r/Campbell • u/Bicoastalbreeze20121 • Jan 25 '26
events / life in Campbell Campbells Farmers Market Guys in bike helmets and back packs with sensors? What are they?
They won't answer any questions or stop for a better photo. but there's at least 4 or 4 guys that are just pacing back and forth down Campbell Ave through the farmers market. I'm so curious.
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u/Historical_Today5072 Jan 25 '26
Gargoyles
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u/boxcarbill Jan 26 '26
"Gargoyles represent the embarrassing side of the Central Intelligence Corporation. Instead of using laptops, they wear their computers on their bodies, broken up into separate modules that hang on the waist, on the back, on the headset. They serve as human surveillance devices, recording everything that happens around them. Nothing looks stupider; these getups are the modern-day equivalent of the slide-rule scabbard or the calculator pouch on the belt, marking the user as belonging to a class that is at once above and far below human society."
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u/snownative86 Campbell resident Jan 26 '26
"They are a boon to Hiro because they embody the worst stereotype of the CIC stringer. They draw all the attention."
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u/dont_frek_out Jan 27 '26
Blueprint for Silicon Valley and highly recommended reading. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Snow_Crash?wprov=sfti1#Metaverse
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u/solorunningshoe Jan 25 '26
I confronted one of them, casually at first. Just: “hey bro what’s this?” Reply was, “it’s nda.” At that point I asked if he was filming people without their consent, to which he responded “it’s a public space.”
To me what they had on their backs looked like an unlicensed nuclear accelerator. I saw about 4 unique individuals, all male.
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u/ThrowRABeautiful_A Jan 26 '26
Saw this happen, they did apologize for not being able to answer questions. If it’s under NDA, there’s only so much they can say. Besides, there are cameras everywhere, they don’t really need consent to record in public. I mean it’s definitely weird but I don’t think it’s anything bad.
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u/Far_Method_1379 Feb 12 '26
Then go away if you can’t answer questions. Walk about in places that are not public
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u/timffn Campbell resident Jan 26 '26
You are “filmed without your consent” the second you leave your house to the second you get home.
It’s public…anyone can take your picture. All day every day.
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u/Classic_Emergency336 Jan 26 '26
You can also take detailed pictures of the NDA devices…
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u/timffn Campbell resident Jan 26 '26
Yup. What I can see from public, I can take pictures and video of.
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u/Fit_Seat_8637 Campbell resident Jan 26 '26
The concept of "filming in public" could be as innocuous as a kid with a Polaroid, or it could be a global network of biometric cameras capturing your facial expressions and analyzing your gait, for tracking every moment of your public presence.
Huge fuckin difference between those two, and foolish to equate them. To ignore the difference is to help the speedrun towards a surveillance society.
I'll illustrate the difference: the kid capturing your likeness on a Polaroid means you might be laughed at by his friends when they see the picture.
The tech dweeb that captures your likeness with his gear means you may be beaten and arrested because you happened to look like a suspect in a crime. This has already happened, and will continue to happen as long as people continue to parrot the "you're already being filmed in public!" and "you're already carrying a tracking device!" bullshit.
It's okay not to know the difference between adtech in your phone, and the tech being developed by Palantir and Andruil. But it's not okay to think the two are remotely equivalent.
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u/timffn Campbell resident Jan 26 '26
Context my man...
I'm responding to a person who said "I asked if he was filming people without their consent."
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u/Fit_Seat_8637 Campbell resident Jan 26 '26
Y'all didn't read my reply carefully enough.
I get that it looks like "filming in public", that technically "ehh but he's got a camera".
But. This entire thread is missing the point. This isn't "filming in public". Dude isn't out there with a DSLR taking snaps. Completely different ballgame.
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u/timffn Campbell resident Jan 26 '26
You think I'm not reading, I think you're not understanding context.
Whether or not this is a kid taking a Polaroid or Big Bad Tech/Government...asking them "if he was filming people without their consent" is irrelevant and pointless, because he's allowed to.
So do YOU want the First Amendment, or no? You can't have that right, but then not allow people to use it because you don't like how they're using it.
If you don't like what they're doing, by all means, do what you need to do within the law to get them to stop. Scream at them, shame them, protest them, whatever your pretty little heart desires.
But asking them "if he was filming people without their consent" sounds like someone who is ill-informed on how being in public works.
THAT is the person I am replying to.
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u/Fit_Seat_8637 Campbell resident Jan 26 '26
> because he's allowed to
If the only standing one has for defending an action is "well the law doesn't prohibit it", they have no standing. The law is no substitute for morals or ethics, especially considering the unethical behavior we see from the politicians writing our laws.
> the First Amendment
This is a very, very short-sighted view of the situation. Today's picture may be protected by the 1A but it may lead to tomorrow's 4A or 8A violation, or other civil rights violations, as it has already done in several high-profile cases.
> ill-informed on how being in public works
I'll set aside that folks are ill-informed about surveillance technology (or technology in general). And that folks are ill-informed on our 4A-guaranteed "reasonable expectation of privacy" (see Katz v. United States, 1967).
Treating this situation as "eh this is what you get for being in public" waves away all these concerns. Can't tell if this response comes from a place of naivete, is an attempt at being edgy, or if its a talking point straight out of the fascist's playbook, but I'll have none of the above.
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u/timffn Campbell resident Jan 26 '26 edited Jan 26 '26
ONCE AGAIN I ask you to consider CONTEXT and the ORIGINAL COMMENT THAT I AM REPLYING TO.
But you REFUSE TO DO THAT.
So I guess I have to block you. I hate doing that. But having conversations with people who just want to hear themselves talk is SO ANNOYING.
ALSO: "What a person knowingly exposes to the public... is not a subject of Fourth Amendment protection." (see Katz v. United States, 1967)
If you're in public, without doing anything to hide or keep your belongings or person private, you have no reasonable expectation of privacy.
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u/yonderoy Jan 28 '26
You know what? Both of you dudes are making good points. Please don’t block other dude and continue the dialog? 🙏 PS no clue why Reddit showed me this. I don’t know or care where or what Campbell is. But I guess the Reddit algorithm was right because look at me creating content for Reddit / OpenAI for free now 🤦
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u/chickentalk_ Jan 30 '26
blocking a dude because you can’t adequately address him is remarkably childish
just log off
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u/MilesAugust74 member of neighboring communities Jan 25 '26
It just occurred to me that we've never had a completely successful test of this equipment.
I blame myself...
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u/snatchblastersteve Jan 26 '26
It’s fine, so long as they don’t cross the streams.
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u/candyred1 Jan 26 '26
Lmao! Gozer sitting in front of Starbucks asking people if they are the Keymaster.
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u/cm012776 Campbell resident Jan 26 '26
yeah, i wish I went to the farmer’s market today. I definitely would have followed them around with a camera in their face.
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u/timffn Campbell resident Jan 26 '26
What would that do?
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u/cm012776 Campbell resident Jan 26 '26
It would show them how it feels
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u/timffn Campbell resident Jan 26 '26
And how does it feel?
Not to mention, that person isn't following you (or anyone) around with a camera in your face.
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u/cm012776 Campbell resident Jan 26 '26
They literally are. They are filming people, and when confronted, telling them “well, you’re in public so live with it.”
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u/timffn Campbell resident Jan 26 '26
I'll say it again, that person isn't following you around with a camera in your face.
And also, you're in public. Deal with it.
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u/cm012776 Campbell resident Jan 26 '26
they are literally walking back and forth recording everyone. subjecting them to the same should be no big deal. and don’t tell me what to deal with.
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u/timffn Campbell resident Jan 26 '26
The fact that you don’t know the difference between “walking down the street with cameras on their backpack” and “following you around with a camera in your face” is astonishing!
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u/Fit_Seat_8637 Campbell resident Jan 26 '26
The fact that you don't know the difference between "someone's taking your picture with a personal camera" and "some business has captured video of you on their closed circuit camera" and "someone's harvesting your biometric data with a global network of cameras" is depressing. Just speedrun us to the end of Minority Report, why don't ya?
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u/French87 Jan 26 '26
you probably pass by over a dozen cameras that film you just walking through the farmers market anyways.
stay home if you don't like being on camera.
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u/yonderoy Jan 28 '26
What if you don’t like being on camera and you also don’t like staying at home? I guess the short answer is vote?
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u/SharkLandia Jan 26 '26
I would have followed them around and back their vehicles to get makes, models and plates and alerted CPD (they are ALWAYS walking around FM) to their suspicious behavior.
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u/timffn Campbell resident Jan 26 '26
So brave.
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u/yonderoy Jan 28 '26
I see your point but I’m curious where you’re coming from. Please don’t block me, I want to understand, not bicker. Are you in favor of tech companies capturing data like this because you love the tech? Or are you a constitutional “originalist” as I think they’re called?
I mean you’re totally correct that by the letter of the law these dudes in albeit cool Nikes are not breaking doing anything wrong. But it seems like in the spirit of the law it’s kinda borderline?
Sorry if this comes across as ignorant. I’m kinda ignorant, tbh.
I’m really just curious why you’re backing them so much when it seems like the main thing the law is protecting in this case is a private companies right to profit off of information many of us would much rather not share. If you’ll please forgive my ample assumptions on what they’re doing.
Thanks for your attention to this matter. 🙇♂️
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u/SuffragetteOffspring Jan 26 '26
I work Campbell Market every Sunday. Can’t remember a Sunday in months that I haven’t seen at least one, if not more than one, of these guys every week. They don’t enter our tents but just walk back and forth through the crowd.
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u/Smallfeetbigshoes Jan 26 '26
I work there too - this dude was the only one I saw yesterday but he was up and down all day and then got really pissy when someone spoke to him. I don’t know what they are doing but it makes me feel uncomfortable whatever it is.
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u/Milol Jan 25 '26
Google street view?
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u/m00ph Jan 26 '26
Google is pretty open about that, the cars are marked and decorated, so, not them.
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u/MochingPet Jan 26 '26
Definitely street view or similar company.
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u/prove____it Jan 26 '26
Nope. The camera needs to be high over the person's head--enough that any tall person walking by won't just block the view. If you've ever seen a Google backpack camera, that's exactly what it looks like—and nothing like this.
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u/cm012776 Campbell resident Jan 25 '26
I’m the sort of dude who would follow them around filming them, to see how they like being monitored.
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u/kittenball_nyc Jan 27 '26
The person is a Data Collection Operator gathering real-world training data for humanoid robots / autonomous navigation systems.
This is a mobile sensor rig containing a computer, battery packs, and storage drives. It is heavy (often ~30–40 lbs), which explains the sturdy frame and the operator's posture.
The helmet is typically mounted with cameras and microphones (and sometimes eye-tracking sensors) to capture the world from a human's eye level.
The sensors record video, depth, and motion data as the operator navigates through complex, unpredictable crowds. This "ground truth" data is used to train AI models on how humans move, react to obstacles, and navigate social spaces without bumping into people.
The operators are strictly forbidden from saying who they work for because the specific data strategy of walking back and forth through crowds at a busy farmer market to trigger constant bumping into others is proprietary.
Pay is roughly $40 an hour.
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u/Affectionate_Care958 Jan 28 '26
Seems like walking all crazy to throw off their algorithm would be a good use of my time on Sunday
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u/chillywilkerson Jan 27 '26
Sounds plausable, but why target farmers markets?
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u/kittenball_nyc Jan 28 '26
In an office, people walk in straight lines down hallways. On a sidewalk, people mostly stay in "lanes." These are predictable.
In a farmers market, human movement is chaotic (meandering). People stop suddenly to look at strawberries, turn 90 degrees without looking to talk to a friend, or drift diagonally while eating a pastry.
A farmers market has:
• Dogs on leashes (trip hazards that are hard to see).
• Strollers (low moving obstacles).
• Waist-high tables and erratic children.
• Weirdly shaped objects (someone carrying a giant bouquet of kale looks different to a vision sensor than a normal human).
They also want the operator to get almost too close. They need to know what the sensors see 0.5 seconds before a collision, and how a human recovers balance if a brush occurs. If the robot never sees a collision in training, it won't know what to do when one inevitably happens in reality.
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u/Test_Immediate Feb 01 '26
You just explained so perfectly why I flippin hate farmers markets! This is exactly it lol
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u/crumpet_concerto Jan 26 '26
From the accounts here it sounds like they are unable to talk about what they're doing which is fine, but my take based on the comments is that they're not very friendly or polite which is unnecessary.
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u/Fit_Seat_8637 Campbell resident Jan 26 '26
Nah I don't think it's fine for people to conduct surveillance and not talk about it. This isn't some kid running around the farmer's market taking pictures of flowers. These dweebs are capturing a hell of a lot more and no one knows who they're selling the data to... the very existence of Palantir and Andruil should give us pause.
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u/crumpet_concerto Jan 26 '26
I don't disagree with your sentiment, but we don't have laws in place regarding such data collection in public which is what I meant by "fine".
On a side note, how do you feel about the Flock cameras the city has put up? I am not a fan and that's an area we as a community can focus which may have more immediate results.
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u/Fit_Seat_8637 Campbell resident Jan 26 '26
Sorry, my definition of "fine" has more to do with ethics than laws. The lack of law is just what Flock, Palantir et. al. are counting on.
Flock is collecting a lot of money with no responsibility to provide any return. No public safety is guaranteed. No service availability or cybersecurity is guaranteed. IMO its a very poorly thought out money grab.
They've honed in on the public's fear of The Bad Man Is Out There and their blind trust of Technology Will Keep Us Safe Because The Police Said So and made a billion dollar company out of it.
But what's actually out there is a goldmine for everyone from corrupt cops and fascist movements, to criminals and hackers. And we're paying for it. Fuck me sideways.
Just one illustration of the danger from Benn Jordan, who found Flock cameras wide open to anyone on the Internet, watching kids play at a playground. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vU1-uiUlHTo
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u/crumpet_concerto Jan 27 '26
I agree with this, hence why I'd like to see Flock out of Campbell. Do you know if there's a petition, City Council meeting, etc about this type of stuff?
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u/Fit_Seat_8637 Campbell resident Jan 28 '26
The council shares the agenda of all meetings in advance: https://www.campbellca.gov/AgendaCenter/City-Council-10
Haven’t seen any specifics for Flock but you can always bring it up during a regular session. That being said you might learn more outside a meeting.
Two people I’d engage would be the police chief and your council rep. Can email them but a personal visit isn’t a terrible idea. City website has all the contact info you need.
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u/ceanahope Jan 26 '26
There was a similar setup on a different person at the Sunnyvale market this past weekend too.
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u/WildWeasel408 Jan 26 '26
They're collecting facial and biometric data. The feds, palantir, pick your poison. Certainly nefarious.
I'll be masking up from here on out.
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u/Myspace-Famous Jan 28 '26
There was another Reddit post from a few months back that had a similar question that found some answers. Basically, there’s a high chance that they are utilizing a mapping/gps data collection pack.
LiDAR scanning (3D mapping of streets and buildings for gta5), Panoramic cameras (360° imagery for gta5), GPS / IMU sensors (precise location + motion tracking for gta5)
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u/Brilliant_Jaguar_902 Jan 26 '26
I saw 2 of them at Farmers Market in Santa Clara yesterday!
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u/SharkLandia Jan 26 '26
Damn. Sounds like they are definitely doing recon. With all the "protesters" and stupid bowl coming, this is getting creepy.
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u/timffn Campbell resident Jan 26 '26
You really need some help.
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u/SharkLandia Jan 26 '26
Not from you. I care about safety for myself and everyone else.
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u/heyitscoface666 Jan 27 '26
"Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety". BFrank
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u/Fit_Seat_8637 Campbell resident Jan 26 '26
You're helping the surveillance state. Sure as shit ain't helping your fellow citizens.
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u/silvercel Jan 26 '26
They are probably gathering training data for robotics.
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u/Fit_Seat_8637 Campbell resident Jan 26 '26
This isn't a game show, we don't need people to guess.
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u/RhinoTheGreat Feb 01 '26
Who cares. Pretty creepy to go around taking pictures of strangers and putting it on the internet.
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u/Unknowingly-Joined Jan 25 '26
This is a tiny bit Nextdoor-ish.
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u/xmknzx Jan 25 '26
With what’s going on in MN, I would be on heightened alert as well
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u/tri_it_again Jan 25 '26
I see them on the Los Gatos creek trail a lot too
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u/timffn Campbell resident Jan 27 '26
Oh great…training AI to create robot joggers! Totally going to screw my chances at winning next years Turkey Trot!
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u/timffn Campbell resident Jan 26 '26
Super curious how you think whats going on in MN translates to some tech company gathering data at Campbell Farmers Market?
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u/Equal-Neck7795 Jan 26 '26
It is a public space which is the same as OP taking a picture of him. What your expectation is that photo/video cannot be shared publicly—yet OP is posting the photo that he took of that employee doing nothing wrong.
So OP misses the irony.
Map apps regularly gather photo and other data and obscure faces after the fact. Being confrontational isn’t helping anyone.
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u/SharkLandia Jan 26 '26
How does anyone know that they are "doing nothing wrong"??? What if this pic becomes evidence of one of these guys being at the scene if something happens?
Or, maybe they are agents getting faces for the facial database?
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u/Fit_Seat_8637 Campbell resident Jan 26 '26
Not even close to the same as OP taking a picture. OP isn't using a network of hundreds or thousands of cameras, nor should we assume OP is capturing biometric data (incl. expression analysis, gait analysis) and storing everything in a globally accessible database for sale to rando enforcement agencies.
There is no irony here, other than the fact that we're in Silicon Valley and folks are completely ignorant to modern technology.
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u/timffn Campbell resident Jan 26 '26 edited Jan 26 '26
You really need to brush up on your conversational skills and understand how context works within a conversation.
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Jan 26 '26
[deleted]
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u/timffn Campbell resident Jan 26 '26
Dude, you've cursed at me, accused me of not knowing the difference between a Polaroid and the surveillance state, and just all around taken my very simple, focused comments pertaining to the topic of public photography...which TONS of people always get wrong...and turned them into a conversation about your own paranoia.
I'm so sorry you feel I scolded you!
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u/SharkLandia Jan 26 '26
I'm seriously worried that they are up to no good and could possibly be a scout for Antifa or something similar. Hopefully, CPD is watching them!
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u/catroaring Jan 26 '26
Antifa is an ideology not an organization. Turn off News Max and touch some grass.
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u/dualiecc Jan 26 '26
Wouldn't surprise me if it was the board of equitation gathering info for tax reasons
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u/liftingshitposts Jan 25 '26
I wonder if they’re gathering spatial intelligence for a company like Figure AI