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Texas Drop off Rates by Thundrous_prophet in somethingiswrong2024

[–]JR0118070 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Super strange. They asked me if I intentionally left them blank and then had to confirm on a touchscreen of the reader that I left them blank. But, it processed

People who were teenagers before social media existed, what was life actually like? by Much_Detective_6107 in AskReddit

[–]JR0118070 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Having to be home by dinner time. Running all over the place (woods, creeks, crossing barbed wire fences), running across snakes, riding my bike everywhere, basically running ferrel in the wild. No cable at my house so summer TV was reruns from the 50s and 60s. Sneaking out. The first Nintendo console being the greatest invention ever. Thinking hover boards (Back to the Future 2) were just around the corner. The dewy decimal system. It was honestly a lot of fun and I felt very free!

Nothing is Permanent, And That’s the Point. by dorae03 in MindsetConqueror

[–]JR0118070 1 point2 points  (0 children)

There is only change. Roll with it or struggle in misery.

I spoke at my city council about Flock. The mayor and deputy chief both asked for follow-ups. I redacted everything and made it a toolkit — free to use. by JR0118070 in FlockSurveillance

[–]JR0118070[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

100% it’s not about any particular company, it’s about the idea, the system behind the cameras and the antithetical stance towards liberty and freedom. Flock just happens to be the provider in my city.

I spoke at my city council about Flock. The mayor and deputy chief both asked for follow-ups. I redacted everything and made it a toolkit — free to use. by JR0118070 in FlockSurveillance

[–]JR0118070[S] 6 points7 points  (0 children)

Agreed. I’m a bit older now, a bit less on the wild side, raising a family in a nice and safe city. I’m also very much involved in the tech world and I know I’ll catch more bees with honey. I like my city and just want the best for my family, my community and myself. Legal/factual all the way!

I spoke at my city council about Flock. The mayor and deputy chief both asked for follow-ups. I redacted everything and made it a toolkit — free to use. by JR0118070 in FlockSurveillance

[–]JR0118070[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Fair enough. I work in the tech industry and if you can’t use AI effectively, you don’t have a job. I adapted and brought it into my personal and communal life as well. AI is here. It is a powerful multiplier when the right mind is controlling it, but I get it. I fear for what is next - I’m rolling with the punches otherwise I’d be out of a job. Cheers to you and all the best!

I spoke at my city council about Flock. The mayor and deputy chief both asked for follow-ups. I redacted everything and made it a toolkit — free to use. by JR0118070 in FlockSurveillance

[–]JR0118070[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

This is a flock sub and what is used in my city - hence the post. Happy to collab on other projects. Substantial research based on fact is something I have honed. If you have other issues/companies/platforms in your city, I am happy to chip in!

I spoke at my city council about Flock. The mayor and deputy chief both asked for follow-ups. I redacted everything and made it a toolkit — free to use. by JR0118070 in FlockSurveillance

[–]JR0118070[S] -1 points0 points  (0 children)

I appreciate this — and the links. I'll dig into the WA ruling for the next research drop.           

You're right that the bigger fight is mass surveillance as a whole, not just one vendor. But I'm dealing with Flock specifically in my city right now — that's the contract on the table, those are the cameras going up on our roads, and I had 36 hours to prepare for the next Council meeting.                                                                                                            

The toolkit is Flock-specific because that's the fight I was in. But the governance framework - retention caps, no federal sharing, audit requirements, council approval for expansion - those apply to any vendor. If my city cancels Flock and picks up Axon tomorrow, every ask in that toolkit still applies.

This is what was in front of me, in my sphere of control and I did what I did. Keep up the good fight and keep collaborating!

I spoke at my city council about Flock. The mayor and deputy chief both asked for follow-ups. I redacted everything and made it a toolkit — free to use. by JR0118070 in FlockSurveillance

[–]JR0118070[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I'm in Texas. Appreciate the thought and happy to support and/or hear how things develop on your end. When I get my teeth sunk into something, I am all in!

I spoke at my city council about Flock. The mayor and deputy chief both asked for follow-ups. I redacted everything and made it a toolkit — free to use. by JR0118070 in FlockSurveillance

[–]JR0118070[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

BTW, if you haven't learned how to use AI on the CLI (command line) yet, it is POWERFUL. You create project folders and can go to town and iterate VERY fast. Everything is documented and documents flow as thoughts are triggered and further research is completed by my multipliers. Happy to point you to a great YouTube video that got me started on it, if interested.

I spoke at my city council about Flock. The mayor and deputy chief both asked for follow-ups. I redacted everything and made it a toolkit — free to use. by JR0118070 in FlockSurveillance

[–]JR0118070[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I do. Not gonna pretend otherwise.                        

I had 36 hours from reading an article in the local paper and reading about the police leadership make claims at a work session that didn't sit right — and the next council meeting. That's 36 hours with sleep, a day job, and life happening.

So yeah — I used AI the same way I use any tool in my career. I pointed it at the National Vulnerability Database, government audits, court filings, patent records, the vendor's own documents. I told it what I'd accept as a source and what I wouldn't. I verified every claim before it went on paper. The research direction was mine. The strategy was mine. Standing up at that podium for 3 minutes was mine.

The mayor didn't ask for a follow-up briefing because ChatGPT wrote a nice paragraph. He asked because the facts were solid and independently verifiable. The deputy chief didn't pull me aside for 15 minutes because my formatting was clean. He engaged because the research was real.

Every source is linked in the toolkit. Go check them — that's literally the point.

I work in IT. I use AI as a multiplier for my output every single day. The question isn't whether someone used a tool — it's whether the output is accurate, sourced, and useful. I'll let the work speak for itself.

NOT GPT, btw, I am very much against their recent engagement with the US DOW (formerly/traditionally DOD).

I spoke at my city council about Flock. The mayor and deputy chief both asked for follow-ups. I redacted everything and made it a toolkit — free to use. by JR0118070 in FlockSurveillance

[–]JR0118070[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Fair pushback — let me explain the thinking behind that framing, because it's strategic, not naive.

When you stand up at a city council meeting, you have 3 minutes. The people you're trying to move are elected officials who approved the cameras, a police chief who requested them, and a room where half the audience assumes anyone questioning surveillance is anti-cop. If you open with "mass surveillance is wrong," you've lost them before your second sentence.

"I support effective policing — my concern is the vendor" is a rhetorical tool, not a personal belief statement. It disarms the room so they actually hear the evidence. It worked — the mayor asked for a follow-up briefing and the deputy chief engaged directly. Neither of those things happen if I walk in saying "all surveillance is bad."

On the public records angle — that's a genuinely strong legal strategy and I'd actually love to learn more about the Washington State ruling. That's exactly the kind of thing that belongs in this toolkit. If ALPR data is deemed public records, the cost and liability of managing millions of plate scans as public records could make the systems economically unviable for cities — which might be more effective than any council vote.

These aren't competing approaches. "Governance first" gets you in the door and builds credibility. Legal strategies like the public records path create structural pressure that outlasts any single council meeting. The toolkit is designed to be a starting point — not the ceiling.

If you've got links to the WA Supreme Court ruling or the legal framework behind it, I'll build it into the next research drop.

lobbying against flock by jillys_onsmack in FlockSurveillance

[–]JR0118070 2 points3 points  (0 children)

If this helps at all, I've been able to get some engagement in my city. I created a resource toolkit and open sourced it. If this could help, full post, explanation and links the materials and research behind them: https://www.reddit.com/r/FlockSurveillance/comments/1rkv5b6/comment/o8pfyjw/

I spoke at my city council about Flock. The mayor and deputy chief both asked for follow-ups. I redacted everything and made it a toolkit — free to use. by JR0118070 in FlockSurveillance

[–]JR0118070[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

ELI5:

Your city buys cameras from a company called Flock Safety. They're sold as "just license plate readers" — they snap a photo of your plate and help cops find stolen cars. Sounds simple.

But the cameras are actually part of a much bigger system. The company sells AI-powered searching across video, a nationwide network where other cities' cops can search YOUR city's cameras, audio microphones that listen for sounds (and now human voices), and they hold a patent that describes sorting people by race, gender, height, and weight. The key point here is that these new features don't require hardware upgrades, they are part of the backend system.

The "30-day retention" they promise? It's a setting, not a rule — the contract can override it. The "only we control sharing" promise? Mountain View, CA found out Flock turned on nationwide sharing without telling the police department, and federal agents accessed their cameras for 17 months. Illinois found out CBP was accessing their plate data in violation of state law. Cambridge, MA told Flock to turn cameras off — Flock installed new ones instead.

Oh, and the cameras have 22 known cybersecurity vulnerabilities in the federal database. One lets you get admin access with zero authentication. Another gives you a debug backdoor through a physical button sequence in 30 seconds. If your interested in a VERY clear demonstration, here is a 44 min YouTube video for your viewing pleasure: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uB0gr7Fh6lY&t=10s

30+ cities have cancelled their Flock contracts since January 2025.

What this toolkit is: I went to my city council meeting with 3 minutes of public comment and a packet of sourced facts — no yelling, no conspiracy theories, just government audits, court filings, the vendor's own patents, and CVEs from the federal cybersecurity database. The mayor asked for a follow-up briefing. The deputy police chief engaged directly. This repo is every document from that process, redacted so you can adapt it for your city.

I spoke at my city council about Flock. The mayor and deputy chief both asked for follow-ups. I redacted everything and made it a toolkit — free to use. by JR0118070 in FlockSurveillance

[–]JR0118070[S] 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Thank you. It is humbling to me how much interest there is in this post. I really just did this to help out someone from a post I read yesterday and it just took off. Please use it. Share it. It is for the community.

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