A good idea. After all, if you are a multimillionaire, you have no real deterrent for disobeying the law. The point of fines is to inflict pain and deter, unless you want to start throwing everyone in jail for trivial offences.
The purpose of such fines in funding, not correctional behavior.
Do away with speeders and there is no revenue coming in.
Yes but you don’t want to run off all the rich people.
“After all, if you are a multimillionaire, you have no real deterrent for disobeying the law. The point of fines is to inflict pain and deter, unless you want to start throwing everyone in jail for trivial offence”
+1. I also like _truly_ equal justice. In Sweden, the judge doesn’t want to hear about your poor wife, hungry kids, or your important business to run. You drive drunk, you are going to the slammer. For a month, I believe.
I see this as redistributive. This fine does not match the violation. The fine should not be based entirely upon an ability to pay.
The better approach is to enter the fine, but also enter the judgment on the driving record. The real deterrent is that repeated behavior gets the license yanked. That’s independent of money.
Yes comrade!
Fines are not based on a percentage of your income. Geez, do you want murderers to be able to post bail b/c the state looks up their assets and finds nothing?
Crap. Fines should be uniform. This is another angle on protected classes and treating classes of people differently under the law.
What is the difference if two speeders break the speed law both by 15 miles per hour? The severity isn’t any different. The only way it is different is if one causes an accident of some kind, and then that is a separate incident and a separate fine or civil or criminal charge.
You certainly sound like some of the characters in Atlas Shrugged. Not the characters I admired, however.
"From each according to his ability" is not one of the founding principles of the USA. Although you and 0bama apparently feel that it should be.
The point of traffic fines is revenue.
” After all, if you are a multimillionaire, you have no real deterrent for disobeying the law.”
I suppose reckless driving is $ 150,000.
Use your head. This is all about the money!
“A good idea. After all, if you are a multimillionaire, you have no real deterrent for disobeying the law. “
And if you have no income you have no real deterrent for disobeying the law.
A rich man speeding and a poor man speeding hurt society the same. If we accept the premise that deterrence is the only factor in dishing out punishments then given the same crime, shouldn’t younger people get more time in prison than older people? After all time means more to an older man.
In the US, most (all?) states have a “point” system such that if you get enough “points,” you lose your driving privileges.
But “each according to their means” as in this example is socialist pap pure and simple.
And BTW, the point of most tickets for traffic violations is also REVENUE GENERATION. Example: When people weren’t running enough red lights in [redacted] after they put in red light cameras, they SHORTENED THE YELLOW PHASE, leading to (1) more tickets and (2) more accidents including fatalities.
Equality under the law would be better
The point of fines is to inflict pain - No its a big revenue generator, the point is to pack the gubmit bank account. The fact it causes you pain, is just tough shite.