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Comment by sirdogealot | Hacker News Reader

This really hit me recently when I left the house after doing some cryptography research.

When I "locked" the wooden door with a piece of metal that has been photographed by probably countless cameras... I just had to laugh at myself and wonder why I bad been programmed to do this seemingly pointless action my entire life.

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Right. That old adage about "keeping honest people honest" I think really applies. The ol' $20 Schlage deadbolt will keep the random bored teenager from wandering in. My personal feeling is that folks who are... shall we say on the edge ethically still make a distinction between wandering in somewhere freely, and literally breaking in.

It's not that pointless, it filters out a certain casual thief type quite effectively. For most people its about cost/benefit analysis, and if it's a minor pain in the ass to do something, then it won't happen.

I've researched the "why" and a couple years ago had the opportunity to discuss some of the broader ideas in the history & anthropology of locks. It was actually titled "Why do you lock your door?"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jqjacHSTd48

I don't follow -- why are your keys being photographed by countless cameras?

Have you ever taken your keys out when you're at/leaving a store?

No. Why would you? The casualness with which the question is put makes me curious, but my home keys are generally something I use in the door at home, not at the store.

Those of us who use cars often keep our car keys and house keys on the same keyring. While walking out the door of the store you pull your keys out.

The thought hand't actually occurred to me to keep my car keys on my key ring. They're gigantic these days. But I guess a lot of people do.

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