Parking in handicapped spaces... (1 Viewer)

[MikeSerrano]

1930s Germany called. They want their attitude back.

-Mike

 

[MarkHastings]

I can even go one step further and say that reporting every instance of someone keying a car is a way to ensure that it doesn't happen to you in the future. The reason why people are more apt to park in handicapped spaces and key cars is because they know they can do it in broad daylight (in plain view of others) and get away with it (or at least 90-95% of the time).

If people knew that the chances of having their cars towed or fined (by people reporting them), then maybe the activities would decrease significantly.

The chances of someone keying your car are very high, so why not try to reduce that percentage by reporting them when you see it happen to someone else? For every 'minor' instance you report, you are (In effect) lowering your chances of it happening to yourself.

I keep bringing up the burglarizing of a neighbors house. Why bother to report something like that? Hopefully by reporting it, the cops may have a chance of catching the guy, thus reducing the chances of him going back to the same house and robbing it because he knows that no one's going to squeal on him.

Imagine if EVERYONE reported handicapped violations to the cops and these people started getting fines and having their cars towed...I'd bet there'd be a lot less handicapped space violations.

Letting people get away with crimes only encourages them to do it more often.

 

[Cam McFarland]

Dont park your CAR behind someone in the handicapped spot.

You need to just walk to the back of their car with your cell phone & stand behind it.

Call the cops, if you want to, or just stand there until you feel like moving.

As stupid as it sounds, they can't make you move, & if they even TOUCH you with their car as they are backing up, it is assault with a deadly weapon.


Let THEM call the cops if they want you to move.....



disclaimer: I only KNOW this is true in Texas (dont ask).
And, they may not care if they go to jail for
assault.

 

[larry mac]

I don't know about that, but here's something. There was an article in the Dallas Morning News the other day. There is a new law in Dallas that makes it a crime to possess a shopping cart away from the premises of the grocery store that owns it. It is quite a problem what with all the poor people using them to take their groceries home and then just abandoning them. Plus, the homeless people use them all the time.

The authorities say that they are used to transport stolen items. Whatever the reasons, there is money being spent trying to constantly recover and return these carts, and they are an eyesore and a nuisance.

The story said that the police were not that thrilled with the idea of having this added responsibility (surprise, surprise), and that the police dispatchers would NOT respond to these types of calls (ie. they would not send a patrol car if someone called in a complaint).

 

[StephenA]

It's funny seeing all the shopping carts sticking out of snow piles from plowing after snow storms is kind of funny. I see it all the time here. People just leave the carts all over the parking lots and the snow plows plow them up into the piles of snow, and when you drive down the street you see them sticking out in all different odd directions.

 

[chris_everett]

Around here they would. It's an easy $250, as long as they aren't too busy. And guess what, people don't park in handicapped spaces very often.

Now, do I call the police every time I see someone parked in a spot without a tag? No, but I would if I saw someone do it repeatedly. Think it doesn't effect you? Think about this scenario....

All handicapped spots at a store are taken by people parked illegally.
A handicapped person parks elsewhere.
On there way into the store they are injured.
A contribuiting factor in the injury is the distace they had to walk.
They sue the store.
They bring witnesses at trial that show people often parked in the handicapped spaces, and nothing was done to prevent it.
They win the lawsuit.
The store raises it prices to pay for increased insurance premiums.
You pay more for goods you purchase.
You have less money to buy HT gear.
Sucks for you.

Part of living in a civilized world is that what others do does effect you, like it or not, and when a segment of people ignore the rules, we all pay.

{soapbox}
And because I'm already posting, I hate the "expecatant mother" spaces too. Nobody chooses to be handicapped, but they do choose to have kids, and if they aren't preperared to deal with the consequences of that, then they shouldn't.
{/soapbox}

 

[MarkHastings]

...The store goes out of business and the people who were using the handicapped spaces to get into the store quick, now have no store to go into anymore.

 

[Seth Paxton]

I agree with your point, but again its either society's choice (if legally enforced) or the store's choice. There are ways to alter these choices while we avoid parking there in the meantime.

Plus, its a bit like saying "to hell with hospital care for pregnant moms, they took their chances". While that is true, the effort to make the process smoother is not one just for some other person but for all of society. Not everyone will be a mom or a parent, but we all had a mom, so there is a vested interest in improving the social structure surrounding motherhood.

What you allude to is more a question of "does this really help mothers more than it puts others out of the way" or "does this really make society a more pleasant place to be"?

And for the store the question would be "does this bring me more or less customers"? Five happy moms and 30 disgruntled non-moms might not be the best way to earn business. A lot depends on how those other 30 people look at it.

 

[MarkHastings]

I don't like them either, but I try not to think like the above quote. The spaces aren't put there because pregnant moms want it easy. They are put there to make it easy for prenant moms to get into the store without some jackass running them down. Just as is the case with handicapped people, it's not easy for them to jump out of the way of cars that speed through the parking lot.

I was just at Wal-Mart and was noticing where their handi-spots were. They were right in front of the the store...this meant that a handicapped person didn't need to step one foot in the parking lot where there were cars. They could get in and out of the store without having to worry about avoiding traffic.

So whenever I see a "Pregnant Mom" space, I don't get mad at the store for giving "perks" to pregnant women, I get mad at the assholes who drive like idiots through the parking lot because they are the ones causing the danger that pregnant women are trying to avoid.

If everyone drove safely, we probably wouldn't have these specialty spots because people wouldn't have any issues walking throught the parking lot. It's we (overall) who have brought on the need for these spots by the way we drive.

 

[Leila Dougan]

For what it's worth, parking spots designated for pregnant women are not enforcable and a store cannot do anything to someone who parks there without being pregnant. I think this is a big difference between handicapped spots which are enforcable and are there by law.

For what it's worth, I could park on one of the pregnant women spots and nobody would say anything to me. Just because I'm not showing doesn't mean I'm not pregnant. Besides, they can't force me to give them "proof". As long as it's not legally enforcable, I think the spots are just taking up space. I don't like being an asshole so I don't park in them, but I do not agree with them at all.

 

[Tom Meyer]

There was a mini-mall near me that had a baby store and subsequently had a couple of the overly-cute "Expectant Mommies Only" in front. Problem was, this store was in the right next to a Barnes & Noble, a Bally's Health Club and a Loews movie theater and it was a very small lot to boot. Needless to say, not many people left the spots for the mommies. I may have used it a couple times when there were no other spots but it's moot now as the place went out of business.

 

[Jason Hughes]

A bunch of rich-girl sorority brats I knew at Michigan State (who had doctor parents) alway got handicapped permits to drive to class. I challenged one of them on it and the response was, "Oh, I'm so busy. How can I waste time walking to class?" Please. I hope the day comes (while they are young) that people who think like that actually NEED one.