2002-01-15 - 9:48 p.m.
as it stands, emily is a god send. however, angels can only do so much. she shortened my editorial about a hundred words or so, but it's still too long. damn...
we'll see what happens.
i wonder if i'll ever write a good article that actually fits?
oh heh, funny thing today. i fell asleep while correcting a test today. man, that was so the wrong thing to do. but i wasn't the only one, chris and kelsey both fell asleep too. and chris had the same idea as me. to be fair, just give the person a 24/26.
i so hope to god teruya doesn't read this.
hmm... what else... this entry feels too short.
ah fuckit, i'll just put my revised thingamabob in it.
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It�s 10 p.m. and the H1 is nearly empty. I�m driving eastbound in a 2000 Honda Accord V6 with 200 BHP at my right foot�s command. How fast do you think I�m going? Fast enough, right?
Try 35 miles per hour.
I was forced to go under the posted minimum speed limit a taxi driver-- who probably didn�t want to be caught speeding-- decided to slow down. After all, the slower you go, the safer you are, right?
Nope, but that�s what the states new photo enforcement implies, by not citing people going slower than the posted minimum. As we all know, speed kills.
So, this is good, right? Let�s slow down Hawaii�s roadways and make them a safer place. After all, more than 260 people have been killed and 12,500 have been injured in speed related crashes since 1991.
But before we just leave it at that, let�s look at why the state is really doing this.
Spokeswoman for the state Department of Transportation (DOT) Marilyn Kali said, �The objective of this program is not to see how many tickets we can issue. The object is to make our highways safer for everyone.�
Really? I don�t think so. According to Hawaii statistics, most fatal accidents occurred on two-lane roadways and in 35 mph zones. However, fatal accidents in 55 mph zones ranked fourth by a whopping 15% difference! I don�t see many two-lane roadways with a 35 mph speed limit on the H1.
Not only that, but the state will fine even those who exceed the speed limit by 1 mph. I have yet to hear of any fatal accidents that could have been prevented had the driver been going 1 mph slower.
But then again, it�s another $32 in the pockets of the state, and ACS (Affiliated Computer Services), so why not? I mean, this proves what I�ve believed all along: ACS and the state are more interested in making money. They would make thousands more by monitoring the crowded freeways and highways versus the lower-density 25 mph roadways of city streets.
The fine of $27 plus $5 for each mph over the speed limit breaks down this way: $27 goes to the state judiciary, $29.25 goes to ACS, and any leftover money goes to the DOT. $29.25 goes to ACS. Hmm�
The wonders don�t end there. The state doesn�t care whether or not someone else was driving your car. The fine becomes the owner�s fine and goes on their insurance abstract as a moving violation. But worst of all, the owner can do nothing other than: a) rat out the driver of the car (possibly your spouse), or b) contest their case in court, which is almost more hassle than it is worth. The owner of the vehicle would have to go to court to argue their case in front of a judge. While the citation may be revoked, the defendant would have to pay court dues ($25), pay a $25 subpoena request, as well as use a day of vacation or miss lunch to appear in court. It�s a lose-lose.
Photo enforcement violates two amendments. The Fifth Amendment is violated if the accused testifies against a spouse. A spouse testifying against their partner was deemed part of self-incrimination by a court in the late 80�s
The Sixth Amendment is also violated. The only witness to speeding is a still photograph, which is sufficient. And with the time it takes for notification by mail of a traffic citation, a violation of the right to a speedy trial occurs.
And what ever happened to �innocent until proven guilty?� You are no longer �the accused,� but now �the violator,� and must prove that you are not guilty, rather than defend your innocence.
However there is hope. In Anchorage, Alaska, the city�s citizens halted a similar program by clogging the courts with thousands of challenged citations. In San Diego, California, a judge dismissed hundreds of tickets issued by ACS because the program was not being run in compliance to state law. ACS retooled the cities yellow light interval to increase red light running. And in British Columbia, Canada, after one day in office, the newly elected government shut down the entire organization.
I�m not saying that we should throw things at the van operators, although I do support hand gestures towards the cameras, what I am saying is that we need to do our part to prevent the system from taking advantage of us. We need to clog the system, argue against ACS running the program, and elect a driver-friendly government. If we are able to get this done, we might have a chance at defending our right to drive.
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