Taipei Trash Informants Making a Killing

Just read this: http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/taiwan/archives/2011/09/16/2003513411

$1 mil and $1.9 mil nt earned in a year by 2 dudes for busting people who littered on public spaces. Commendable effort, but…

Isn’t it the police’s job to patrol and enforce legal matters (the law) by using similar means? If this company could broaden their services to criminal investigations and traffic violations, they’d be a formidable police force…I wonder how far this ‘business’ will go?

:roflmao:

I think my sides have just split.

Um, wasn’t that the premise of Robocop?

With all the disadvantages of a dysfunctional and incompetent police force, I think I prefer it to the alternative - dysfunctional and highly competent, as in the US, China, etc etc etc.

I’ve heard of this before. I think rantheman said something about it years ago. And actually someone took a photo of my scooter at the train station recently when I stopped to get a drink or something at the store. I got a notice in the mail to get my emissions check as the sticker had lapsed. I rushed off and got it done. Kinda helpful.

And while picking my son up the other night from guitar practice, a taxi in front of us at a red light was doing the creep, until he had creeped over the crosswalk and into the intersection while the light was red. Cars were still zipping by. I happened to have my camera on me and snapped a shot, clearly showing the taxi, the light the crosswalk the license plate and the blur of a car going in front of him.

The wife says I should send it in. If they end up ticketing him I gets 600 clams! :thumbsup:

more cities should have this… read. HK.

:roflmao:

I think my sides have just split.[/quote]

That’s the sad part…the cops here aren’t motivated enough apply themselves to the full scope of the law 100% of the time when they are on duty. It’s like their captain just puts them on ‘illegal turn on red lights duty’ for the day, and therefore that is the only infraction they book. For everything else, just look away.

Although it would help to cut back on erratic driving it’s the wrong way to do it. It’s going to make people suspicious of each other.

What they aren’t telling you is that so many people are doing this now, no-one is making any money anymore. The news reported on this craze sometime ago, and eventually one of the guys who went around recording people opened up a class that taught you how to catch others breaking the law on video. He was charging 7,000NT for the class. As soon as I saw that I knew the money had been made and too many people had jumped on the band wagon. There was a story about this on the news recently that showed how many more “claims” people had put in, but they said they don’t pay you until the person caught pays their fine. They had a couple of guys who had a year worth of “evidence” and hadn’t be paid anything because the fines will still outstanding.

That’s why so many people now have a video cam in the car or on the scooter …

I like this kind of rule here. I’ve made a habit of messing with people by aiming my cell phone at them when they are driving like idiots. Usually they begin to behave themselves right away. It’s what I do instead of swearing at them or making angry faces. Just let them go home a stew about a possible fine comming in the mail in the next few weeks. I actually havn’t snapped a picture yet though.

I like it!

From now on, I will brandish my cellphone instead of useless purple invective. :thumbsup:

Chicken shit like this makes me miss America a bit. It’s also a glimpse into why there is no extradition treaty between the two nations.

The accused has the right to face and challenge the accuser. It’s the governments job to enforce civic laws. Allowing this sort of civilian vigilance will only promote civil instability, distrust and hate among a society.

Surely there is a time and a place for a citizens’ arrest, but encouraging a people to turn on each through monetary incentive is dangerous.

:2cents:

Fantastic. I say good for these men. I see them as picking up the slack left behind by law enforcement. Maybe the reward money should come out of the police department budget even.

Funny, I spent alot of time driving from my home in Vancouver down to Washington State and Oregon. One of the things I noticed were signs on the I-5 with a phone number you could report HOV lane violators to. If I remember correctly, the number was an 800 number (or some other toll free exchange) the last four digits of which were ‘HERO’. So when you say that ‘Chicken shit’ like this makes you miss America, do you mean that it’s a reminder of home and evokes feelings of homesickness?

So where do we send videos if we catch someone in the act?

I don’t know. I’m willing to be tried to be convinced otherwise but I like the idea. Every single day I wish for the ability to have a book of tickets that I could issue to idiot drivers, smoking scofflaws, trash throwers, etc. It’s the lack of enforcement and cop to citizen ratio that breeds the lack of rule of law here (and elsewhere).

Could I get caught at something? Yes, but pretty rarely. I would love the ability to turn many of these people in I see everyday. The people you see breaking the laws will never obey them simply because it’s the right thing to do and would make a better society for everyone. The only part I don’t like is the monetary gain but it is a needed incentive.

Should have had my camera ready on the long weekend when everyone was having barbeques on the street.

I wonder what goes through somebody’s mind when they have a barbeque, cover the ground in oil and food and rubbish, and then go “cool, lets leave all this stuff here”.

[quote=“Maceck”]Chicken shit like this makes me miss America a bit. It’s also a glimpse into why there is no extradition treaty between the two nations.

The accused has the right to face and challenge the accuser. It’s the governments job to enforce civic laws. Allowing this sort of civilian vigilance will only promote civil instability, distrust and hate among a society.

Surely there is a time and a place for a citizens’ arrest, but encouraging a people to turn on each through monetary incentive is dangerous.

:2cents:[/quote]

100% Agree :bravo:

[quote=“Maceck”]Chicken shit like this makes me miss America a bit. It’s also a glimpse into why there is no extradition treaty between the two nations.

The accused has the right to face and challenge the accuser. It’s the governments job to enforce civic laws. Allowing this sort of civilian vigilance will only promote civil instability, distrust and hate among a society.

Surely there is a time and a place for a citizens’ arrest, but encouraging a people to turn on each through monetary incentive is dangerous.

:2cents:[/quote]

agreed +1…(hadn’t seen this post until now)

I’m going to have to go against the grain here and say I don’t agree.

Obviously police are not an effective enough deterrent to stop littering. The streets are still a mess, and all one needs to do is simply look around for cops before dropping their trash.

Dirty streets and dirty beaches are probably the only things that make Taiwan stop short of being my dream/ideal place to live.