We were at Walmart parked near the back of the lot. A little old lady with a walker parked next to us. She didn’t have a handicapped license plate or mirror hangar. When we walked up to the front of the store I saw a jacked up 4x4 with a handicapped plate parked in one of the dozen or so mostly empty handicapped spots. A fat guy hopped out of the truck and trotted over to the last available electric shopping cart. I looked back at the little old lady now far behind us.
If you ever bothered to watch the people actually using the handicapped spots in the front of parks, museums, stores, restaurants, and other businesses, you will usually find that it is mostly not old folks, paralyzed people, people missing a leg, or people suffering from some type of debilitating illness or condition. At least around here the people using the handicapped spots are mostly fat people. Many do not appear to be having a difficult time getting around.
Most Americans struggle with our weight especially as we get older. But these days almost a third of young Americans are too fat to join the military. I read some place recently that for the first time ever in our country that life expectancy is expected to begin declining because of weight related illnesses.
I have a placard in my Tahoe but it is my 81 year old husbands. I don't use unless he is with me. I am 75 and I don't need it.