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Post by shanni on Oct 4, 2018 16:11:04 GMT
Other than the obvious reason, you are a first responder, is there a reason people have police scanners? Other than to be busybodies? My friend told me something tragic about one of our local teachers yesterday. I was concerned about how far the news had spread, as I didn’t want to send my daughter to school unprepared if the kids would be talking about it. She responded that she didn’t know, She found out from her in laws who have a police scanner.
It it just got me thinking about police scanners. I’ve heard of several people who have them in their homes. Why would one have a police scanner? In addition to it being very intrusive of people in crisis, it seems like it’s a bad idea for just anyone to be able to listen in on the scanners.
What am I missing here? Do any of you have a scanner? If so, what do you use it for?
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peabay
Prolific Pea
Posts: 9,610
Jun 25, 2014 19:50:41 GMT
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Post by peabay on Oct 4, 2018 16:19:48 GMT
I'm sure people have legit reasons, but the people I know who have them are simply nosy. They want to know what's going on in our community and they can't wait to jump on FB to tell everyone.
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Deleted
Posts: 0
May 11, 2024 23:43:51 GMT
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Post by Deleted on Oct 4, 2018 16:19:58 GMT
Other than the obvious reason, you are a first responder, is there a reason people have police scanners? Other than to be busybodies? My friend told me something tragic about one of our local teachers yesterday. I was concerned about how far the news had spread, as I didn’t want to send my daughter to school unprepared if the kids would be talking about it. She responded that she didn’t know, She found out from her in laws who have a police scanner. It it just got me thinking about police scanners. I’ve heard of several people who have them in their homes. Why would one have a police scanner? In addition to it being very intrusive of people in crisis, it seems like it’s a bad idea for just anyone to be able to listen in on the scanners. What am I missing here? Do any of you have a scanner? If so, what do you use it for? These days you don't need an actual scanner... you can hear it online via computer. It can be helpful during things like flash floods to get a faster knowledge of where flooded areas are to avoid; or other places to avoid for whatever reason. THe only time I've spent actively listening was the semester I took a class in news photography. I needed photos of the types of events found in different sections of the paper or a broadcast. Listening in helped me with that. Haven't been back to the site since then. It was several years ago. |
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freebird
Drama Llama
'cause I'm free as a bird now
Posts: 6,927 
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Post by freebird on Oct 4, 2018 16:20:24 GMT
First responders don't need them for anything. It's just nosey busybodies. My parents had one forEVER. In fact, they set it up so there was a speaker in the upstairs/downstairs so they never missed a thing. So annoying to hear it squawking all the damn time. My dad is gone but my mom still has hers. She also makes sure to read the section of the paper to see who gets tickets or got arrested. LOL
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Post by KelleeM on Oct 4, 2018 16:21:48 GMT
You don’t need a scanner or a computer there are apps. Most people are just generally nosy I think.
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desertgirl
Pearl Clutcher
Posts: 2,646
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Post by desertgirl on Oct 4, 2018 16:22:28 GMT
My family members have them because one of them is a police officer in a huge city. I think they feel comforted knowing stuff.
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Post by myshelly on Oct 4, 2018 16:23:56 GMT
I follow lots of scanner pages on FB.
They alert me of accidents and highway closures so I can avoid those areas when I’m driving. It’s reported faster that way than waiting for it to show up in a traffic report or on my GPS app.
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Post by busy on Oct 4, 2018 16:23:59 GMT
Around here, there are people who follow scanner traffic and have Twitter accounts that report what's going on. They aren't official accounts, but the people who do it definitely have relationships with local law enforcement, etc. They all seem to be responsible in what they report and often delay reporting particularly sensitive calls, etc. I suppose they are busybodies in a way, but it's also super helpful. I know I have DMed the person who runs the one for my county when I've seen police action but there's no news reporting on it yet. And when I was working for the bank, she'd DM me which bank was affected whenever there was a local bank robbery lol
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Post by Fidget on Oct 4, 2018 16:30:32 GMT
I don't have a police scanner but I do think it's normal to want to know what's going on in your neighborhood. If I were to see several police cars at a neighbors house, I would definitely want to know why they are there.
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Post by JustCallMeMommy on Oct 4, 2018 16:32:01 GMT
The only time I have considered that one would be really handy was when a friend's son was in a car accident. He called, told them he was in an accident, and was disconnected. It would have been really nice to listen for the location in that instance.
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Post by giatocj on Oct 4, 2018 16:40:51 GMT
Maybe people just want them. I don't really think it's nosiness for everyone who has one. For some, yes, but some people have a sincere interest in the goings on in their town. I think it's a personal preference and the reasons are "legit" to those who have them.
My dad was a first responder and we did not have one, but my SIL does for no reason whatsoever other than the fact that she has an interest in what's happening in her town. She's had it for years and I don't consider her nosy at all.
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Post by shanni on Oct 4, 2018 16:43:36 GMT
That shows how out of it I am- I didn’t even know there were apps for that! (Of course there are though. I just didn’t think that one through.)
That does help me understand why people have them. If I had a loved one in law enforcement, I can see wanting to know more of what’s going on. Traffic accidents and things like that- I can understand that. I get being curious too and agree that’s it’s human nature to want to know what’s going on. I don’t, however, think our curiosity should supersede someone else’s privacy. That’s where the scanners start to just feel creepy for me. I don’t like the thought of my crisis being someone else’s entertainment. Both when they listen to it and when they tell all their friends about it.
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Post by Restless Spirit on Oct 4, 2018 17:42:17 GMT
My county (and all the cities) police and fire departments moved to encrypted radio transmissions about 5 years ago, making scanners and scanner apps worthless.
My BIL is a licensed Ham radio operator and is part of a network of operators called the Amateur Radio Emergency Service (ARES). They volunteer to monitor and aid emergency services throughout the US.
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Post by refugeepea on Oct 4, 2018 17:43:46 GMT
I've had a police scanner app on my phone at times. Yeah, it's to be nosy. I usually only check when I keep hearing sirens that don't quit or there's a power outage.
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Post by teacherlisa on Oct 4, 2018 17:44:56 GMT
My county (and all the cities) police and fire departments moved to encrypted radio transmissions about 5 years ago, making scanners and scanner apps worthless. My BIL is a licensed Ham radio operator and is part of a network of operators called the Amateur Radio Emergency Service (ARES). They volunteer to monitor and aid emergency services throughout the US. i work for a tribal police/fire/ems department and we also use encrypted radios. |
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MizIndependent
Drama Llama
Quit your bullpoop.
Posts: 5,836
Jun 25, 2014 19:43:16 GMT
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Post by MizIndependent on Oct 4, 2018 17:49:23 GMT
The ultimate Mrs. Kravitz tool. 
I can definitely see how it'd be handy to have one. But if you really want to know and don't want to invest in one, there are plenty of online police scanners available. 
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Post by lisacharlotte on Oct 4, 2018 17:49:48 GMT
I listen when I have insomnia. Works like a charm.
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Post by dudleypippen on Oct 4, 2018 17:59:49 GMT
When my husband was a first responder I used it to know when he was en route and returning from a fire. All communication that wasn’t just to dispatch was on a private channel so I never knew details. It wasn’t necessary but it made me feel better about his safety.
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Post by cindyupnorth on Oct 4, 2018 18:14:23 GMT
My family members have them because one of them is a police officer in a huge city. I think they feel comforted knowing stuff. but my SIL does for no reason whatsoever other than the fact that she has an interest in what's happening in her town. She's had it for years and I don't consider her nosy at all. As a dd who's dad was a police officer, I hate them. It wasn't comforting at all knowing all the bad, and wacked out things going on out there. We had a radio that was on all the time, vs a scanner. Ah...Your SIL was being a busybody, it wasn't taking an interest in her town. That would be thru the local newspaper and talking to people. NOT hearing all the police action going on. To me it's intrusive. You don't need to know all those things about people you do and don't know. |
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Post by lucyg on Oct 4, 2018 18:15:50 GMT
I never thought of it as being nosy, more like a hobby-type interest for some people. Following first-responder activity. Well, I guess being nosy is a hobby-type interest for some people. |
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Post by workingclassdog on Oct 4, 2018 18:25:22 GMT
The only person I knew who had one is my husband's grandpa. He was just into listening to it for fun. Like lucyg said.. kinda like a hobby-type interest. |
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georgiapea
Drama Llama
Posts: 6,846
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Post by georgiapea on Oct 4, 2018 18:39:07 GMT
I've never had one but don't see those who do as nosy. They are people who care about their community and prefer to be up to date on what's happening. Are certain neighborhoods being targeted for crime? We need an alternate route, our regular one is blocked with an accident.
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Post by cindyupnorth on Oct 4, 2018 18:43:37 GMT
I've never had one but don't see those who do as nosy. They are people who care about their community and prefer to be up to date on what's happening. Are certain neighborhoods being targeted for crime? We need an alternate route, our regular one is blocked with an accident. To me that's being nosy. You can find out all the info you need to know thru your local news, or FB pages. You don't have to know the details and what's going on at that minute. It's peoples personal lives. I can sort of get the accidents, but how often would that happen? to have a scanner? |
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Post by giatocj on Oct 4, 2018 18:48:37 GMT
My family members have them because one of them is a police officer in a huge city. I think they feel comforted knowing stuff. but my SIL does for no reason whatsoever other than the fact that she has an interest in what's happening in her town. She's had it for years and I don't consider her nosy at all. As a dd who's dad was a police officer, I hate them. It wasn't comforting at all knowing all the bad, and wacked out things going on out there. We had a radio that was on all the time, vs a scanner. Ah...Your SIL was being a busybody, it wasn't taking an interest in her town. That would be thru the local newspaper and talking to people. NOT hearing all the police action going on. To me it's intrusive. You don't need to know all those things about people you do and don't know. Your opinion on scanners, Cindy, which happens to differ from mine, but that's the beauty of opinions. As far as my SIL is concerned, you don't know anything about her, so you can keep THAT opinion to yourself. Because you are way off base with your comment. |
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NoWomanNoCry
Drama Llama
Posts: 5,856
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Post by NoWomanNoCry on Oct 4, 2018 18:50:35 GMT
Around here they upgraded to special radios and now no one can listen in but we actually have one from the dept here at home to charge DH radio when he’s off duty but I’ve never once turned it on...I’m scared to even clean around it because of the cost of the damn thing. When they had regular radios it was always the noisy people listening in and when shit hit the fan they would drive over to where things were happening (a lady I worked with did this all the time and she would even CALL me and ask me details if I knew anything cause she would hear DH on radio 🙄). Also, drug dealers liked them because if something was going on they knew the attention was on one side of town and they can deliver their supply without getting caught.
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Post by Darcy Collins on Oct 4, 2018 19:17:24 GMT
I don't know that I've ever known anyone with an actual scanner. I first used a police scanner during the boston marathon bombing. Someone mentioned it on social media and I realized that you could listen online. I know tons of people in the area, but am not local and the national news frankly sucked. I've used it a few times since- once when my kids' school went into lockdown - it was extremely reassuring to hear the lack of activity that afternoon and I essentially heard the all clear a good 30 minutes before the email came from the school.
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Post by chlerbie on Oct 4, 2018 19:19:44 GMT
My dad had one and it used to drive me crazy because it was on all of the time. I have no idea, really, why he had it. He wasn't a busybody gossipy kind of guy.
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Post by shanni on Oct 4, 2018 19:26:11 GMT
Around here they upgraded to special radios and now no one can listen in but we actually have one from the dept here at home to charge DH radio when he’s off duty but I’ve never once turned it on...I’m scared to even clean around it because of the cost of the damn thing. When they had regular radios it was always the noisy people listening in and when shit hit the fan they would drive over to where things were happening (a lady I worked with did this all the time and she would even CALL me and ask me details if I knew anything cause she would hear DH on radio 🙄). Also, drug dealers liked them because if something was going on they knew the attention was on one side of town and they can deliver their supply without getting caught. See, this is what I wondered about. It just seems like the police wouldn’t really want anyone and everyone to be able to tune in to where and what is going down. As as far as just wanting to be in tune with what is going on in the town, on the surface I can see that argument. But if it’s ever my address that comes up on the scanner, I would much rather my neighbor walk down the street and ask me if things are okay and ask how they can help rather than sit in their living room listening to it go down in real time. |
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Post by shanni on Oct 4, 2018 19:34:10 GMT
I don't know that I've ever known anyone with an actual scanner. I first used a police scanner during the boston marathon bombing. Someone mentioned it on social media and I realized that you could listen online. I know tons of people in the area, but am not local and the national news frankly sucked. I've used it a few times since- once when my kids' school went into lockdown - it was extremely reassuring to hear the lack of activity that afternoon and I essentially heard the all clear a good 30 minutes before the email came from the school. I can totally see these reasons for using one. Particularly in the latter case, I could see using it. Our high school had a bomb threat last year, and there was very little information coming out. I had two kids in the school and while I knew it was probably a hoax, it would have been reassuring to know what was happening. |
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smartypants71
Drama Llama
Posts: 5,706
Location: Houston, TX
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Post by smartypants71 on Oct 4, 2018 19:38:15 GMT
A police scanner is completely unnecessary in my neighborhood. All you have to do is get on Nextdoor and someone has already posted the scoop LOL!
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