Frantic Big Brothers

One cannot but go along with Governmental attempts to reduce road accidents. They say that Gatso cameras reduce speed whether they record a misdemeanour or not. So quite apart from whether speed itself kills or only speed in the wrong conditions, this watchful eye on your driving habits is unlikely to go away. I was surprised to learn, however, that the Big Brothers who are behind the installation of these costly cameras have thought up a new idea, so frantic are they. It seems that the ploy is to have screens facing the road on which to display information about drivers who have been caught on the Gatsos as exceeding a speed limit. If the publicly displayed information gives only the numbers of the cars involved it will be meaningless, except as another way of wasting public money, because while you covet your neighbour’s ass or wife, you are unlikely to know the number of his car. It may be, of course, that the frantic brothers in charge of these pillory-screens will contact the DVLC and light up for public consumption the name of a speeding driver. How awful to see something like “BODDY IN FORD H990 JPU has just gone at 45 in camera-range in a 40 mph area”, for instance, to bring your eyes off the road. But just very occasionally the wrong person has received a summons when the Gatso readings have given the police a wrong number — and if an incorrect name was flashed on these screens, might not the barristers handsomely profit?

Then there is the thought of how many times a car is driven legitimately (or otherwise!) by someone not its owner, so a screened name could be like being charged for a murder committed by a criminal to whom you had innocently rented accomodation. Maybe the BBs have become too paranoid over Gatsocrimes? But in their war on drivers they apparently intend to introduce motorway tolls and electronic car-tagging. St Christopher spare us!

W B