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Anti Federalist
10-20-2011, 01:51 PM
I walked to school, biked to school, went downtown at lunch time, when I was a kid, without a high tech Big Brother grid.

Optional or not, this is just more conditioning, getting the next generation of the herd used to the fact that they will be under 24/7 monitoring and surveillance for the rest of their lives.



Scanner technology can calm parents' fears when kids walk, bike to school


By Melody Gutierrez
mgutierrez@sacbee.com
By Melody Gutierrez The Sacramento Bee
Last modified: 2011-10-20T14:52:33Z
Published: Thursday, Oct. 20, 2011 - 12:00 am | Page 1A
Last Modified: Thursday, Oct. 20, 2011 - 7:52 am

http://www.sacbee.com/2011/10/20/3990372/scanner-technology-can-calm-parents.html?storylink=lingospot_related_articles

Carla Kliman was happy when her daughters wanted to participate in a three-week walk or bike to school challenge at Crocker Riverside Elementary in Land Park. But when her children – ages 7 and 9 – expressed an interest in making the walk alone, Kliman said she hesitated.

"It's a seven-minute walk," Kliman said. "I want them to, but I'm nervous at the same time."

Those fears were calmed thanks to a 2-inch plastic card now attached to her kids' backpacks. The shoe-shaped card has a scannable bar code similar to membership cards used at grocery stores.

Instead of store savings, this card is scanned when kids arrive at school to instantly alert parents through email, text message or phone call that their children have arrived safely.


The technology is part of Saveagallon, a program that aims to increase the number of children walking and biking to school. Created by two Davis residents, Saveagallon's website allows users to calculate the environmental and financial savings of using alternative transportation.

The program is voluntary and not used for keeping student attendance. That has helped bypass student privacy concerns, which have been raised over similar technology used elsewhere in the country.

Using non-identifiable user names, mileage is logged automatically when the bar code is scanned. At Crocker Riverside, for example, a student called Banksy24 has saved $1.35 by walking nine miles in as many days.

Initially, the website targeted adults. But when Saveagallon co-founder Phil Cox began using it in 2008 to encourage his Natomas third-graders to consider walking or biking to school, he realized the impact it could have by creating lifelong healthy habits.

Cox said his class at Two Rivers Elementary went from two students walking or biking to 14.

"They got really motivated because they saw the difference they could make," said Cox, who was an environmental geologist before he became a teacher.

Saveagallon co-founder Tim Starback said the program's biggest hurdle has not been persuading kids to walk or bike to school. It's persuading parents to let them.

"I was one of those super overprotective parents who didn't want my son to walk or bike to school by himself," said Starback, a computer programmer. "If I just knew he got there I would be fine. It makes it easier and overcomes one of the parent safety concerns."

Privacy concerns have been raised when similar technology goes a step further to track students. Some parents have pushed back when districts use biometrics, a technology that analyzes biological data, such as fingerprint scans or facial recognition tools.

Although it is not used locally, private companies offer school districts fingerprint scanning devices that can be used to check out library books or to pay for meals in the cafeteria instead of carrying a student ID.

Several companies market fingerprint scanners or radio frequency devices for school buses to ensure that kids don't get off at the wrong stop.

"In Davis, there are a few people leery of our program," Cox said. "But, it's an optional program."

Birch Lane Elementary School in Davis has piloted the program full time since last year.

Crocker Riverside in Land Park will use it until Oct. 28, when the school's walk-and-bike challenge ends and totals for each classroom will be tallied for a winner.

Saveagallon also will be used at four schools in San Diego.

Starback said the parent notification is intended to be a crutch to ease parents into letting their child walk or bike to school. "The problem we found is that they love it so much that they don't want to give it up," Starback said.

As the program expands, Starback said, the goal is for Saveagallon to break even financially. Schools pay $150 to get started and $1 per day for the automated scanning system. Scanners cost about $40 and reusable bar code cards are typically bought in bulk, such as 500 for $240.

For schools, the most difficult part is organizing volunteers for a booth outside the school where barcodes are scanned when students arrive.

"It's been a huge learning curve for our school," said Victoria Custodio, a Crocker Riverside parent who organized the Saveagallon program. "I would like to see this technology used elsewhere. It's a great program, but there is a lot of logistical stuff."

For Kliman, the Crocker Riverside parent initially unsure about letting her children walk alone to school, the Saveagallon notification has eased the worry.

"They have walked to school alone twice now," she said.

flightlesskiwi
10-20-2011, 02:06 PM
disturbing how they tie all this police grid shit into the sustainable development movement.

interestingly enough, they DO go hand in hand. people and their actions monitored 24 hours a day. all in the name of Gaia.

smartguy911
10-20-2011, 02:07 PM
I can imagine myself doing this to my kids. I think best thing to do is just give a phone to them that has basic phone functionality and a gps for tracking purpose by parents. Nothing wrong with parents tracking their kids. I just don't want government doing the tracking.

AFPVet
10-20-2011, 02:15 PM
The Nazi's liked to keep track of people too....

Anti Federalist
10-20-2011, 02:16 PM
I can imagine myself doing this to my kids. I think best thing to do is just give a phone to them that has basic phone functionality and a gps for tracking purpose by parents. Nothing wrong with parents tracking their kids. I just don't want government doing the tracking.

There's only two degrees of separation between the justification for parents doing it and for government doing it.

I've given up, I really have, trying to make this case anymore.

All I have is my memories of a world that existed, not too long ago, where you were not under 24/7 surveillance and a warning to the future:

You'll be sorry...

Anti Federalist
10-20-2011, 02:17 PM
The Nazi's liked to keep track of people too....

Plus - fucking - rep.

flightlesskiwi
10-20-2011, 02:25 PM
There's only two degrees of separation between the justification for parents doing it and for government doing it.

I've given up, I really have, trying to make this case anymore.

All I have is my memories of a world that existed, not too long ago, where you were not under 24/7 surveillance and a warning to the future:

You'll be sorry...

sometimes i feel like all this technology (GPS tracking, cell phones, scanner cards, etc etc) takes away the motivation for parents to actually parent. it lends to a certain degree of laziness.

for example: since i can now, through the miracle of technology, track my kids via GPS on their cell phone, i take the approach that i don't need to know anything about who they are hanging out with or know anything about those kids' parents/home life. i can just pull up where they are on my computer, and see they are, so i'm good.

....

i can remember my mom being like a detective when i was younger. she was a hell of a detective. she had ways of finding information that i still, to this day, have no clue how she did it. that was all before GPS and cell phones. she didn't follow me around or any of that, she just knew who i was with and knew their parents and she made a point to make herself known-- and to know the kids i didn't even hang around. old school networking, i guess.

phill4paul
10-20-2011, 02:34 PM
It's for their own good.

http://i929.photobucket.com/albums/ad131/A-Moore-Portfolio/bubble.jpg

specsaregood
10-20-2011, 02:57 PM
i can remember my mom being like a detective when i was younger. she was a hell of a detective. she had ways of finding information that i still, to this day, have no clue how she did it. that was all before GPS and cell phones. she didn't follow me around or any of that, she just knew who i was with and knew their parents and she made a point to make herself known-- and to know the kids i didn't even hang around. old school networking, i guess.

I remember disappearing for the whole day miles into the woods behind our house. My mom didn't care as long as we made our way back at dusk or when she rang that giant bell on the porch.

moostraks
10-20-2011, 03:05 PM
I remember disappearing for the whole day miles into the woods behind our house. My mom didn't care as long as we made our way back at dusk or when she rang that giant bell on the porch.

:)we had to stay close enough we could see the porch light be flicked on and off...of course I grew up in Miami during the 70-80s.

amy31416
10-20-2011, 03:10 PM
I threatened to run away and my mom offered to help me pack...

Czolgosz
10-20-2011, 03:11 PM
I'm shocked this is in CA.

phill4paul
10-20-2011, 03:11 PM
:)we had to stay close enough we could see the porch light be flicked on and off...of course I grew up in Miami during the 70-80s.

I grew up in Miami in the early '70s. I could run anywhere in Old Cutler until the streetlights came on then was relegated to the block until time to come in.

moostraks
10-20-2011, 03:21 PM
I grew up in Miami in the early '70s. I could run anywhere in Old Cutler until the streetlights came on then was relegated to the block until time to come in.

Cool! My dad was a firefighter down there so they were probably a bit more paranoid then most earlier on, since he was around police officers a good deal...

Sunstruck-Eden
10-20-2011, 03:23 PM
The Nazi's liked to keep track of people too....

I laughed. Then cried. Because it's true.

John F Kennedy III
10-20-2011, 03:25 PM
I'm shocked this is in CA.

I'm not. Cali is tyranny ground zero.

Czolgosz
10-20-2011, 03:31 PM
I'm not. Cali is tyranny ground zero.


lol, didn't think I needed to explicitly point out the sarcasm in my post.

Danke
10-20-2011, 03:39 PM
I threatened to run away and my mom offered to help me pack...

No kidding...

Danke
10-20-2011, 03:41 PM
If a parent is that concerned, why not walk/bike with the kids. Bonus, get some exercise.

phill4paul
10-20-2011, 03:43 PM
I threatened to run away and my mom offered to help me pack...

LOL. When we first moved there I threatened to run away and my mom said ok and packed me a lunch. I hopped on my Big Wheel and took off. About two hours later I showed back up at the house. I wasn't allowed at that time to cross the street. :D

Anti Federalist
10-20-2011, 03:44 PM
If a parent is that concerned, why not walk/bike with the kids. Bonus, get some exercise.

True dat.

Might even prevent dis:

http://i51.tinypic.com/2yx3lma.jpg

John F Kennedy III
10-20-2011, 03:46 PM
lol, didn't think I needed to explicitly point out the sarcasm in my post.

Lol. I would have said something along those lines either way.

flightlesskiwi
10-20-2011, 03:56 PM
If a parent is that concerned, why not walk/bike with the kids. Bonus, get some exercise.

too far.

plus, kids didn't want mom tagging along. just scan them, too easy!!

i had adventures. i'm just saying that when those adventures didn't bring me home at the time my mom expected, or when those adventures included damaging someone's personal property, my mom had the uncanny ability to find me, and she always was able to find out who done it.

flightlesskiwi
10-20-2011, 03:59 PM
i just came across this story (http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2009/nov/20/peru-gang-killing-human-fat) today and when i saw that pic, it's the first thing i thought of.


True dat.

Might even prevent dis:

http://i51.tinypic.com/2yx3lma.jpg

donnay
10-20-2011, 04:12 PM
You know we were no more safer back in the 70's and 80's--my mother was kidnapped in the 40's right in front of her home. The one thing we all had was freedom and the risks that comes with it!