The Police(nazi) state I live in...

[crunch]

Re: The Police(nazi) state I live in...

"Let me tell you a story."

Damn custom! In the MIDDLE of 199?! That is about the stupidest traffic accident story I've ever heard. That road is nothing to mess with.

When I lived in Northern Cal, I almost killed a couple of tourists like that. I was taking the scenic redwood bypass highway home from the store, and came around the corner doing 50 and there were these two idiots, standing right in the middle of the road, looking up at the redwoods. It was a very close call, big old international trucks aren't known for short stopping distances.

Actually it was 1971.

I used to drive truck out of Crescent City (mid 80's thru mid 90's) and came around a corner on 199 just out of CC.... there was a tourist, laying on his back in the other lane (thank God) with a video camera filming a Redwood.( Why a still shot wouldn't be the same I'll never know.... it's not like they move around) I hit my air horns and that dude was up and running..... the camera got run over by my trailer.

There are stupid people everywhere. 8)

 

[Firestar]

Re: The Police(nazi) state I live in...

How many ramps are at the park?

 

[Limited-Time]

Re: The Police(nazi) state I live in...

Give it up, learn from the lesson and go on with your life... we will continue to pick over the incident and there is a flame war in the offing.... feel better? 8)

I give up nothing, and they are not going to take my money without a fight.

Speedwagon,
Keep us posted. I for one want to here the out come. Good Luck.

 

[kenimpzoom]

Re: The Police(nazi) state I live in...

I just found a penny!

Ken

 

[Speedwagon]

Re: The Police(nazi) state I live in...

Isn't there another thread on here right now, complaining about how democrats (apparently only democrats?) never take responsibility for their actions?

Jeez dude! You took a chance leaving the truck on the ramp, apparently KNOWING that there is an uptight, control freak cop in your area, and she bagged you on a lame technicality. The only person to blame is you, for taking the risk. You lost.

Well I don't exactly go around thinking about this one particular cop.

And in all honestly, if the TAX for this type of thing was only about $20-30, I'd just pay it. But I think the $75 MINIMUM FINE for ANY VIOLATION in Illinois is absurd.

But I guess all that are telling me I'm way off base here, enjoy paying the %40 tax to the government these days, and like to add on to it.

 

[Speedwagon]

Re: The Police(nazi) state I live in...

Let me tell you a story.

I was 17 and driving my 1961 VW bus over to the coast to do my first year as a boat puller on a Salmon Trawler.

Some dillrod decided that HWY 199 wasn't busy at the time and why not park in the shade of that tree and sweet talk that young thing into his car... so he put it in park, set the brake, and moved over into the passenger seat to talk to that young thing....... I never saw him........ jumped the back of that '59 chevy convertible and picked up sweet young thing on my front bumper, took her down the road for 200 ft, under the VW... what was left of it, and me.

He got off without a scratch, she, by an act of God, got off with a bump on her head and a scrape on her shoulder... I did 3 weeks in intensive care and another 2 weeks gen. pop... 6 more weeks with my jaws wired together just because an a** hole didn't think rules pertained to him.

Can you read? Can you comprehend what you read? Was there a sign?

Plead not guilty, they usually fine higher for that.

And BTW...

Why should they tax me more for using the system the way it was intended?

And why do you people keep bringing up analogies that are comparing what I did, to a safety issue? Stopping in the middle of a road(apparently near a blind curve?), or stopping in front of a fire hydrant, are safety issues. If you are going to make an analogy, use one that is an apple to an apple.

 

[Firestar]

Re: The Police(nazi) state I live in...

Fines pretty high. You got nailed. Good luck. I hope the judge is sympathetic otherwise your done like a Thanksgiving turkey..

 

[Haut Medoc]

Re: The Police(nazi) state I live in...

And in all honestly, if the TAX for this type of thing was only about $20-30, I'd just pay it. But I think the $75 MINIMUM FINE for ANY VIOLATION in Illinois is absurd.

Cops gotta eat, too!
Pay the fine & move on....
You.....You....Transgressor!...
I doubt the judge will be sympathetic & they will prolly add court costs.......

 

[Pony]

Re: The Police(nazi) state I live in...

And why do you people keep bringing up analogies that are comparing what I did, to a safety issue? Stopping in the middle of a road(apparently near a blind curve?), or stopping in front of a fire hydrant, are safety issues. If you are going to make an analogy, use one that is an apple to an apple

I tried already.,................EVERY parking ticket that involves a meter or a guy chalking your tires. I said:

Your argument makes every parking ticket ever written null and void. So if you park anywhere where there is a parking time limit........regardless of a fire hydrant............for more than the allotted time and you get a ticket, Do you think you shouldn't have to pay it because it wasnt a "safety" hazaard? ?

 

[Speedwagon]

Re: The Police(nazi) state I live in...

And in all honestly, if the TAX for this type of thing was only about $20-30, I'd just pay it. But I think the $75 MINIMUM FINE for ANY VIOLATION in Illinois is absurd.

Cops gotta eat, too!
Pay the fine & move on....
You.....You....Transgressor!...
I doubt the judge will be sympathetic & they will prolly add court costs.......

In August I got a ticket(big surprise, $75) for a burned out light on the boat. Judge said it'd be $10+court costs(total $65) if I paid it. I took my chances at trial, cop didn't show. I got it dismissed.

The judges seem reasonable out here. It's some of the officers that AREN'T reasonable.

Everything is $75. Speeding, running a stop sign, burned out light, blocking a ramp. You name it, it's probably $75. And I have a problem with that, which is where this whole this stems from. I don't think everything is the same, so they shouldn't have the same fine.

And the cops are supposed to be eating off my tax dollars, not the fine/tax from other things. Of course, if everyone was good for a week, and they actually couldn't issue any tickets for a week, they'd probably have to downsize the police forces by quite a bit.

 

[Speedwagon]

Re: The Police(nazi) state I live in...

And why do you people keep bringing up analogies that are comparing what I did, to a safety issue? Stopping in the middle of a road(apparently near a blind curve?), or stopping in front of a fire hydrant, are safety issues. If you are going to make an analogy, use one that is an apple to an apple

I tried already.,................EVERY parking ticket that involves a meter or a guy chalking your tires. I said:

Your argument makes every parking ticket ever written null and void. So if you park anywhere where there is a parking time limit........regardless of a fire hydrant............for more than the allotted time and you get a ticket, Do you think you shouldn't have to pay it because it wasnt a "safety" hazaard? ?

Fair enough, you did. But if you are walking back to your car at 5:02, and the time limit was 5:00, only a real prick would issue you a ticket then.

Like I said, technically, I did violate the law. I just don't think the cop should be a prick about it. She could have at least made an EFFORT to communicate with me. But she was too busy writing up the ticket to bother. When it's blatantly about money, I get irked... a lot.

 

[bassboy1]

Re: The Police(nazi) state I live in...

Good golly gosh. Yall must really hate (I'm sorry, I should say 'dislike') Speedwagon. Now when someone docks his boat when ready to take it out and then backs his truck into the water they have to block the ramp while getting the boat, right. And no, I'm not talking about courtesy docks because many lakes don't have those. He went to go get his boat. But instead of getting it from a dock he got it from a lift. Oh Oh Oh big difference huh. Now, on many lakes of my local, the dock is on the other side of this huge jetty. The driver can be out of sight for 3-4 mins. So technically he wasn't blocking the ramp.

 

[POINTER94]

Re: The Police(nazi) state I live in...

i386, I concur. The spirit of the law is typically what is upheld, a less mature or experienced officer is more likely to follow the letter of the law. I think the officer used NO judgement when issueing the ticket, but followed the letter of the law. I am sympathetic to speedwagon, and I would take it to court. I think the situation will mitigate your actions, and you will get the ticket thrown out.

 

[Pony]

Re: The Police(nazi) state I live in...

Funny you should mention that Speedwagon. Last semester I got a parking ticket on campus in a 3 hr limit area. I had two classes that day. I get there at 9:20 for a 9:30 class. My second class ends at 12:15. Exactly at my 5 minutes before my spot expires. I can get to the car in a little over 5 minutes. Every time I got to the car my meter was expired but I always figured that the odds of getting a ticket are slim as i only had a 1 or 2 minute window to get a ticket.

I went a solid 3 weeks with no ticket. Then came around the corner one day and the parking cop was 2 cars in front of mine. The ticket was stamped 1 minute after the expired meter. I figured out pretty quickly what was happening.............lots of classes start when mine did, and they know a lot of classes end around noon. So they wait behind the last car on the street, and when it expires they just work their way down the block.

I was really p'oed about the ticket because I felt cheated a bit. I tried to appeal it to no avail. Ended up just paying it even though it was pretty dumb. In the end, 1 minute is still over. Its just at that point the tickets it just a bit harder to take.

 

[Firestar]

Re: The Police(nazi) state I live in...

How many laws do you think are out there where an officer can make it a judgment call? I feel that there are laws on the books that main reason for being there is to generate revenue. :|

 

[crunch]

Re: The Police(nazi) state I live in...

Up until a couple months ago, all of the school zones had signs that read "Speed 20 at all times" That meant, and they enforced it, all times, including 3am on Sat. morning in the middle of summer... with fines double in a school zone. A new law went into effect and they had to go back to the flashing light or when children are present... cut City revenue by half.

 

[Firestar]

Re: The Police(nazi) state I live in...

Speed limits of 65 on interstates that were built in the 60's designed for safe travel at 75 with the cars of the day. Todays econo box has better suspension, tires, brakes then any of those dinosaurs had. Many of the cars today are far superior to race cars of that era.

 

[technostingray]

Re: The Police(nazi) state I live in...

It is an ill wind that blows no one no good. This thread has certainly changed the direction of some of the hot air.

 

[JasonJ]

Re: The Police(nazi) state I live in...

"I give up nothing, and they are not going to take my money without a fight."

There ya go, thats the sort of enthusiasm I like to see. Have fun paying that ticket, after burning all the time and energy on this site, and all the time and energy in court, probably on a work day that you'll have to take off, when you could have taken an additional 30 seconds out of your life and just park where you were supposed to.

BTW, I'm not buyin' that you would shrug it off and wait if you pulled up and saw someones rig blocking the ramp and you saw a boat in the water. I can't say for sure how hot you would get, but it would not be glee or indifference you would think. I know I wouldn't. If I came to a ramp and saw someones rig hogging it, and a boat coming towards it, I would probably thank them for holding me up, since I wasn't in a hurry to go on about my business anyway. Hopefully they would be bright enough to sense the sarcasm in the comment...

 

[crunch]

Re: The Police(nazi) state I live in...

Speed limits of 65 on interstates that were built in the 60's designed for safe travel at 75 with the cars of the day. Todays econo box has better suspension, tires, brakes then any of those dinosaurs had. Many of the cars today are far superior to race cars of that era.

Ain't that the truth, but you have to learn the rules (how far you can push it)

All of the "freeways" in Oregon are marked at 65, but you can run all day at 75, go through radar traps, and pass cops on the side of the road... (they are after the nut going 90 and weaving in and out of traffic.) as long as you aren't the only car on the road.

Same for hiways... I run long distances along US 101 and run at 65 to 70 (posted at 55) I have a radar detector but once in a while they get me with a laser or a gun... no biggie, again they are after the nut going 90.

Now in towns, 5 over will get you a ticket.... just have to know the rules.