I have not always worked in IT. Once a long time ago I was a psychology student and I enjoyed philosophy. At one time I had reason to consider what the best way to stop crime would be. I figured out how to do it. I am confident that my solution would decrease incidents of crime and help keep criminals off the streets.
In order to solve a problem one must understand the sources of the problem. In this case we'll just say crime includes anything that is against the law. We shouldn't focus on any one region of the United States to fix. We shouldn't consider just solving one type of problematic activity.
I've spent some time studying criminal activity and the criminal mind. The problem is that all people exhibit the same criminal mindset atone time or another. The difference between someone that jaywalks and someone that robs a bank and kills someone is the same. People commit crimes because they think they will not get caught or that if they get caught that the person catching them will give them a break.
Case in point, I'll use myself as an example. I used to speed when driving. Sometimes a few miles over the speed limit. Sometimes several miles over the speed limit. Once I was stopped running somewhere around 23.5 miles over the speed limit. It turns out there is a whole other story there but needless to say when I am driving 2 miles over the speed limit I figure the likelihood of someone stopping me is pretty slip. At 7 miles over the speed limit I am driving at the point where I'm at least 50% likely to get stopped and it causes me to watch the rearview mirror for a bit each time I pass a patrol car on the highway. When driving 88 miles an hour in most 65 mile an hour speed zone you'd feel lucky to not get stopped on an open highway.
Unless you live in the North East. in which case you are likely to get run down for going too slow at 88 miles an hour.
But to this end some of us might still try the 88 mile and hour speed since there isn't anyone on the road that we can't avoid and its safe to drive that fast in a 65 mile an hour zone anyway right?
About 15 years ago I did the math and put my foot to the gas. There was a string of 9 cars driving near 90 through Illinois, I saw them coming behind me and decided to slip into the middle of the pack when they passed. If we were caught it was likely that they would get the first few cars in the pack. Or the last few cars in the pack. I was in the middle and feeling a bit invincible as we drove for about 2 hours running over 90.
-- As a side note you can loose you license on the spot for years and be taken to jail immediately at 25 miles over in most states. I was young and stupid as evidenced by the last paragraph and didn't know this at the time. --
So essentially I was gambling at 2 miles an hour over, and at 7 over, and then again at 90 miles an hour that I wouldn't get caught ... and that if I got caught I would be able to get out of it.
As we drove our little train moving south picked up a few more cars and I stayed in the middle feeling kind of confident in my choices for the day. For the record I might not have even tried this had my wife been awake, She was a little more particular about such things.
The great state of Illinois and the highway patrol decided to teach me a lesson that day. All gamblers lose at some point in time.
Long story short, as we crested a hill just outside of Effingham, IL I spotted a line of patrol cars running up from behind. It turns out that the state noticed our little caravan moving quickly through the state and they had enough cars and drivers to spare that afternoon for all of us. I got pulled over and contemplated how the day was likely to end.
It turns out that the officer was willing to happily explain what I had done wrong. He also explained the 25 miles over the speed limit guideline and asked if I would like to keep my driver's license that day noting that he had the choice of using the speed in which I was clocked earlier in the day or when he got behind me. He took my paperwork and went back to his car. At which point I received what was only the beginning of a long cold accusatory stare from my wife.
I also contemplated the possibility of having to explain that the reason I might be about to miss a job interview the next morning was because I was going to be in an arraignment for what was best described as "reckless endangerment" and speeding with a few other descriptors I can't remember at this time. Would that be how I used my one phone call?
continued in part 2 . . .