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The Daily PollGARDAÍ HAVE THIS morning released the statistics from the annual National Slowdown Day which promotes safer driving among motorists.
Officers and GoSafe speed vans together checked 140,223 vehicles and detected 225 drivers travelling in excess of the applicable speed limit.
On a number of occasions, motorists were breaking the limit by over 40 km/h. However, gardaí have reminded motorists that the speed limit is not a target and being over the designated limit – no matter by how much – can cause fatalities on our roads.
So, this morning we want to know: How often do you break the speed limit?
It’s not paranoid it’s true. I think Edward Snowdon confirmed that if you’re too thick to understand what is coming then other people can’t help you.
Agreed Patrick
“Those who would give up essential liberty to purchase a little temporary safety deserve neither and will lose both.” -Benjamin Franklin
what about a data base for the white collar criminals are they not as dangerous .
Very appropriate and wise words.
And freak out paranoid people who think that they are being watched even though if they thought about it their is much to watch really.
It’s like we’re back in the dark ages. We’re only kicking off a central database of DNA for all serious criminals now. How long has this technology been available?
Do we have a database of criminal fingerprints, or do we dare infringe upon serious criminal’s human “rights”?
I agree, it’s about time we have a DNS database for criminals.
Yes we do have a fingerprint database for criminals and have had for a decade or so, and it’s actually decent. The Garda National Immigration Bureau (GNIB) and Irish Naturalisation and Immigration Service (INIS) also use a fingerprint database for immigrants and refugees. The Gardai have access to, and provide access to their fingerprint database to AFIS, Interpol, Europol and the PSNI.
Buy a new iPhone and the NSA will have your finger prints as well.
It will certainly help catch repeat offenders but the majority of sexual assaults are committed by persons known to the victim with little to no criminal record. If it is to be effective in fighting sex crimes it should really be a requirement for anyone working with children and vulnerable people to have their DNA on the system for the duration of their employment.
In addition to the above, fire fighters, Gardaí and medical staff should have their DNA on the system to avoid situations where their DNA may have contaminated a crime scene and end up throwing an investigation off.
“but if it is one more tool we can use to ensure that justice is served and that women are protected then it is great to see it finally come to fruition”.
Don’t forget men and children there RCNI spokesperson. We don;t need stigmas ‘within stigmas.
We need to take back some power from the state not give it more. There is enough tools in the hands of the police forces in Europe as it is. The issue here is using the resources properly. You cannot solve serious crime with a traffic corp & speed cameras. there is far too many police on the roads of Europe. The main reason for this is revenue not road safety. As long as this continues crime will be a secondary issue as not enough money is made from it.
In fairness, there are less than 900 Garda Traffic Corps members out of a police force of 13,500 officers.
Really Dave. Then tell me how there is so many traffic offences before the court. It’s a lot more than 900 a day. When I was talking about the traffic corp I was not actually talking about them as a group within the gardai. The whole force is a traffic corp.
There are less than 900 dedicated traffic officers in the Gardai, the target is in fact 1,300 and above.
Yes, uniformed Gardai do carry out enforcement of traffic law, but it takes them much less time than the Traffic Corps, that’s why they were set up.
Wouldn’t you agree that the fact there are a lot of traffic offences before the court is a good thing? And secondly, when traffic offences appear before the court, generally the state makes no revenue off of this, in fact it may lose some fighting the case. When traffic offences are before courts, sentences or punishments are doled out rather than fines.
Traffic camera speed vans are another thing, but they are controlled by civilian staff, not taking up the time of Gardai and the fact is if you don’t break the speed limit, you don’t get fined. But it’s hard (I know, I’ve been fined too).
Get real will ya, its as clear as day that the standard of driving in this country is a disgrace and needs more not less policing. Its only today i got my wife to take a photo of a “professional” driver in an artic tailgating the hell out of a car on the m1. Now the garda who took our statements has to spend time prosecuting this fool
If you’ve ever been investigated for an indictable offence by a traffic corps Garda, you can be certain you will not get a satisfactory result.
That’s the thing Fin – DNA holds a lot more personal information than a fingerprint does from potential diseases to many things that scientists are working on and haven’t been discovered yet. By all means a database of those convicted of serious offences should be in play – but only those convicted of serious offences.
Some of that is incorrect. Nothing can be taken currently from DNA as a predictor of disease or illness. It’s not scientifically possible. It likely would be in future years.
Would it not be possible to take DNA at birth and keep a database of it.
Why would you want to do that?
Maybe people will think twice about commiting crimes when they know that just sitting in a vehicle leaves DNA evidence,or leaving a minute size skin fragment that is’nt even visable to the naked eye,wellcome to CSI.
You are of the opinion that the state never commits crime & that DNA evidence is never wrong. There was a case here in the UK were a man & his friend were convicted of murder by DNA evidence & they spent 6 years in jail before the convictions were overturned. The real killer was only jailed this week all be it by DNA evidence but several other lives were destroyed in the process. The state has already got to much power. In my job I get to deal with the police on a regular basis & although I have huge respect for most police forces I see them abuse their power regularly & deny basic human rights to people they come in contact with all of which are not criminals. Don’t be a serf. The state is meant to serve the people not the other way round.
Will such a “DNA database” provide the path to an Orwellian nightmare?
It is only a matter of time before such a database is abused by the State. Hence, I don’t believe that it is wise to give the State this sort of power.
If you had a DNA database and a 3D printer could you generate a supermodel report?
Given the past record of miscarraiges perpetrated by elements within the Gardai, I would not trust them with something as powerful as a DNA database – unlike fingerprints, a DNA sample could more easily be planted as evidence against a person, not just by the authorities, but by anybody bearing malice towards somebody else.
A DNA database in a country where simple cancer tests cannot be performed correctly?
Just noted at the end u said to protect “women”.. It should be to protect everyone.. Delighted with the new dna database.. About time ireland moves forward…
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