[Noisebridge-discuss] radiations sensors- radioactive parts

[rich_humphrey at yahoo.com]

Hey-
  Yeah, I'm not sure where this ended up. Last I heard it looked like it would pass because the people for it were saying these were dangerous terrorist tools. You can always scare the public with any mention of *GASP* RADIATION! (ya know... LIGHT) I don't know if it passed watered down or got dropped. Trying to find out.

  It's especially scary because normally this sort of thing would be handled by Hazmat or the fire department, who already know normally handle this stuff and know the suject and the equipment. To put it under the police practically proves it's to control information. Also, they were insisting on jail time instead of fines. These two points are both abnormal.

  It seems to have been backlash after the city lied about air quality after 9/11 and got caught. The bill included 'radiation sensors and air quality monitoring equipment'. 

  It's in the public's best interest to have as many radiation sensors around as possible. If they were built in to cell phones, not only could people use them for their own safety, the government could map out radiation levels automatically! 

  I can't find the result of that proposal, hopefully they didn't wait until the interest waned and then pass it quietly. Now I'm really curious.

=Rich 
-----------------------------------------------------------
Richard Mortimer Humphrey
General Specialist


--- On Mon, 4/27/09, Lee Sonko <lee at lee.org> wrote:

> From: Lee Sonko <lee at lee.org>
> Subject: RE: [Noisebridge-discuss] radiations sensors- radioactive parts
> To: noisebridge-discuss at lists.noisebridge.net
> Date: Monday, April 27, 2009, 2:19 PM
> 
> >  Note that this is important science to
> safeguard, New York City has
> outlawed Geiger Counters without a permit on the 
> >grounds that there is no reason for the general public
> to have them and
> they could cause a panic. Never mind that they 
> >were invented 105 years ago! (This is a very scary
> attempt to limit
> information by controlling one's ability to analyze 
> >one's own environment!)
> 
> Yipe!
> My google homework says that there was an effort to have a
> permit system for
> geiger counters but that the bill didn't 
> pass. My info could be incomplete.
> 
> http://www.villagevoice.com/2008-01-08/news/nypd-seeks-an-air-monitor-crackd
> own-for-new-yorkers/
> http://webdocs.nyccouncil.info/textfiles/Int%200650-2007.htm?CFID=1125959&CF
> TOKEN=38120662
> http://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/01/08/a-license-to-check-for-wmds/
> 
> 
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