Among the recipients of the money: Cicero Town President Larry Dominick and Lake County Sheriff John Idleburg, both of whose government agencies use the technology from the Atlanta company.

  • Scrubbles@poptalk.scrubbles.tech
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    45 minutes ago

    Local politicians being bought off for a couple thousand dollars. Fucking shameful. That’s not even a “oh you had to really persuade them” like a new car or something. It’s a good chunk of change but a thousand bucks will maybe get you a weekend vacation in Tuscon. But it was enough to sell our privacy down the well.

    • perturbedstarstuff@lemmy.world
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      27 minutes ago

      “Every man has his price.”

      Why was yours a six pack and a roll of toilet paper?
      Could you not resist such a pithy morsel from WeWillOwnYouMuahaha inc if only for your pride?

  • plenipotentprotogod@lemmy.world
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    19 minutes ago

    Usually when researching my ballot I have a hard time getting enough info on the local politicians to feel like I’m making an informed decision. My sincere thanks to Flock for making it so much easier to identify who not to vote for.

    • BooBees@fedinsfw.app
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      4 hours ago

      Probably some extortion here and there where they find it possible, too. It definitely will turn into that as the surveillance authoritarian state advances.

      • ladicius@lemmy.world
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        3 hours ago

        “Kompromat” is the term we use in Germany for such material. Derives from the practise of eastern block autocracies and their secret services to blackmail foreign politicians into compliance by presenting them with video evidence of their pedophilia and other disgusting crime.

  • Imgonnatrythis@sh.itjust.works
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    2 hours ago

    Well that’s not exactly helping their evil government surveillance company look at all. Sounds like they’re just leaning into it.

    • givesomefucks@lemmy.world
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      3 hours ago

      I’m pretty sure the article is written by AI…

      The first contribution to the Cicero Voters Alliance (The Larry Dominick Team) was for $1,000, made in 2021, according to Illinois State Board of Elections records.

      It’s started (in that specific place) five years ago.

  • moodoovoodoo@lemmy.world
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    2 hours ago

    Taxpayers pay for Flock cameras to be put up because our gov agencies are terrible. Flock then takes a portion of this money to bribe the gov to give them more money.

    Sounds legit and totally normal. This is how the entire military industrial complex works. Nothing to see here.

    /s

  • melsaskca@lemmy.ca
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    3 hours ago

    Track those taking the payoffs. We don’t need them representing themselves, we need them to represent their constituents. Once you know who they are, vote them out. Eventually those seeking to enter politics will have a more universally collective mindset rather then the “what’s in it for me” that is the current norm.