London Tube Dangerous for Technophiles?

TsukiKage writes "Traveling on the London Tube is dangerous these days, it seems - and not because of terrorists. Quick as ever to try and protect against the attack that has just happened, zealous police will detain you at the drop of a hat." From the article: "The next train is scheduled to arrive in a few minutes. As other people drift on to the platform, I sit down against the wall with my rucksack still on my back. I check for messages on my phone, then take out a printout of an article about Wikipedia from inside my jacket and begin to read. The train enters the station. Uniformed police officers appear on the platform and surround me ... They handcuff me, hands behind my back, and take my rucksack out of my sight. They explain that this is for my safety, and that they are acting under the authority of the Terrorism Act."

And then...

[HolyCrapSCOsux]

After you are detained, you are taken to the ministry of love for evaluation.

Wikipedia is the problem!

[scovetta]

How can you blame the police for searching you? You were reading a Wikipedia article. You might as well have been using Linux and p2p to trade government secrets with Saddam bin Satan.

Seriously though, that's messed up. Were you reading the paper in a threatening manner? I can't see them doing that to people for *no reason* (sure, maybe for an *invalid* reason, but there's a difference...)

attempted translation to english?

[Anonymous Coward]

I really hope that this will not happen in Finland, except there is a new copyright law coming.

Well, never going to stop copying songs from my cds to my mp3 player. And I'll never let anything stop me from moving things from my laptop case to a plastic bag on my back.

Go to jail, be an activist.

Don't go to jail, be a rebel.

I'll go for rebelling if it comes to that.

PS. I suck at writing my thoughts... I'll stop now :)

Re:With the potential for being harsh...

[Pleione]

Just carry a ghetto blaster around instead! I'm sure that'd be much less obtrusive. ;)

BeBox seizure?

[pergamon]

They took his BeBox? Inhumane they are!

Re:Pppft

[Meagermanx]

No, no, no. You're thinking of the "Terrorist act". Big difference.
See, the "Terrorist Act" is where they can search you without probable cause and arrest you if they think you look suspicious in the UK.
Then you have the "Patriot Act", that is completely different. That's where they can search you without probable cause and arrest you if they think you look suspicious in the US.
See? The differences are remarkable.

Re:the defense of liberty

[geoffspear]

It'll never happen. The government in the US would rather have every single American be killed by terrorists than risk seeing a nude human body.

Re:the defense of liberty

[Grishnakh]

And since over 50% of the US population is obese (not just overweight, but obese which is more severe), I don't blame them.

Re:Depends on "reasonable".

[Random832]

"travelling together with a common purpose"

how in the HELL did THAT get into the law?

Re:the defense of liberty

[MemeRot]

Uh, maybe if you commute in Hollywood. In DC it would make the commute horrifying.

Re:the defense of liberty

[bloo9298]

Perhaps it would help to combat the obesity epidimic if nobody could hide their rolls of flab!

Re:the defense of liberty

[blincoln]

Right or wrong, there is no doubt that "random selection" has become a euphemism for racial profiling.

My experience is that it's not necessarily racial profiling, so much as whoever-the-agent-thinks-looks-suspicious profiling. For some of them, that is race, but often it's just whoever looks unusual and/or poor. In my experience, this tends to randomize whether or not I'll get hassled at all pretty effectively.

I am a US citizen, but I went to university in Canada for three years, so I have a good chunk of experience going over the border.

Taking Greyhound is a good way to fall into the "poor" category, even if you're not. Every time my dad took Greyhound to visit me, they would do a bunch of extensive searches. I took the Amtrak bus instead (because it was cleaner, and maybe $5 more for a ticket), and I don't think I was ever searched - including the time I had a 4 foot long duffelbag full of hard cider clanking around in it on my back.

The only time I saw someone non-white get searched on Amtrak was a Chinese lady (as in a citizen of China) who not only didn't speak English and didn't have a travel visa, but her only piece of "ID" was a letter from the US government explicitly DENYING her permission to enter the country.

Re:Did I miss something?

[crush]

Each time I thank the screeners, and I am quite enthusiastic about being searched. When the search is done, I thank the screeners again,

I hope that you manage to actually orgasm during the experience? If not then I for one would be suspicious of your commitment to keeping the world safe from terrorism; you should also consider a cock-ring (make sure to get a metal one as that'll definitely set off the alarm) in order to ensure that you stay hard during the process and reassure the screeners that you really do like it. Thanks for your insightful post.

Re:the defense of liberty

[dgatwood]

Reminds me of a joke that goes something like this:

Officer: You were caught going 80 in a 35 zone. I'd like to search your car.
You: That's unreasonable search and seizure.
Officer: Since you said that, I assume you have something to hide.
You: Okay, but don't search my knapsack. I don't want you stealing the 50 pounds of pot I'm carrying.
Officer: Excuse me?
You: And don't check the trunk. That's where I keep my automatic weapons.

(The officer gets noticeably uncomfortable.)

You: And there's a hundred pounds of high explosives in the back seat.

At this, the officer calls for backup. A S.W.A.T. team comes in and takes you out of the car and searches it. They find nothing.

Officer 2: I thought the other officer said you were armed with automatic weapons and a nuclear device, and were trafficking marijuana.
You: And I suppose he also said I was speeding.