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Why people keep trying to erase the Hollywood sign from Google Maps (2014)

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Re: Why people keep trying to erase the Hollywood sign from Google Maps (2014)

#51

Post by JustSomeNobody »

donatj wrote: post #43
JustSomeNobody wrote: post #38

On the one hand I can kinda feel the pain of the homeowners. When my neighbor recently had a yard sale, I basically had to sit in my driveway telling people to not block it in case I had to get out. Some would actually try and argue with me. So, I know how selfish and stupid people can be sometimes. But, selfish and stupid works both ways. The homeowners near there can't deny people right of way on public streets. Th…

You couldn't just ask them to move if/when you did actually have to get out? People don't spend usually more than a few minutes at yard sales and it sounds to me like you were just being unreasonable. If you were so worried you might need to leave at an absolute moments notice (doctor on call or something?) why not just park in the street yourself?

Seriously? Look, it is plain rude to park directly in front of someone's drive. There's no two ways about that. I should not have to be go and park my car somewhere else because people can't be bothered to not be rude.

I have plenty of property in front of my house that they could have parked (it's 25 extra feet they would have had to walk). That's what plenty of other people were doing. There's plenty of open space on the other side of the street as well.

Re: Why people keep trying to erase the Hollywood sign from Google Maps (2014)

#52

Post by HorizonXP »

So I have a story about this.

Back in 2007, my friends and I were at a 4 month co-op internship at Qualcomm. One weekend, we decided to drive up to LA from San Diego.

We drove as close as we could to the Hollywood sign, and got to a cul de sac where we saw a few cars parked, and a few families hiking down a hill from the sign.

We parked, and walked up the hill, noticing a sign that said it was illegal to hike to the sign. We questioned whether it was a good idea to ignore the sign, but seeing as whole families were ignoring it, we thought it would be fine.

We hiked for a few minutes, and then saw a security guard pull up in a car near our cars. I wasn't sure how legally I was parked, so we went back to avoid a ticket.

The guard ignores all the families, and targets us, asking us what we were doing hiking up there. We said we just wanted a picture, and he yelled at us about the sign. We said we didn't see it, and he called us idiots. He asked to see our IDs, at which point, my friend started talking back, saying no way. Being that we were Canadian, and on work visas, I didn't want to push my luck, being a minority too. I knew that if this guard called the cops, I'd be in a bit more trouble, and I thought I'd be in jeopardy of getting shipped back to Canada. It didn't help that the friend mouthing back wasn't a minority; I don't think he realized how scared we are in general of cops.

My friend kept mouthing off, saying that the guard had no right to talk to us like that, and we were going to leave. At this point, the guard says he's calling the cops, and that we have to deal with them.

At this point, I jumped in, asked the guard to calm down, and that I'll talk to him privately. He told me to tell my friend to watch his tone, and I pleaded with him to let us go, since I really didn't want to deal with the cops over something minor on account of us not being American. He copied down my info from my license, gave us a warning, and let us go.

Now, I did know my "rights", and I knew he had no grounds to detain us. But I didn't know those signs were fake, so I really thought we might be in trouble. Also, I didn't know if those rights applied to us as non-Americans. My friends said I was an idiot for giving my ID, and I agreed, but I just wanted to get out of there. I was 22 at the time too, so I probably was a bit more naive.

Reading this article brought back this memory, and now makes me realize how we were bamboozled. Live and learn I suppose.

Re: Why people keep trying to erase the Hollywood sign from Google Maps (2014)

#53

Post by kaybe »

isaacdl wrote: post #46
morganvachon wrote: post #39

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Pejorative it may be, but it's accurate in this case. It was also used by the article's author. I'm normally one to champion a homeowner's rights to reduce trespassing, loitering, and destruction of property, and I do understand where the homeowners in this case are coming from. I have a little turd of a neighbor who revels in illegally driving his four wheeler across my yard but the police say I'm in a catch-22; unl…

Small nitpick - why can't you erect tire-gouging spikes in your yard? It's your yard, is it not?

Or how about, let's say, a full-concrete birdbath on a column?

Re: Why people keep trying to erase the Hollywood sign from Google Maps (2014)

#54

Post by x1798DE »

morganvachon wrote: post #39
nefitty wrote: post #18

Earlier quoted context omitted.

"NIMBY (an acronym for the phrase "Not In My Back Yard"), or Nimby, is a pejorative characterization of opposition by residents to a proposal for a new development because it is close to them, often with the connotation that such residents believe that the developments are needed in society but should be further away."

Pejorative it may be, but it's accurate in this case. It was also used by the article's author. I'm normally one to champion a homeowner's rights to reduce trespassing, loitering, and destruction of property, and I do understand where the homeowners in this case are coming from. I have a little turd of a neighbor who revels in illegally driving his four wheeler across my yard but the police say I'm in a catch-22; unl…

Why would they need to physically see him? Can't you just set up a camera?

Re: Why people keep trying to erase the Hollywood sign from Google Maps (2014)

#55

Post by anon4 »

isaacdl wrote: post #46
morganvachon wrote: post #39

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Pejorative it may be, but it's accurate in this case. It was also used by the article's author. I'm normally one to champion a homeowner's rights to reduce trespassing, loitering, and destruction of property, and I do understand where the homeowners in this case are coming from. I have a little turd of a neighbor who revels in illegally driving his four wheeler across my yard but the police say I'm in a catch-22; unl…

Small nitpick - why can't you erect tire-gouging spikes in your yard? It's your yard, is it not?

Or a small fence? Not tall enough to stop someone from walking over, but enough that it would be damaged by him driving over it. Together with a security camera.

Re: Why people keep trying to erase the Hollywood sign from Google Maps (2014)

#56

Post by hartator »

ejk314 wrote: post #34
adam-a wrote: post #3

I may be missing something, but why don't they build a car park and widen the road? Surely it's a lot easier than trying to stop people going to one of the most recognisable landmarks in the world. It's definitely worrying that major tech companies are willing to alter their maps at the request of a few wealthy individuals.

You do know that anyone can edit google maps, right? They don't block editing in a region until after something like this happens. https://www.google.com/mapmaker

Can you edit this part?

Re: Why people keep trying to erase the Hollywood sign from Google Maps (2014)

#57

Post by donatj »

JustSomeNobody wrote: post #51
donatj wrote: post #43

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You couldn't just ask them to move if/when you did actually have to get out? People don't spend usually more than a few minutes at yard sales and it sounds to me like you were just being unreasonable. If you were so worried you might need to leave at an absolute moments notice (doctor on call or something?) why not just park in the street yourself?

Seriously? Look, it is plain rude to park directly in front of someone's drive. There's no two ways about that. I should not have to be go and park my car somewhere else because people can't be bothered to not be rude. I have plenty of property in front of my house that they could have parked (it's 25 extra feet they would have had to walk). That's what plenty of other people were doing. There's plenty of open space…

Rude? Yes. An actual inconvenience to you? Unlikely.

Re: Why people keep trying to erase the Hollywood sign from Google Maps (2014)

#58

Post by anon4 »

JustSomeNobody wrote: post #51
donatj wrote: post #43

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You couldn't just ask them to move if/when you did actually have to get out? People don't spend usually more than a few minutes at yard sales and it sounds to me like you were just being unreasonable. If you were so worried you might need to leave at an absolute moments notice (doctor on call or something?) why not just park in the street yourself?

Seriously? Look, it is plain rude to park directly in front of someone's drive. There's no two ways about that. I should not have to be go and park my car somewhere else because people can't be bothered to not be rude. I have plenty of property in front of my house that they could have parked (it's 25 extra feet they would have had to walk). That's what plenty of other people were doing. There's plenty of open space…

Isn't it outright illegal? Can't you get them towed?

Re: Why people keep trying to erase the Hollywood sign from Google Maps (2014)

#59

Post by micampe »

azernik wrote: post #20

The attempt to turn public property into the property of the locals reminds me of a similar, non-tech-related case, also in LA - Malibu beaches. According to the law of the state of California, all beaches are public property. Of course, this gets a bit complicated when an individual owns the land in front of the beach. The people who buy houses in Malibu would, of course, prefer to have a private beach section. So t…

There is a controversy and lawsuits going on in Half Moon Bay for five years so far http://martinsbeach.blogspot.com/

Re: Why people keep trying to erase the Hollywood sign from Google Maps (2014)

#60

Post by miclip »

Similar issue in Sausalito above the Bridge. Wolfback Ridge Rd is a publicly maintained road yet they have a gate and sign that says otherwise. It is strictly enforced by Sausalito Police on behalf of residents. There's some great short hikes up there that offer excellent views of the Golden Gate Bridge and headlands.

Even google didn't dare go up there: https://www.google.com/maps/@37.8512481,-122.4911711,3a,75y,...

Granted you can hike up Sunrise trail from the next exit but it's a tough hill for the elderly. Friend of mine got one of those hard to remove stickers put on their car for taking her mother up there.

If you ask the city they'll spin crap but confirm that it's open to public when pushed for an answer. If you drive up there guaranteed someone will confront you and the police will show up soon after.

Taxpayer funded gated community for the politically connected.

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