Friday, March 17
adrock2xander vs Cops
The Outrageous
I got stopped by 2 cops early Thursday morning.
It was 12.15am at Flinders Street Station. It was still an anthill of activiy. Throngs of crowds - post Commonwealth Games Opening Ceremony no doubt - lingered around the station and concourse, generally minding their own business. I'd noticed the increased police and security presence in the area and decided to take some pictures to show the Howard Government's conceited effort to show how Melbourne truly is a world class city. (my ass)
With camera in hand, i walked around the station snapping shots of the cops, and decided to play around with the camera functions. Switching from Vivid shots to B/W shots while focusing manually, i stood still and focused on a group of cops chatting to themselves. Before i knew, 2 of them filtered towards me and surrounded me. My alarm bells rang off. I switched to DEFCON 3 and took evasive action.
"Excuse me mate, you're not allowed to take videos in the station." Cop 1 said.
"Oh i wasn't taking a video. I was playing around..."
I then realised the futility of the situation. No point explaining what i was doing with the camera, no chance they're camera fans! I immediately apologised.
"I'm sorry. I understand."
"I noticed you were taking pictures earlier but chose to ignore it. But you started to focus on us. With terrorism and all we can't take any chances." Cop 1 explained, his partner Cop 2 looking stern.
"I understand. I'll turn off the camera now."
"I'm letting you off this time. You'll need a permit to take videos in the station. Please do not do it again." Cop 1 warned me, and turned to walk away.
"Yes. Thanks a lot for understanding."
I was visibly relieved. For regular readers, you may know that i don't have a good relationship with law enforcers. They make me nervous. I'll explain a bit more in my next post.
The Outrageous
I got stopped by 2 cops early Thursday morning.
It was 12.15am at Flinders Street Station. It was still an anthill of activiy. Throngs of crowds - post Commonwealth Games Opening Ceremony no doubt - lingered around the station and concourse, generally minding their own business. I'd noticed the increased police and security presence in the area and decided to take some pictures to show the Howard Government's conceited effort to show how Melbourne truly is a world class city. (
With camera in hand, i walked around the station snapping shots of the cops, and decided to play around with the camera functions. Switching from Vivid shots to B/W shots while focusing manually, i stood still and focused on a group of cops chatting to themselves. Before i knew, 2 of them filtered towards me and surrounded me. My alarm bells rang off. I switched to DEFCON 3 and took evasive action.
"Excuse me mate, you're not allowed to take videos in the station." Cop 1 said.
"Oh i wasn't taking a video. I was playing around..."
I then realised the futility of the situation. No point explaining what i was doing with the camera, no chance they're camera fans! I immediately apologised.
"I'm sorry. I understand."
"I noticed you were taking pictures earlier but chose to ignore it. But you started to focus on us. With terrorism and all we can't take any chances." Cop 1 explained, his partner Cop 2 looking stern.
"I understand. I'll turn off the camera now."
"I'm letting you off this time. You'll need a permit to take videos in the station. Please do not do it again." Cop 1 warned me, and turned to walk away.
"Yes. Thanks a lot for understanding."
I was visibly relieved. For regular readers, you may know that i don't have a good relationship with law enforcers. They make me nervous. I'll explain a bit more in my next post.
When adrock2xander was lamenting the lack of security in Melbourne, he didn't mean to take it out on him!
I wonder why they let me off so easily. Because i'm Asian? Asians generally mind their own business and don't go around looking for trouble. Perhaps my appearance got me off easy for once? Or perhaps i was dressed in jeans, a jacket, had a pair of large headphones and looked generally well-presented? Maybe they're more wary of people of Middle-Eastern appearances? Guess i'll never know.
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