From an article in the Detroit News:
General Motors Co. supports legislation to require so-called “black boxes” in vehicles to collect crash data, and it is willing to support additional “reasonable” auto safety legislation.
Meeting with reporters Friday, GM’s new vice president for government relations, Robert E. Ferguson, said the company backs legislation in the works from Rep. Gene Green, D-Texas, to mandate event data recorders.
“I think EDRs ought to be in every car,” Ferguson said. “Devices ought to be readily available so that law enforcement can find out what happens to vehicles involved in crashes.”
The mandate for Big Brother boxes on all vehicles is closer than you may think. Of course, libertarians interested in this issue know the real reason for the black box tyranny – so the state can record the events of individuals and use the information against them to back up its threats, extortion, and criminal charges. Each little movement will be recorded, giving the state an immense amount of information on your whereabouts, your hobbies, your friends, your job, and your schedule. These data recorders will record your actions so that so-called “experts” can interpret your behavior and spin the story on you any way they wish.
It can be said that the black box (or EDR) is part of the vehicle, making it private property. This brings up the question – in the case of an accident, will the authorities (any state agency) have the power to snatch the property without the permission of the owner, or will they need the owner’s consent?
This is from a 2004 article on USA Today:
For example: When AutoWeek conducted handling tests on a mundane Chevy Malibu Maxx hatchback earlier this year, the recorder automatically alerted GM OnStar officials, who called the car to make sure the driver was OK after a particularly severe cornering maneuver. The driver was, but later said he resented the intrusion.
Also from the story:
In fact, Davis Instruments of Hayward, Calif., sells a black box called CarChip that will record throttle position and engine parameters for up to 300 hours of driving. Parents can use it to monitor their teenagers’ driving habits, for example.
Progressive, an auto-insurance company, is running a pilot program with 5,000 drivers in Minnesota using a device similar to CarChip. It records up to six months of driving data, including vehicle mileage, time of day, and speed. The program, called TripSense, lets drivers choose whether to hand over data from their recorders to the insurer. Based on their habits behind the wheel, they can get discounts on their premiums of 5 to 25%.
But once any data is collected, some worry that it might be subpoenaed. If a police officer pulls you over while you’re not speeding, “will your EDR tell him that five miles or five days earlier you were?” asked AutoWeek magazine’s Bob Gritzinger in a November article.
Recorder data may also present problems for drivers with automobile warranties. Some wonder if vehicle manufacturers are using safety data to void warranties. Some people in Internet chat rooms have alleged Mitsubishi is doing just that to those who drive its racy Evolution VIII in amateur weekend races.
Imagine what the state, along with the corporate state giants, can do with that information? Of course Government Motors is quite ecstatic about such devious endeavors where it can play a vital role.
