British Telecom

[Mama_Kitty]

I'm now deeply suspicious of all BT vans. They have apparently been doing work in and around my road for the last 6 months or so, every day at least one van is parked in my road with a guy in overalls either up a pole or rummaging in a box or underground thing.

How bad are the phones around here, exactly? I live in a busy village, there haven't been any new houses in the 2 years since I moved in and yet the vans are still here . . .

There are two new rectangular BT concrete manhole things outside my house and I don't see any need for them. Surely the only reason to need work doing is if there's a fault or if they're putting new lines in? And every day? For at least 6 months?

Today there were 3 vans outside my house (one of them parked totally erratically, but that's just irritating rather than worrying) and lots of activity around these manholes. One of them I overheard on his mobile saying 'the new boxes are installed'.

Is it just me or is BT deeply evil and frightening?

 

[Yithian]

Utilities and general 'work' vans of all kinds are a ubiquitous and covenient cover for both criminals and the police and security services who want to linger in an area without arousing suspicion.

Call BT and check they have work scheduled in your area. It can't do any harm and you may be suprised.

 

[rjmrjmrjm]

A la Ghostbusers II.

 

[Yithian]

A la Ghostbusers II.

Wasn't what i was thinking but yes.

On one of these true crime type things that i recally seeing a while back there was a career criminal who needed to impersonate a security guard. He assured the viewer that all he needed was the proper hat. If it looked vaguely appropriate or official then your average Brit (not wanting confrontation or to go out of his way), will assume that you are there for a good reason (even if he doesn't know what one) and either leave you alone or do as you suggest within limits.

 

[escargot]

The Grauniad had a nice article recently about how blokes 'disappear', ie blend into the background, if they wear if work clothing like fluorescent jackets. (What I'd call a 'traffic coat'.)

The idea is that most peeps ignore workmen. I though it sucked as only middle-class peeps ignore workmen. :lol:

 

[rynner2]

Utilities and general 'work' vans of all kinds are a ubiquitous and covenient cover for both criminals and the police and security services who want to linger in an area without arousing suspicion.

Yeah, they used that on BBC's 'SPOOKS', n'est ce pas?

Yes, phone BT (and the tabloids! )

 

[Yithian]

The idea is that most peeps ignore workmen. I though it sucked as only middle-class peeps ignore workmen. :lol:

There's probably a fair amount of truth in that.

Makes me wonder: do workmen ignore other workmen?

 

[chockfullahate]

when i used to wear a hi-viz jacket as part of my work, people i knew, even down to my own mother would just walk past me. that being said i knew lots of people who used it to their advantage shoplifting too.

 

[Anonymous]

Then again, you do live in a village. There may well be frequent connection problems due to location. I know it's a boring suggestion, but then they're normally turn out to be the explanation.

 

[Yithian]

Then again, you do live in a village. There may well be frequent connection problems due to location. I know it's a boring suggestion, but then they're normally turn out to be the explanation.

*Nudges Hook firmly out of focus on the thread*

Spies! They're spooks and snipers i tell 'ya!

 

[Gemaki]

when i used to wear a hi-viz jacket as part of my work, people i knew, even down to my own mother would just walk past me.

Ohhh, so that's why when I wore my florescent orange vest, people tried to hit me with their cars?! And the excuse was always, "I didn't see you!" My reply was always "No shit?! And I guess you didn't see that 4 x 4 florescent orange SIGN you just drove around, either?! Should you be driving, then?"

:headbutt:

 

[Anonymous]

Then again, you do live in a village. There may well be frequent connection problems due to location. I know it's a boring suggestion, but then they're normally turn out to be the explanation.

*Nudges Hook firmly out of focus on the thread*

Spies! They're spooks and snipers i tell 'ya!

Spies my arse! (add laughing liverpuddlian farting in an armchair) Another big clue, it's nearly the end of the tax year. You always get shite like this happening with city councils and gas companies, spending drifting pots of cash at the end of the financial year on stuff like unnessasary (spl?) maintainance.

or just bt engeneers that were made redundant and can't quite come to terms with 'letting go' :shock:

 

[Anonymous]

Ohhh, so that's why when I wore my florescent orange vest, people tried to hit me with their cars?! And the excuse was always, "I didn't see you!":

ha! "I didn't see you". Not the smartest excuse for a driver to use.

"He came out of nowhere." Another phrase often meaning "I was driving too fast" or "I wasn't looking where I was going". Because unless there was some sort of strange fortean time anomaly or it's suddenly started raining pedestrians...well...honestly...

 

[Yithian]

Ohhh, so that's why when I wore my florescent orange vest, people tried to hit me with their cars?! And the excuse was always, "I didn't see you!":

ha! "I didn't see you". Not the smartest excuse for a driver to use.

I may have posted this elsewhere but a chap i used to work with (a long time ago) crashed hi car into both a skip (lit at night with flashy beacons) and a fire engine (with the blue lights and sirens going) in the same month.

True.

Scary.

 

[Anonymous]

ok. How about this for a conspiracy theory. Maybe just maybe they're employed by the government to make people think that survailance is going on in the area. so that even in small villages, you're never too far from a terrorist? Keep the whole 'fear' factor going. So they're not actually doing anything. and you ring up and you check and low and behold they say 'no work has been scheduled...' and actually all that's designed to do is compound the fear. sort of enforcing paranoia if you like?

 

[tastyintestines]

ok. How about this for a conspiracy theory. Maybe just maybe they're employed by the government to make people think that survailance is going on in the area. so that even in small villages, you're never too far from a terrorist? Keep the whole 'fear' factor going. So they're not actually doing anything. and you ring up and you check and low and behold they say 'no work has been scheduled...' and actually all that's designed to do is compound the fear. sort of enforcing paranoia if you like?

That makes sense. They probably look for people that are acting suspicous or overtly paranoid, and then that narrows down suspects.(It seems like we are all suspects. :x )

ps. I just noticed the"British" telecoms part. It seems like we have the same scenarios here in the US.

 

[escargot]

I tried to post a link to the Grauniad article last night (as I would always do if I recommended looking at it) but the site was down, and still is.

:shock:

I am surprised that anyone ignores traffic-coat-wearing blokes. You'd think the sight of them meant, uh-oh, the road's up again!

Maybe I'm just nosy.

 

[ENTIANONMULTI]

Ah but Traffic coats are worn at work, and it may be a bit of politeness going on i.e. best not speak to them in case their boss thinks they are slacking.

 

[Mama_Kitty]

But I've never had a problem with my phone line, and they're right outside my house. I could understand the tax year stuff, but they've been there for at least 6 months, every day. There are only 2 giant vans outside my house today. How many vans do they need? I might just ring BT and find out what's going on . . .

 

[Vardoger]

Perhaps the police are just surveiling a gangster living in the neighbourhood. That was my first thought.

 

[halfempty1888]

ok. How about this for a conspiracy theory. Maybe just maybe they're employed by the government to make people think that survailance is going on in the area. so that even in small villages, you're never too far from a terrorist? Keep the whole 'fear' factor going. So they're not actually doing anything. and you ring up and you check and low and behold they say 'no work has been scheduled...' and actually all that's designed to do is compound the fear. sort of enforcing paranoia if you like?

Or maybe they're just watching you Kitty?

H.

 

[escargot]

Yup Kit, Halfy's right.

They are watching you, confident in their disguise of appearing to listen to you.

If they wanted to bug your phone, you'd be having your windows cleaned three times a week. :lol:

 

[Mama_Kitty]

I knew I should have looked in a mirror and brushed my hair at some point this week, there are probably a hundred websites devoted to my hairy pits already.

Anyone still got their lunch where it belongs?

I don't think they are spying, they look like they're really busy today, hanging down inside those rectangular manholes with lots of wires all over the place. Although one of them is never off his mobile. Four vans this morning, after I said there were 2! But they're back to 2 now.

Doubtful it's the cops, I worked for them and they don't tend to do that sort of surveillance around here, they'll just sit in a battered old car or borrow someone's spare room. Not that there aren't any dodgy types around here, there sure are.

Man I wish my life was interesting enough to justify people installing surveillance equipment!

Baby's asleep (she's poorly so she's been sleeping with short breaks since Sunday) so I'm off to bed with some chocolate brazils and the autobiography of a geiko. That should get their pulses racing . . .

 

[rynner2]

You could always turn the tables. Take a camera or camera phone out and ostentatiously take pictures of all the workmen.

If they ask what you're doing, you say "I could ask you that! These pics are going to a friend of mine to be checked over..." as you walk mysteriously away.


Mind you, you'll probably get a rep as 'that batty woman'!

Or they may decide you know too much, so now they have to kill you... :shock:

 

[Yithian]

You could always turn the tables. Take a camera or camera phone out and ostentatiously take pictures of all the workmen.

If they ask what you're doing, you say "I could ask you that! These pics are going to a friend of mine to be checked over..." as you walk mysteriously away.

Tell them your Russian uncle had asked you to photograph them.

 

[SniperK2]

Some-ones been walking off with the drain covers up our road , but no vans, or anything, just holes, :? It's true about the workmens coats though, I had to drop b/f's lunch off to him, yesterday, he was waiting opposite his work and the only person there, and I ' refused ' to recognise him, as he was wearing one. I looked straight through him and whinged that he was going to make us late

 

[Timble2]

It's true about the workmens coats though, I had to drop b/f's lunch off to him, yesterday, he was waiting opposite his work and the only person there, and I ' refused ' to recognise him, as he was wearing one. I looked straight through him and whinged that he was going to make us late

There's at least one murder mystery that depends on uniforms being invisible. The witnesses all claim that while the murder was happening no-one came to or left the house, the murderer was in fact disguised as a Postman who no-one had noticed as being anyone important. It may be one of the "Father Brown" stories by GK Chesterton: Ravenstone or Stormkahn will probably know.

 

[Leaferne]

Ages ago, I worked as a maid (housekeeper) in a hotel, and one of the things I loved about the job was that I could go anywhere in the building without being questioned. People would continue their conversations as if we were just another potted palm. (I get that to a lesser extent in my current job; if I'm wearing my IT photo ID people just smile and wave me through; I must be there to fix something, right?)

 

[ENTIANONMULTI]

on the subject of the correct clothing maying you "invisible" a lecturer at uni used to go all over the place collecting geological specimens, all he needed was a hard hat and a high vis jacket with those on anyone who saw him saw him as a part of the scenery.

 

[Anonymous]

A college where I worked had some televisions and data projectors stolen a few years. The thieves wore overalls, carried a clip board and just walked into rooms and removed the equipment in full view of staff and students.

Nobody bothered to question them. And hardly anyone could describe them.