Overlawyered: Chronicling The High Cost Of Our Legal System

California sex-consent law: an “engineer’s solution”

From rxc in comments:

The engineer’s solution:

Everyone who participates in the regulated activity needs to purchase a simple push-button device which controls a separate panel with a red light and a green light. During the regulated activity, each participant must hold down the button on the controller that illuminates the green light, which shall remain visible to the other party(ies) at all times. If, at any time, a participant releases this button, the green light goes off, and a red light comes on. Optionally, a siren could start to sound, to summon outside assistance.

These days, with Wifi and Bluetooth, I bet you could make the controller wireless and small enough to easily hold in one hand, leaving the other hand free for other activites…

I bet the Chinese could get something set up in a few weeks, and have it in stores by Xmas!

Failure to use such a device is cause to dismiss later allegations that consent was not given.

Batteries not included.

Earlier on the California law here and here.

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6 Comments

  • “Everyone who participates in the regulated activity needs to purchase a simple push-button device”

    See, that’s the flaw in this plan. No one should have to “purchase” anything. Requiring a purchase is denying the device to people. Women, the poor, and various minorities would be hardest-hit.

    The Secretary, HHS has the authority under Obamacare to mandate 100% coverage of the device as an essential basic service.

    Et voila!

  • It’s evidence of how much society has changed that today’s Engineer’s Solution involves buttons, lights, electronics and Chinese imports. The Classic Engineer’s Solution was insert Rod A into Slot B; repeat until replication occurs.

    • By Wfjag

  • So old tech. There’s an app for that:

    http://www.presstelegram.com/social-affairs/20141003/sex-app-good2go-lets-users-give-consent-before-a-sexual-encounter?source=most_viewed

  • Great, government approved sex. We’ve finally hit bottom – and I think we can get approval for that. First they came for our light bulbs, then our plastic bags, and now . . .

  • leafs004,

    “Good2Go” has been pulled from both the Apple store and the Google store because of…..

    ….. wait for it…..

    “legal concerns from lawyers.”

    One of many articles on the subject: http://www.thecollegefix.com/post/19657/

  • @leafs004: After I wrote that proposal, I did have the thought that it could be an app. And I did know about the Good2go app. But that app was just basically a checklist of items before the action begins. It had nothing to deal with a change of heart during the regulated activity.

    And, it did nothing for activities involving more than 2 people (or even one person, alone). The beauty of the separate button and lights is that everyone has a clear indicator of the state of mind of all of the participants. The optional siren can be purchased to provide notice to the vision-impaired or to those who might temporarily close their eyes (for whatever reason).

    And, with a separate box, you have the possibility of adding remote Wifi logging and reporting to the California State Bureau of Consensual Intimate Relations, who will have SWAT teams ready to move into action whenever someone has a change of heart. The government will therefore be able to collect much better data to fine-tune the law to protect all of these poor, defenseless child/victims from bad behavior. Maybe you could even add sensors to the button that is held in the hand to get some idea of how much fun the participants are really having.

    So many opportunities, just waiting for an ambitious Chinese electronics firm to fill the gap, so to speak.

    • By rxc