Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!rpi!usc!snorkelwacker.mit.edu!ai-lab!life.ai.mit.edu!guest From: guest@geech.ai.mit.edu (Guest Account) Newsgroups: comp.org.eff.talk Subject: Re: Amendments Message-ID: Date: 27 Apr 91 18:11:03 GMT References: <6750023@hp-vcd.HP.COM> <63910@bbn.BBN.COM> Sender: news@ai.mit.edu Organization: Guest at MIT Lines: 25 In-reply-to: cosell@bbn.com's message of 27 Apr 91 12:15:43 GMT In article <63910@bbn.BBN.COM> cosell@bbn.com (Bernie Cosell) writes: Ah, but look how wonderful things will be when computers enter the scene. If you get one of those "who I am" readouts [that they're pushing for use at least in NYC to replace the tollbooths on the GW Bridge], then you wouldn't need to take a ticket at all: you roll through the entrance booth and they can read out not only who you are and which entrance you came through, but *when*. Then when you exit, they can automatically tote up your toll, and even include the fine for the speeding violation, as appropriate [and 'synchronization' wouldn't be an issue, since all of the timings would have been done relative to the system clock on the machine coordinating all of this]. Won't that be nice? :-) They might try this for a while someday but they will quickly end it. Human nature being what it is, people will not stop speeding they will simply speed and then stop at the last possible rest area and wait it out. The traffic problems this would create would be enormous. You'd also find the breakdown lane would fill up quite often and the general public would be outraged when people start getting killed by cars pulling over to avoid a speeding ticket. One thing the government will never overcome is human nature. P.S. Let's face it, the more laws there are to break the less aversion we have to breaking them.