Posted on 06/02/2005 8:20:41 AM PDT by tgslTakoma
Edited on 06/02/2005 8:25:19 AM PDT by Admin Moderator. [history]
Rockville, Md. (AP) - Maryland State Police are using a military tool in the battle against seat belt violators.
They're using night vision goggles to find people who don't buckle up after dark. Police say 40 percent of drivers don't use their seat belts at night, making the roads much more dangerous after sunset. Police in Maryland are among 13,000 agencies nationwide that are now using the goggles.
With the goggles, Police say they can see inside cars at a distance, allowing them to nail violators who might otherwise go undetected.
The new strategy is paying off. At a seat belt enforcement operation Wednesday night on Rockville Pike, officers issued at least 44 tickets for seat belt violations.
The one nice thing that will come out of this crackdown is that it will drive more people into National Motorists' Association membership and to become more active in opposing nanny-statism.
LOL! That's it! They really do love us. This is why they are so concerned if we are buckled up or not. LOL!
Make up your mind.
Insane, isn't it?
So the purpose is revenue generation - NOT getting people to wear their belts?
Begin cop bashing...NOW!
kidding...
This all started with those motorcycle helmet laws. One bike magazine predicted this chain of events 15 or so years ago. Think of the frog in the pan, brought slowly to a boil.
You won't be fined if you observe the law, citizen.
Your papers, please.
Sorry, but I don't think your quite admirable idea would work in the Peoples' Republic of Montgomerystan.
ROCKVILLE, Md. --
Police Catch Seat-Belt Violators
A piece of electronic equipment that's often used by military personnel in Afghanistan and Iraq is now being used by police in Maryland to catch seat belt violators.
Wednesday night at a seat-belt enforcement checkpoint, police from several Maryland agencies started using night-vision goggles to see if motorists were buckled up.
After a briefing at the Maryland State Police barracks in Rockville, where strategy was discussed, officers hit the streets in search of violators.
Authorities said 40 percent of drivers are less likely to wear their seat belts at night and that could be deadly. Maryland State Police Cpl. Kevin Sherwood said the night-vision goggles are an effective way to catch those drivers.
"Often times you can see inside, but other times you can't because the light is directly ahead," Sherwood said. "What this does is amplifies the ambient light inside the vehicle so you can actually see inside the car and see whether they actually have their seat belt on."
Police said officers will continue using the night goggles.
When people don't wear seat belts and get ejected from their vehicle, Sherwood said the chance they could receive injuries that could lead to death, or become maimed increases.
Maryland authorities said they issued 111 citations Wednesday night as part of their "Click It or Ticket" campaign.
"I've been looking for a reason to drop GEICO, and find another insurance company."
Their name wasn't enough for you?
I know I'm going to be listening to Chris Core tonight.
"Did you really think we want those laws observed?" said Dr. Ferris. "We want them to be broken. You'd better get it straight that it's not a bunch of boy scouts you're up against... We're after power and we mean it... There's no way to rule innocent men. The only power any government has is the power to crack down on criminals. Well, when there aren't enough criminals one makes them. One declares so many things to be a crime that it becomes impossible for men to live without breaking laws. Who wants a nation of law-abiding citizens? What's there in that for anyone? But just pass the kind of laws that can neither be observed nor enforced or objectively interpreted – and you create a nation of law-breakers – and then you cash in on guilt. Now that's the system, Mr. Reardon, that's the game, and once you understand it, you'll be
much easier to deal with." ('Atlas Shrugged' 1957)
Other companies may do the same thing, but only GEICO has been found out. They'll never get a penny from me.
I am arguing, and can prove, that this chain of events started 50 years ago!
I feel so much safer now. I am so happy our governments spend so much money and time on this effort and not piss away needed resources on our country's borders. It's wonderful to have numbnuts running governments.
Never really mattered since their rates were so low.
Now, there's an increase every year, and I haven't had a ticket in this century.
I wear my seatbelts all the time, but not because it's the law.
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