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Taiwan's new 'electronic fence' for quarantines leads wave of virus monitoring

reuters.com

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Re: Taiwan's new 'electronic fence' for quarantines leads wave of virus monitoring

#81

Post by beefok »

lifeformed wrote: post #32

I'm in Taiwan in day 6 of home quarantine right now. We get a call every morning to check up on our health. I don't mind it, it's a simple and effective method and it gives me confidence in the government and society, knowing that everyone is taking the situation seriously. Once I'm out of quarantine, I can feel comfortable being outside living a normal life, knowing that all known potential carriers are contained.

That sounds like the way forward, I wish things were working out that way here! (USA)

Off-topic but, I just discovered your music on spotify a few weeks ago and can't stop listening to your albums, amazing stuff man!

Re: Taiwan's new 'electronic fence' for quarantines leads wave of virus monitoring

#82

Post by blululu »

robocat wrote: post #18
notRobot wrote: post #4

> The system monitors phone signals to alert police and local officials if those in home quarantine move away from their address or turn off their phones. Jyan said authorities will contact or visit those who trigger an alert within 15 minutes. > Officials also call twice a day to ensure people don’t avoid tracking by leaving their phones at home. I'd hate this so much. I get why they feel it's necessary, I do. But I…

> other non-first-world countries Taiwan has been first world since the 1950’s (just to clarify to others reading the thread).

Taiwan has been a well run country for a while, but the 50's were still difficult times for Taiwan. The civil war concluded in '49 and there were a lot of refugees. Based on the opinions of relatives, Taiwan really only hit 1st world status (good sewage, garbage and drinking water) in the 80's.

Re: Taiwan's new 'electronic fence' for quarantines leads wave of virus monitoring

#83

Post by bobbyd3 »

barkingcat wrote: post #45
bobbyd3 wrote: post #34

Earlier quoted context omitted.

How did they get your information for the daily call? Just curious. Is everyone required to submit contact information? Or did they already have the required contact info for daily health checkups?

There is a national registry - if you have a birth certificate, if you have a passport, if you file taxes, if you've used a government service (ever), if you visited dentist/doctor at any point in your life, they have linked those records. If you are visitor and if they need to, within a few hours of landing at an airport and arriving at your destination, you will get a phone call at your destination location/hotel,…

Thank you for the thoughtful reply. It definitely helps to fill my knowledge gaps due to limited travel outside the US.

Re: Taiwan's new 'electronic fence' for quarantines leads wave of virus monitoring

#84

Post by ambicapter »

hanspedah wrote: post #70
impendia wrote: post #24

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I envy you. I am American. I live near, and teach at, a large state university -- which has closed for the spring semester and moved to online instruction. This past Friday there was a house party across the street -- presumably all students. Usually I am very chill, but this time I called the cops.

That behaviour reminds me of dark age where neighbours spied on each other and reported them to the government. And the thing that frightens me is that you and several others are doing this voluntarily.

People in the US have called the cops on parties since time immemorial. I would say it depends 90% on how old your neighbors are.

Re: Taiwan's new 'electronic fence' for quarantines leads wave of virus monitoring

#86

Post by njarboe »

wahern wrote: post #67
twomoretime wrote: post #33

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>and how a decision made in this crisis could set the standard for the future This here is really the problem, none of these emergency changes should necessarily become permanent. Income tax started out as a war fund some one or two hundred years ago... But I sense we are fighting human nature.

> Income tax started out as a war fund some one or two hundred years ago... Prior to industrialization almost all profit surpluses accrued to the elite, who always were taxed quite heavily. Industrialization meant the rise of the wage-earning middle-class and a shift in wealth (not to mention expenditures), thus the income tax.

The revolution in the US from England started with a tax revolt. The founders hoped to create a new nation where the government didn't try and maximize its tax on citizens and just tax enough to maintain the functions of government. The wealthy were not taxed at high rates in the US and Federal revenue was around 3% of GDP until the income tax was implemented. One could hope for a governing class that would let people live with low tax burdens, but that seems to be a difficult thing to sustain.

Re: Taiwan's new 'electronic fence' for quarantines leads wave of virus monitoring

#87

Post by bobbyd3 »

RJIb8RBYxzAMX9u wrote: post #43
bobbyd3 wrote: post #34

Earlier quoted context omitted.

How did they get your information for the daily call? Just curious. Is everyone required to submit contact information? Or did they already have the required contact info for daily health checkups?

When you enter, you're required to fill out a health declaration form, which asks for your contact info. IIRC, it's not cross-referenced with immigration database. Naturally, some were not filled out correctly, maliciously or not. Of the reported cases, police got involved to track down said persons, and they were fined depending on the severity of the infraction. I don't know if the form DB is now cross-checked with…

Thank you for the thoughtful reply.

Re: Taiwan's new 'electronic fence' for quarantines leads wave of virus monitoring

#88

Post by rootusrootus »

RivieraKid wrote: post #64
rootusrootus wrote: post #51

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The really strict lock-downs have only been happening for the last week. People love it because they imagine this is only going to last a few weeks. Tell them that in order to be effective we're going to need to stay shut down for a year or more. Then let's talk about how much people like it.

The plan is to lift the lockdown after a few weeks when the number of new cases is low enough for targeted interventions - thorough contact tracing and quarantining.

Whose plan is that? My gov't has only told the citizens about their plan to shut things down, they haven't elaborated on what happens next. Just today we took the next step and made it a legal requirement that everyone stay at home. In our jurisdiction of just over 4 million people, we have 191 positive tests and 5 deaths. The number of new cases is already tiny, so how much lower do they have to go before we can switch to targeted interventions?

Re: Taiwan's new 'electronic fence' for quarantines leads wave of virus monitoring

#90

Post by klhutchins »

state_less wrote: post #66
twomoretime wrote: post #33

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>and how a decision made in this crisis could set the standard for the future This here is really the problem, none of these emergency changes should necessarily become permanent. Income tax started out as a war fund some one or two hundred years ago... But I sense we are fighting human nature.

And if not permanent, more common. Authorities might say, "We did it before and this flu is half as dangerous, so just to be safe, let's put everyone on the digital leash again." This sort control comes with its own costs. Personally, I'd rather take my risks and live free.

yeah, how is it ensured that it gets turned off once turned on? how soon until "undesirables" meeting together for too long creates an alert to be investigated? As handy as it could be in controlling the virus, what else will it eventually be able to control?
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