Safe Speed Forums

Once again the bleedy obvious is reported in our local paper. "Speed Cameras Alientae Drivers". The deputy prime minister and federal transport minister is reported as saying that the misuse of speed camaera and confusing speed zones were making honest motorists feel like criminals. he also staed that drivers all over the country believed the scameras were more about revenue rasing than saving lives.
(This is in the Australian Advertisier today. 22/05/04)

You could compare scamera enforcement to the principals reincarnation.
In reincarnation you return to earth to suffer the concequences of your past actions however the catch is you have no memory of the sins that you committed. (I'm no expert on the finer points of this philosohy)

Scamera fines could be considered in the same light. They arrive well after the event and most drivers have difficulty remembering the ocassion of the transgression that lead to the fine so it does not have an effective message.

Get pulled over by a copper at the time of your wrongdoing and, like a bolt of lightning from above, you instantly know your sin has been registered and is being dealt with.

You may get the chance to plead your case, get off with a warning or whatever, but you drive away knowing that you did it, were dealt with at the time for it and, more importantly, the memory will stay with you longer, thus improving your driving habits in the future (hopefuly).

The last comments by our minister were "They (scameras) are set up in such a way that the motorist thinks they are being set up...they feel like they're a criminal. That breeds mistrust... it convinces the public is has more to do with rasing money than saving their lives"

So bloody true.

Nice analogy, and so true. In the last 15 years I've been fined twice - once on the spot by a man in a dayglo jacket and, just after those points had expired I was zapped by a Gatso. In the first case I knew exactly what I had done to get the ticket, and when and where it took place (suggested that my speed wasn't excessive for the road and conditions, and copper said maybe not but you're still getting a ticket - it was worth a try). On the second occasion not only did I not know about it for several weeks, but I also had no recollection of ever having driven down the road I had supposedly been zapped on. Maybe I had, maybe not, but if I'd been stopped by a real copper I'd be in no doubt would I?
Your reincarnation analogy raises another question as well. What the hell did we all do in our last lives to deserve all these bloody cameras?

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Make everything as simple as possible, but not simpler - Einstein