@cstross that's just ridiculous. Everyone knows it's not traffic lights but Flock cameras that do all that. Spread the word.

@cstross I think whether it originated as asymmetric warfare or not it will definitely be that now. Both Russia and China (and likely others) are heavily invested in creating and keeping these kinds of things active.

@cstross or somebody posted an AI summary of the tech specs of BASILISK STARE and it ended up on Facebook.

@cstross A conspiracy theory about a conspiracy theory is taking it to a whole new level of paranoia...

@cstross It's not as potentially devastating as “put an anti-vax wacko in charge of your nation's health services”, but asymmetric warfare works well with a "death of a thousand cuts" approach.

Pay the fash to ruin everything, replace science with quackery, and … why not? … set the crumblies to attacking the traffic lights. Every little helps.

@cstross

Quote:
The letter also claims that police will not detain or arrest a Blade Runner because officers have been “instructed to stand down and leave the Blade Runners to carry out the legal, lawful, lifesaving work.”

That's possibly the cleverest part of this whole thing, convince the patsies that they have special permission to do it legally.

Is it just more conspiracy thinking to presume this was done on purpose, possibly as a trial run for something else?

@cstross Hint: teach problem solving skills that Behavioral Science (and all physics) is built on, and you'll have healthier, more sustainable adults.

@cstross I heard that the consequence of disabling the pedestrian detectors on puffin crossings (like this) is that it will fall back to allowing a long time for a possibly infirm pedestrian to cross, thus staying red for cars for longer.

Which is fun because the subculture that tends to do this sort of thing also thinks that the highest ideal of society is that cars can drive everywhere really fast

@cstross It’s the whole “wifi makes me sick” thing all over again but perhaps people are more bold about it.

@cstross Sterling's 'Distraction' is increasingly being to look more like fact than fiction.

@cstross Douglas Adams was an oracle when he wrote sci fi where everyone is stupid

@cstross Hmm, convincing boomers to take down Flock cameras was not on my bingo card, but after this...

@cstross

Sadly, I know cookers who'd believe this nonsense. A couple would probably join in.

@cstross “the medical and technological claims made by the group have not been independently established” is a rather weak phrasing for saying “utter poppycock”

@cstross Wrecking traffic lights is more likely to kill people than the sensors they worry about. We had the nonsense with 5G towers before. The anti-science brigade are a menace, but some actually have political power these days.