Fairly self-explanatory…
[:(]a well intentioned pinhead is still just a pinhead…[sigh]
Ours is the strength of ten because our cause is just, but they have Bureaucracy on their side…
I signed the petition because it affects not only railfans but all amateur photographers and tourists. Trains News Wire carried a news item about the photography permits, but from what I read the language seems to be vague and the concept seems to be unconstitutional. The proposed New York City photography permit seems to be similar to the NJ Transit photography permit requirement that NJ Transit subsequently dropped after it received many comments opposing its policy to require photography permits
This has to stop!! I am gettinmg tired of the old “were at war you know”, “you heard of 9/11”. Isnt banning or regilating photography against the bill of rights, oh wait seems some people don’t care about the bill of rights anymore.
[#ditto]You’ve got it right![bow][bow]
Could somebody please quote the part of the US Constitution that say’s photographing trains is a “right”.
Trains Magazine posted in there E-Mail News Wire today the new rules for photographing Boston’s MBTA in or from public areas.
If you are willing to identify yourself and have your name in a databank, no problem, no pass needed.
Go to it railfan, expect to be challenged, asked for identification and the reason for photographing (railfan is fine). Your name will be put in a Police System database. They will check, over time, if your photography is in a “suspicious pattern”.
First ammendment -
Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances.
Photography from a public place is considered by the courts to be a form of freedom of speech.
The Trains NewsWire Link, “Rudy RockvilleMD” has referenced is:
http://www.trains.com/trn/default.aspx?c=a&id=2254
There seems to be a rush to judge the perception of the danger posed by those of us who point a camera in the directions of anything railroad—Particularly, on the upper East Coast, and in large cities… Looks like the jihadists are able to keep proving,even passivly they can still erode our personal freedom, even by using our on inferances…
Sorry but the owner of a train does not have to let you photograph it any more than someone has the “right” to sit on a your public street and photograph you or your house. You would call the police and rightly so.
Actually, you may not like it, but that is the law. By the way, if you were right, Google Maps would be illegal.
Bzzt. Wrong.
Anyone has the right to photograph you or your house so long as they are on public right of way or private property with the owner’s permission and are taking pictures of things in plain sight.
This has been upheld in courts of law many, many times. You may call the police, but they’d be doing nothing illegal.
Same applies for railroads.
By the way, “e-petitions” are crap and have no effect whatsoever on anything.
Yep as long as your on public property.
Not the Constitution, but how about the Declaration of Independence? … “Life, liberty and THE PURSUIT OF HAPPINESS.”
The Declaration of Independence has no legal standing in this country, the existence of the United States of America as a sovereign state was recognized by the Treaty of Paris in 1783. Also, the Founding Fathers used the phrase “Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness” because it sounds a lot better than the intended “Life, Liberty and Property”. Also see the phrasing of the Fifth Article of Amendment to the Constitution.
There was another thread discussing the new Homeland Security Act a week or so ago, so I went looking an found it. Now you can read it for yourself, kind of an interesting read.
http://www.trains.com/TRC/CS/forums/1175343/ShowPost.aspx
It doesn’t make rail fanning against the law, but I think some one bullet, gun-hoe Barney’s will have fun.
There were also some other threads [don’t remember if they were here or another forum, been awhile], where the FBI and HLS were going to start monitoring RR forums and RR photo sites for possible terrorist activity.
So, smile folks, we’ve probably already made some-ones watch list.
When those things are in the public view, they have no illusion of privacy. You may not like me taking picture of you while you’re sitting on your front porch but if I’m not on your property there isn’t a thing you can do about it, same goes for the trains.
BTW, when I was in Boston last October, I took all sorts of pictures of the Metro no questions asked. IMO, much ado about nothing.
I’m going to start monitoring FBI and HLS forums for possible threats to the US Constitution.
Freedom vs Life?
3,000 dead in the Middle East and the Press goes wild! 3,000 dead in the streets of New York, in Towers I once worked in, how fast they forget.
If you are a “Railfan”, then anything you can do to help protect American Railroads, including helping Police to eliminate you as a threat by showing ID, is a duty. To gain access to some buildings after 911, I had to be finger printed, cleared, and new Badges issued.
Some wanted to make a “Federal Case” out of it. I was happy it was being done, to protect me, to protect the City.
And if you think any of those things would keep a terrorist from causing great harm again, you’re dreaming.