They're also for social connectivity in that they're maintained for the suicide hotline at this point.
It’s a small thing, but if the reporter picked this story due to their name, I appreciate that decision.
https://youtu.be/Clgl63CWOkM?si=CZQEzUsY9gWjWbLU
He did it so well, the modification stayed in place for years.
If you can do it right, I say go for it.
- lemonade stands without a business license
- posting fliers on traffic light posts, yard sale signs, etc
- turning over a solid double yellow line to get into a plaza
There are lots of “illegal” things we do every day, because they are better for society than strictly following the law.
1. Exactly what you said, it's illegal but is seldom enforced
2. I would rather break the law to improve the world, than to follow the law and watch it fall into chaos.
All that to say -- I think you should be promoted :)
The desire to help is absolutely laudable, and I wish it were easier for volunteers to get permission to go and do it, but to go on an Internet forum to wrongly claim that it's already allowed is irresponsible.
Really, who is going to catch you in this scenario?
https://cao.lacity.gov/budget25-26/Budget_Summary/2025-26Bud...
That's like saying "At Google alone they spent X dollars" as if it was indicative of companies in general.
To be fair if you mean Kenneth Hahn, and are referring to when he was LA County Chair in 1978, obviously that would be a much larger sum relatively. But it's the largest city in CA now and it was then too.
https://abc7.com/post/los-angeles-police-task-force-cracks-d...
I wonder how Satellite services that just started to rise lately would change the dead spot issue.
Could be paid for by that chamber of commerce in the background. In turn paid for by business that benefits from more people coming into shops.
Let’s see if they will sustain :)
The fact that mobile phones took off after the movie and replaced pay phones could also suggest that most people don’t want to escape the Matrix and realised that ignorance is bliss.
(Just saying what Cypher would say)
They've proven useful for natural disasters and victims of domestic violence/coercive control.
Since these phone booths tend to also show street advertising, it might be a way of preserving that revenue stream, while providing a reason for communities to want to keep the mostly redundant phone booths.
This post made me realise how much work and cost goes into keeping a public phone running, including painting, repairs, cleaning, replacing vandalised parts, paying for electricity, and even sending people out to collect the coins. (I didn't even know collecting coins was an actual job)
https://cities-today.com/australian-cities-win-appeal-over-t...
To cut to the chase, I think local councils are really upset that Telstra has the right to put these anywhere they want.
Yes, as per the link I posted (which appears to predate your investigation by a number of years)
I personally think that there needs to be a middle ground - Telstra have the real estate they do for the express purpose of providing access to a public phone, and I have no objection to them adding some advertising onto those.
I do, however, find it difficult to agree to Telstra using that to justify building a much larger billboard that has little to no purpose relating to access to the public telephone network.
Melbourne does not have any advertising on its pay phones now (not that I can think of, but I am going out some time this afternoon and will double check the CBD)
King Street isn't a main thoroughfare, just the one I happened to walk up
I think Patrick Schlott should launch a “Sponsor a Free Phone” programme, where people with more money can contribute to his project and their community.
He could show the usage of each phone on a dashboard, so donors can see the impact their contribution is having on people's lives.
gnabgib•6mo ago