buddies in a patrol car. You then get a "reward" for being a fast driver.

------
zevyoura
This is an art project by Stephen Whisler; there are pictures of him
installing them here:
[http://stephenwhisler.net/Sculpture/Pages/Speed_Enforced_by_...](http://stephenwhisler.net/Sculpture/Pages/Speed_Enforced_by_Drones.html)

------
TallGuyShort
It's sad that I can read that, miss the word 'fake', and not be surprised at
all. I was a bit too far away to be 100% sure but I'm pretty sure I saw a
drone taking off from Moffett Field the other day. I've been meaning to look
into whether or not there are publicly-acknowledge test-flights happening
there or anything.

edit: publicintelligence.net says there are "future" plans by the Army for
launching drones from Moffett Field.

~~~
sonoffett
I've been seeing this recently (past month) as well on 237, along with another
coworker.

------
finnw
I had difficulty parsing that title.

At first I read it as '"Fake Signs On Bay Area Highways" Say Drones Looking
For Speeders'

i.e. there are already drones enforcing the speed limit, and they are
reporting (or being confused by) fake signs (maybe installed by pranksters for
that purpose.)

------
borplk
People will laugh it off until the next Snowden will release the slides and it
suddenly becomes a reality.

------
ChuckMcM
I saw a pair, the one sign said "Speed Checked by RADAR" and the drone one
said "Speed Enforced By Aircraft". The one I saw had been hand painted over
the regular sign. I thought it was quite funny, wondered if it broke some law.
Clearly it does which is understandable I suppose.

But what about those signs that say "Speeders are Losers" in various
neighborhoods, are they too subject to citation?

~~~
ics
If you're on the east coast, those signs are on I-81 through Virginia. I
haven't seen them in any adjacent states.

------
lettergram
I like the idea, simple and effective.

~~~
nsxwolf
You like governments spending your money on lies to make people paranoid?

~~~
lettergram
I was talking about the pranksters that made the signs...

~~~
nsxwolf
Sorry. I didn't do a good job on my reading comprehension.

------
namank
_(Copyright 2013 by CBS San Francisco. All Rights Reserved. This material may
not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)_

Does this notice, found at the end of the article, imply it is illegal to post
the article on HN? Or is it ok since we are redistributing the link and not
the article itself?

~~~
bradleyland
The important phrase is "This material". A link is no more "the material" than
a phone number is a conversation.

~~~
DanWaterworth
Isn't that the same justification used for collecting meta-data?

------
nfriedly
“The best way to get a bad law repealed is to enforce it strictly.” - Abraham
Lincoln

I'd kind of like to see drones that automatically ticket anyone going 0.1mph
over the speed limit or break any other of a dozen silly traffic laws. I think
it would lead to both saner traffic laws AND safer roads.

------
Lambdanaut
Haha, that's not the only place they are. I've seen them on the east coast
too. I can't remember the exact highway, but I'm pretty sure it was in North
Carolina.

I thought they were legit at the time, and it sparked a pretty interesting
conversation about privacy.

------
weej
Reminds me of the NYC Street Art that created some creative awareness
surrounding drones:

[http://hyperallergic.com/61192/street-artist-behind-nyc-
dron...](http://hyperallergic.com/61192/street-artist-behind-nyc-drone-
posters-arrested/)

------
snambi
Wow... someone has a real sense of humor and ability to execute the details.

~~~
gvb
If you look closely at the sign, you can see it has just fired a missile (in
front of the port wing leading edge). Now _that 's_ speed enforcement!

------
hathawaymoore
When flying cars take over- I wonder if speed enforcement by drone use will
make the sky look like a Star Wars aerial battle/chase? Don't drive too fast
Luke- your father will nuke you

------
ajryan
I have a guess at the perpetrators:
[http://nonchalance.com/](http://nonchalance.com/)

------
alxndr
"Along with not having drones we definitely do not have any drones that would
fire any type of weaponry."

Doth protest too much?

------
iyulaev
Tickets require the driver to be identified. There's no law about wearing a
mask while driving.

~~~
aegiso
There are already laws popping up that criminalize masked protest.

Getting this one passed will be child's play.

------
jasonjei
Sadly, the signs although being humor could easily become reality in the next
few years.

------
pasquinelli
what's a fake sign?

~~~
outworlder
A sign that's... fake? As in, not real?

In this case, it means that the signs were not posted by the authorities.

~~~
pawrvx
That sign is real.

