security cameras in san fran = walk down the block with me...

Check out this interesting article from SFGate and Boing Boing. The SF mayor justifies spending over "$900,000" on surveillance cameras because "they make residents feel safer."  Remind anyone of my last post? The difference between feeling secure and being secure?

"A fascinating study of security cameras in San Francisco has concluded that any effect on they have on crime is incredibly localized, and they only works on certain kinds of crime -- furthermore, the same number of crimes end up getting committed in the long run, just down the street from the cameras." (quoted from http://www.boingboing.net/2008/04/07/cctv-cameras-move-cr.html)

"The only positive deterrent effect was the reduction of larcenies within 100 feet of the cameras. No other crimes were affected - except for homicides, which had an interesting pattern.

Murders went down within 250 feet of the cameras, but the reduction was completely offset by an increase 250 to 500 feet away, suggesting people moved down the block before killing each other."  (quoted from http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2008/03/21/MN27VNFET.DTL)