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Posted on 05/20/2010 10:22:12 AM PDT by spintreebob
One of my genuine concerns with the direction of our society is the rise of ‘Gotcha Government’. By that, I mean a government that increasingly regulates the minutiae of our lives and imposes increasingly extreme punishments when we fail to precisely adhere to each meddlesome stricture.
Get a parking ticket lately? It’s probably $50 or more (‘Gotcha!’). Try to buy some beers at Jewel on Saturday morning, or at the airport waiting for a flight? Get out your ID, Grandpa. No matter how old you look the proprietors fear government stings to catch them “in the act” (‘Gotcha!’). Don’t get a building permit for that shed in the backyard? They’ll fine you and then re-assess your entire property (‘Gotcha!’). This over-criminalization worsens everyone’s quality of life, but it disproportionately affects those who earn less money, as they cannot afford to pay fines or fight the system.
There are two macro trends that are causing our every move to be scrutinized and criminalized.
The first trend is cost-effective technology. Cheap technology makes it easier and easier to monitor even the most minor misstep. Ubiquitous Red Light Cameras are a recent and powerful example of this. The end result of the adoption of new technology is that every citizen must watch their every move more closely. It reduces the freedom we can enjoy.
(Excerpt) Read more at illinoisreview.typepad.com ...
I’m facing a ticket for no seat belt (again). Being a repeat I thought I’d look for a lawyer. They all said the same thing:
“Traffic laws are not covered by the constitution” or “The constitution does not cover traffic laws”. One volunteered that he knew so because the judge before whom I will appear gives the continuing education classes on traffic law to the lawyers and he teaches in his class that the constitution is irrelevant to traffic cases. One lawyer compared it (favorably) to the tax collector, who is also not subject to the constitution.
>Ubiquitous Red Light Cameras are a recent and powerful example of this.
What I don’t understand is why these cameras don’t have “sudden and recurring problems” of, say ‘lead imbalance.’
Hell, the UK’s got more balls than _WE_ do regarding this:
http://www.speedcam.co.uk/gatso2.htm
Anti-ROB act is called Term Limits in Michigan.
Yes, the tax collector _IS_ subject to the Constitution... otherwise explain the 16th Amendment.
Amendment XVI.
Passed by Congress July 2, 1909. Ratified February 3, 1913.
(Note: Article I, Section 9 of the Constitution was modified by the 16th Amendment.)
The Congress shall have power to lay and collect taxes on incomes, from whatever source derived, without apportionment among the several States, and without regard to any census or enumeration.
The point is that the traffic lawyers in my area regard both traffic laws and tax collection as not subject to the: 1st Amendment
2nd Amendment
3rd Amendment
4th Amendment
5th Amendment
etc
Tax collectors are the worst scum on Earth.
Unfortunately nowadays, many of them have been deputized and placed on civillian street patrol. Their mission - to work around your enumerated rights and ‘charge shop’ you until they catch you transgressing something, anything.
One of the last bastions of freedom regarding seat belt laws was here in Georgia, up until recently. If you drove a pickup truck, a seatbelt was not required. Rural farmers managed to keep that exception on the books, up until the end of April, this year.
It's a bad, bad law. However, the only reason I am able to read and respond to your message is because I was wearing a seatbelt at the right time. I was rear-ended at high speed, hit and run. My car died, I didn't. (And I still had my license suspended for a year because my insurance had expired, sometimes you cannot win).
Wear a seatbelt for Mrs. spintreebob and your children if you cannot do it to obey a stupid law. Sometimes it makes a difference.
Bump! Great article.
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