Taxation by Speeding ticket (Hawkeye: live, zoned, cost of)

[jmgg]

Originally Posted by Granny Sue

You forget...the police didn't make this law....they only enforce it. And more than likely they don't want to be doing it in the 1st place.

So maybe you need to concentrate on the people that the people elected to get this law changed.

You're right. I'm sure a large % of cops hate having to do this. Too many legislators feel their effectiveness is measured by the quantity of bills they can push through. The law that should be on the books is before a new law is enacted, especially those whose main objective is to be big brother, they have to delete one.

[Bosco55David]

Originally Posted by jmgg

Uh huh!! The police in Iowa have so much time on their hands by ignoring real criminal activity, that they can pull over any law abiding person driving the speed limit, straight down the road who just happens to not have their safety belt on. Good easy money for the state.

I'm willing to bet these were Iowa State Patrol crusiers running the speed traps. If so, then that is why they are there...to enforce traffic laws. They're responsibilities are much different than the city police and sheriffs departments.

[tijlover]

it's almost a joy to get stopped by the police. Travel Guides to Mexico will tell you not to give them more than $20 if stopped. That's what I've always given them after negotiations. Muchas Gracias, and you're on your way, with insurance companies knowing nothing.

I dream of the day when we can do that in our country! Hand them some cash and leave with a smile on your face. And his or her face as well.

Curiously, what are they doing about loud, thumping boom cars in Iowa?
They're cracking down on them all over the country, with fines as steep as $3000 in some places. Some places they're even impounding the vehicles, disconnecting the equipment on the spot and destroying it, like in Lorain, Ohio. A great source of income for many communities, better than speeding tickets.

[DMRyan]

While we're dreaming, perhaps a crackdown on extremely loud motorcycles is order too. Hearing that racket in the house pisses me off more than a car with a loud stereo system.

[Mathguy]

Originally Posted by DMRyan

While we're dreaming, perhaps a crackdown on extremely loud motorcycles is order too. Hearing that racket in the house pisses me off more than a car with a loud stereo system.

Had a guy that used to gun his Hog at the top of the hill in my neighborhood most summer mornings around 6AM. (This was when we had babies that didn't sleep through the night) To this day...I dream of loose gravel and piano wire when someone revs an intentionally loud Harley.

[zz4guy]

Originally Posted by DMRyan

While we're dreaming, perhaps a crackdown on extremely loud motorcycles is order too. Hearing that racket in the house pisses me off more than a car with a loud stereo system.

Definitely. Why don't we EVER hear of cops ticketing bikers for loud pipes?

[Granny Sue]

Originally Posted by zz4guy

Definitely. Why don't we EVER hear of cops ticketing bikers for loud pipes?

You must not watch cops, speeders or HWY Patrol.
Or go to Daytona.
And it's not just Harley's

It happens all the time.

You can't pick and choose which offense is acceptable to enforce. The person next to you probably has different ideas on what's important.

Don't like the law? Do something about the law, not the people paid to enforce it.

[todd00]

if you want to talk about safety, how about a trooper driving 90 to 100 mph to catch some guy going 10 over the speed limit or for a seat belt violation. how many lives is he endangering driving that fast to catch someone to give a speeding ticket? his lights are on, but not his siren, so someone with the radio blasting, a/c on full, or kids with the dvd player on, may not realize he is a cannon ball approaching them before they pull out to pass someone. to me the cop is more of a hazard than a person driving a bit over the speed limit. at least 2 trooper radar traps are safer to the other drivers. also if you want to think of safety, and using the "its for our own good" line of reasoning, why have states increased speeds on interstate highways? they know many or most pple are still going to exceed the limit by 10 mph, many times more. so if its safety they are after it seems a bit hypocritical to raise the speed limits when they are aware of drivers tendency to put the pedal down. practically everyone passes me, as i feel 70 mph is fast enough, given fuel prices and the little time ill save by going any faster.

i had a trooper on I-29 turn around and come like a missle to catch me, what was my terrible crime? because he saw i was missing my front tag. i wasnt even speeding. did i mention my ex is blk and im white, in my opinion thats why he pursued us with such vigor. at that distance it would even be hard to tell for certain if we had iowa or missouri tags. oh, and right before he turned around, a new vette passed us going at least 15 over. when i saw him turn around i figured he was after the vette, i should have known better. doesnt it seem most cars you see stopped are not new cars or semi's? its a revenue game plain and simple. safety is the con, revenue is the game.

as far as picking on the cops that enforce the laws, no they do not make the traffic laws, but do have a great deal of latitude in who they stop, who they ticket and who they give a warning to. i was a police officer, i know this as fact. certainly voicing ones opinions to state politicians is a good idea, but dont expect them to leap to make any changes in the short run.

[mofford]

Some thoughts I have about the thread thus far.........With all the safety features that are built into cars sold in the US, the one feature that does more good than all of them is the seat belt. Without it, all the other features are pretty much useless. We pay alot for all the safety features built into the cost of a car, why not get your moneys worth. I used to have an early 90's car that had automatic seat belts, I was buckled up 100% of the time, but those were discontinued because it was found that auto-belts are really not safe for whatever reason. This leads me to the question, with all the high tech features these days, would it be that hard to install a device in the buckle that prohibits you from starting the car unless your belt is buckled ? What would it take, a couple wires and switch in the buckle, maybe a sensor in the seat to determine if there is a passinger sitting there ?

About the noise from those bass units, they are much more annoying to me than the noise from a motorcycle. When that bass thump rolls by, it always distracts me until it passes. Now if I had a neighbor that started up the harley at 6AM, that would bother me alot too. But one thing to remember about motorcycles, they only have one safety feature, the headlight that is on all the time so you can see them. Of coarse many bikes have an additional safety feature, loud exhaust that makes it possible for other drivers to hear you, maybe before they see you. And of course they sound cool too, and even though my little suzuki would be very quiet without the three 1/2 inch holes bored into each side of the exhaust outlet, I feel safer and more cool knowing you can hear me. It's still not as loud as a harley, but loud enough to get you to look before you make that left turn and kill me.

[QuadCityImages]

Originally Posted by mofford

I used to have an early 90's car that had automatic seat belts, I was buckled up 100% of the time, but those were discontinued because it was found that auto-belts are really not safe for whatever reason.

It may have been an urban legend, but I always heard that if you didn't buckle the lap belt, the automatic shoulder belt could decapitate someone as they flew forward at the waist. Sounds hard to believe, but they sure did stop making them.