Login
or
Register
Home
»
Trains Magazine
»
Forums
»
General Discussion
»
Railfans detained for photographing trains on public property
Edit post
Edit your reply below.
Post Body
Enter your post below.
<quote> <br />What problem? You are obviously very concerned about a problem, and if you can point me to one, I would love to put an end to the problem. But, this "if there is a problem" stuff has me really puzzled. <br /></quote> <br /> <br />I repectfully submit that the problem (and simultaneously, the wonderful thing about our country) is the very fact that we're having this discussion. It's not that another railfan was detained, it's that all the rest of us now fear that WE will be detained. Think what a different discussion this would be if there was not the specter of HS and the Gestapo behind it. . . if we were discussing an isolated incident (which, I'm detecting from other posts, it's not) then there would be cause for the "what problem" attitude. And (IMHO) there would DEFINITELY be a problem if we were afraid to have this public discussion on the subject. <br /> <br />We're beginning to live in fear of our <s>government</s> society. THAT is the problem. The government that we supposedly elected. The society that we supposedly belong to. PEOPLE, if you don't like the way things are going, BEFREIND your neigbors, START going to the polls, and STOP voting for incumbents. (yeah, I know, it's always 'that other congressman' that's the problem, not the one WE vote for.) Vote NO on anything that isn't explained to your satisfaction in the fine print-- and don't take someone else's word for it unless you'd trust them with your life and $50,000 of your money in small bills. <br /> <br /> Bulletin: there's better than 50% chance that any given one of your elected officials (or any given fellow citizen) went along with whatever stupid law you're complaining about. 'Going along with' includes anything other than a 'no' vote. Being absent or abstaining is a tacit vote for the majority, and (IMHO) shows a lack of character. Congress had to go along with the enactment of homeland security, compete with all the scary erosiion of individual freedoms. That means that better than 50% of your elected officials did not vote against it; and (at last check) there was NOT a 50% turn-over in the congress over the last few elections. Which tells me that more than 50% of people in this country view the loss of individual freedoms to be a lower cost to them than the *potential* for another terror attack. Generalizing a bit, that means that there's a better than 50% chance, that YOU, dear reader, are to blame for the fear we share of being detained or worse for the simple act of photography. <br /> <br />"But," you complain, "it was local law enforcement that detained these people." True. But elected officials set the tone of policy, which in turn sets the agenda for the guys and gals on the line. If the word comes down from on-high that hassling people openly standing in quasi-public places, making photographs of everyday objects is less of a priortity than helping/hassling/detaining/arresting/someone doing something else (like, say, using a Sharpie pen to sketch quasi-literate quasi-subversive quasi-art on the back of road signs-- also a 'artistic/collection' type 'hobby' performed in publicly-accessable places) then the guys/gals that actually do the enforcing/helping will react accordingly. <br /> <br />And, of course, you can help a little bit by explaining to bystanders what you're about. I'd MUCH rather be in the the "freindly, harmless crackpot" category than the "scary brazen stranger" column. The way to beat the "us vs. them" mentality is to be one of 'us' Simple, no? <br /> <br /> <br />The good news is that we're still free to criticize our government, (like we're doing here) and very few people 'disappear' for doing so. We have a long way to fall yet. But the only thing between us and that slippery slope is US. <br /> <br />If you fear your society, it's your own fault that you have a society that causes you fear. Get over it or do something. Your choice. <br /> <br />
Tags (Optional)
Tags are keywords that get attached to your post. They are used to categorize your submission and make it easier to search for. To add tags to your post type a tag into the box below and click the "Add Tag" button.
Add Tag
Update Reply
Join our Community!
Our community is
FREE
to join. To participate you must either login or register for an account.
Login »
Register »
Search the Community
Newsletter Sign-Up
By signing up you may also receive occasional reader surveys and special offers from Trains magazine.Please view our
privacy policy
More great sites from Kalmbach Media
Terms Of Use
|
Privacy Policy
|
Copyright Policy