FCC: Ability To Text 911 Coming Soon?
Because actually placing calls is soooooo 90's, the FCC is working out the logistics of being able to text 911 during an emergency. What could possible go wrong? Tweeting emergencies, that's what.
Several U.S. government agencies have for some time been considering how to plan and implement the next generation of 911; the plan has been to incorporate SMS text messaging, images and even video into emergency requests to get "the right information to the right people at the right time."
Now, several outlets are reporting that the FCC is pushing for more technology for 911 -- technology that would lead to better, faster responses from emergency workers. In fact, the FCC even says 911 could be automatically notified of possible or likely emergencies by sensors, from OnStar to home alarms and many more.
Granted it does sound like a good idea in theory, but do you realize how many un-emergency texts the police are going to be fielding? In the trillions. Everything from "the greeter at Wal-Mart scowled at me" to "my 20-piece McNuggets was only an 18-piece -- AND THEY FORGOT THE BBQ!!!!111". My point is this, responsible citizens: be prepared to deal with your own emergencies.
FCC May Allow You to Send Text Messages to 911 [mashable]
Thanks to Shenanigans, who claims he knows some idiot moron who mistakenly called 411 while his house burnt down. Whoa, the same thing happened to me on-- wait a minute.
-
Mosquitoes: they nasty. And now Malaysia has genetically modified a strain of all-males that are supposed to produce young that die soon after birth and released them into the wild with the hope they'll help reduce Dengue fever outbreaks. *plugging in bug-zapper and crackin' o... / Continue →
-
Apparently prostitution in Zurich, Switzerland has gotten so out of hand the police have decided to install private drive-in sex booths so the less perverse citizens of the city don't have to witness anybody getting a midday BJ in their Volkswagen. Not even kidding. The idea ... / Continue →
-
A Boston mother (think terrier, but human-er) recently called 911 on her 14-year old son after finding him playing video games at 2:30 one morning, long after she had told him to go to bed. Nice, but I would have just belted the shit out of him because I know good parenting. ... / Continue →
