GPS-Enabled Uniforms Track Students
Tue Aug 28, 2007 10:37PM EDT
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Is it me, or is paranoia really setting in as kids head back to school? So far, we've heard about bulletproof backpacks, stab-proof uniforms, and now a company plans to add Global Positioning Systems to children's clothing. The Daily Telegraph says Lancashire-based manufacturer Trutex is actually thinking about adding satellite tracking devices to school uniforms after an online survey indicated a good majority of parents are worried about their child's safety. The online survey conducted by Trutex also found that 59 percent of the 800 adults who participated, expressed interest in uniforms with tracking devices. Trutex hopes to get schools on board by touting the GPS-lined uniforms as a way to reduce truancy levels.
Surprisingly, the survey also found that half of the children, mostly those under 12, had no problem wearing a tracking device, while teenagers were naturally more resistant to the idea.
It'll be interesting to see how the tracking system will actually work. I mean, what's really going to keep a students from leaving their jacket in one place, while they skip school off campus?
What do you think? Is a GPS laced uniform a good idea?
Related:
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Comments on GPS-Enabled Uniforms Track Students
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2 Posted by meyer7007@sbcglobal.net on Wed Aug 29, 2007 10:19AM EDT Report Abuse
This is just wrong! Personal freedom is quickly going out the window!
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3 Posted by dcsoccer25 on Wed Aug 29, 2007 10:31AM EDT Report Abuse
I agree, there coems a point when our obsession with safety begins to infringe on our rights to privacy and freedom. With a GPS device in the uniforms, they'll quickly realize that the students can easily find ways to circumvent the technology. I don't mean to sound liek a conspiracy theorist here, but how long until someone suggests a small implanted microchip such as the ones we use to identify pets? The technology available to us may be nigh unlimited, but the way we use it needs to be regulated. I think this is going too far.
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4 Posted by alpyne2 on Wed Aug 29, 2007 7:08PM EDT Report Abuse
For certain high value targets (children of wealth, royalty, fame, etc.) this may be a valuable tool. However, it won't take long for kidnappers to start stripping their victims and burning the clothing or using similar strategies. I believe the US military was trying to track captured soldiers in Iraq using the GPS in their personal cellphones - there isn't much about that in the news anymore, so the terrorists probably started pulling batteries out of phones ASAP. Implanted chips would require a pretty good energy source, but I suppose technology will remove that barrier. Perhaps the best idea would be an implant that the owner could (verifiably) turn off - perhaps when your kid gets their first cell-phone, or gets a driver's license, or gets married, you give them the access codes to their own implant ... One basic issue becomes - how much would you have paid for this safety gear if you KNEW something tragic was going to happen? Another is - based on your past experiences, how likely is it that a tracking device is going to make a difference in YOUR life (better or worse)? Since we got cell phones, I'm much more comfortable with my spouse or child being absent, because I can call them and verify that everything is OK. Tracking them all day on my PC might get obsessive, but it is more likely to get old & boring.
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5 Posted by somebodys_here on Wed Aug 29, 2007 10:11PM EDT Report Abuse
useless! If I want to skip school, I can find a way (I'm very creative) whether or not I am being tracked. RFID scramblers perhaps? the list of GPS disablers is infinite.
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1 Posted by sandman256@sbcglobal.net on Wed Aug 29, 2007 4:56AM EDT Report Abuse
How much longer before they start inserting GPS tracking devices under our skin when we're born. Or perhaps tattoo a bar code on our arm for id purposes.