jonzer12 Posted February 12, 2004 Share Posted February 12, 2004 http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=514&e=15&u=/ap/20040210/ap_on_fe_st/finland_speeding_fine All I can say is wow, I would blow a gasket. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Joe17 Posted February 12, 2004 Share Posted February 12, 2004 i think that is rediculous. a speeding ticket for that amount is insane. and i was worried about my $290...lol. well i dont think thats right. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
QWKDTSN Posted February 12, 2004 Share Posted February 12, 2004 That sucks! I recently got a ticket on the freeway on my motorcycle... 75mph in a 65 zone. Damn it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
akeizm Posted February 12, 2004 Share Posted February 12, 2004 Nope, I reckon thats a good law to be honost. Cause that means, any person who is really rich will still feel the pain if they speed. See if it was our laws, and we were rich, we'd give the cops the money so quick cause it doesn't mean anything to you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Heavy Z Posted February 12, 2004 Share Posted February 12, 2004 Nope, I reckon thats a good law to be honost. Cause that means, any person who is really rich will still feel the pain if they speed. See if it was our laws, and we were rich, we'd give the cops the money so quick cause it doesn't mean anything to you. Yep, "sliding" scales of justice make sense to me too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jonzer12 Posted February 12, 2004 Author Share Posted February 12, 2004 The only problem I see with that is that cops would begine targetting rich people. Think about it, one cop could rack up a million in fines for the government with under 10 tickets! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
baddriver Posted February 12, 2004 Share Posted February 12, 2004 For some crimes I think a sliding scale is appropriate, drunk driving maybe, reckless driving. The guy was in a 25 zone so maybe he was putting people at risk, but if he had been cruising down the highway doing ninety on a warm, sunny day, I'd say that was rediculous. I understand the need to let the rich feel the consequences of thier actions, but the scale should take into acount actual risk to actual identifiable people rather than just income. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Nic-Rebel450CA Posted February 12, 2004 Share Posted February 12, 2004 Nope, I reckon thats a good law to be honost. Cause that means, any person who is really rich will still feel the pain if they speed. See if it was our laws, and we were rich, we'd give the cops the money so quick cause it doesn't mean anything to you. I agree! I dont know how many times I have wished I could afford to not have to worry about a ticket here or there for being 10 MPH over the speed limit (or maybe a little more) I wonder how hard it would be to get a law like that here in the states..? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tim240z Posted February 12, 2004 Share Posted February 12, 2004 While I agree in theory, in practice I'm not sure. Too many variables. Where you live, how many dependants, etc Let's say I live in West Los Angeles and make $200,000 a year, married with 4 kids. That's barely above the poverty line. Now, if I lived in the high Desert and made $50,000 a year with no dependants, I would be rolling in cash. Who would get the higher speeding ticket? Tim Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jonzer12 Posted February 12, 2004 Author Share Posted February 12, 2004 Very good point, cost of living is the real determining factor of wealth. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest ON3GO Posted February 12, 2004 Share Posted February 12, 2004 well if i go along with this law then that would mean if i get pulled over then the cops would have to give ME money... works for me mike Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Nic-Rebel450CA Posted February 12, 2004 Share Posted February 12, 2004 well if i go along with this law then that would mean if i get pulled over then the cops would have to give ME money...works for me mike good point Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
akeizm Posted February 13, 2004 Share Posted February 13, 2004 But they look at your financial situation don't they? Thats how they would know how much you make. And i'm sure if they have that information you would also have family info etc. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DavyZ Posted February 13, 2004 Share Posted February 13, 2004 It's not fair. So tell me, if the guy does some other thing, like get drunk and disorderly in a public park, they lock him up for 30 years because he happens to be rich??? Stupid scale to be sure. Davy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
A. G. Olphart Posted February 13, 2004 Share Posted February 13, 2004 We aren't talking jail time, but the ability of society to get the attention of the rich. Do you think Bill Gates would give a damn about a $2500 or even $25000 ticket? That kind of money to him is like pennys and dimes to you and me. The issue of selective enforcement for fund raising purposes could be a real problem, esp. if the government had California's finances. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DavyZ Posted February 13, 2004 Share Posted February 13, 2004 We aren't talking jail time' date=' but the ability of society to get the attention of the rich. Do you think Bill Gates would give a damn about a $2500 or even $25000 ticket? That kind of money to him is like pennys and dimes to you and me. The issue of selective enforcement for fund raising purposes could be a real problem, esp. if the government had California's finances.[/quote'] Someone has to decide what's fair, and it never is. Is it fair that Bill Gates is rich? Is it? Let's take his money away so we can all be fair and on the same playing field. Sorry, but life ain't fair in the wealth department. There's rich and there's poor. And if you catch yourself thinking "Let's stick it to the rich guy, because he's rich and can afford to pay more," then you have envy and jealousy issues. Davy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
akeizm Posted February 13, 2004 Share Posted February 13, 2004 I'm fully of envy and jealously. Just the way I am. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JKDGabe Posted February 13, 2004 Share Posted February 13, 2004 I'm fully of envy and jealously. Just the way I am. We all are, it's human nature. But when we use that as an excuse for the government to "stick it" to the rich that's the practical outworking of communism. If a person has a habit of lawbreaking they should be punished. But I believe it should be incremental, and not just financial. Give the government the ability to make money like that... it's gonna be abused sooner or later. It's also human nature that "power corrupts". Do you think Bill Gates would give a damn about a $2500 or even $25000 ticket? That kind of money to him is like pennys and dimes to you and me. Maybe... but rich people don't get rich by not caring about their money. People who never had to work for it have less respect for the work it takes to make it but most people do care. (I'm not rich so I can't answer that definitively can I? ) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tim240z Posted February 13, 2004 Share Posted February 13, 2004 We aren't talking jail time' date=' but the ability of society to get the attention of the rich. Do you think Bill Gates would give a damn about a $2500 or even $25000 ticket? That kind of money to him is like pennys and dimes to you and me. The issue of selective enforcement for fund raising purposes could be a real problem, esp. if the government had California's finances.[/quote'] Someone has to decide what's fair, and it never is. Is it fair that Bill Gates is rich? Is it? Let's take his money away so we can all be fair and on the same playing field. Sorry, but life ain't fair in the wealth department. There's rich and there's poor. And if you catch yourself thinking "Let's stick it to the rich guy, because he's rich and can afford to pay more," then you have envy and jealousy issues. Davy While I whole heartedly agree Davy, Many people, because of their wealth, feel that they are above the law. I'm sure it's the same up there, but here in LA, all you have to do is watch how the folks with $100K plus cars drive.....total disregard for others on the road!! A good motto to have: Don't wish for what you want, want what you have! Tim Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Heavy Z Posted February 13, 2004 Share Posted February 13, 2004 here in LA, all you have to do is watch how the folks with $100K plus cars drive.....total disregard for others on the road!! Exactly - it has to matter to them, and a $200 ticket matters a lot more to someone making $1,600 a month than someone making $1,600 a day. Let's simplify the argument. Let's say money = blood, since for my example they are interchangeable. Two people get caught speeding, one is 5'2" and 110 lbs, the other is 6'6" and 350 lbs. Both are pulled over and are given the same penalty - they must give up 3 pints of blood. The smaller person is in a lot more danger, even though the punishment is the same. The bigger person just laughs and says "big deal, I can take it." Is justice equal in these cases? Are both punished accordingly? What lesson is learned by the bigger(richer) person? Tim made a good point about it - they often could care less. What really suprises me is how many average-income people are willing to defend the rich as if they are a persecuted class. Give me a break, they don't need any more cheerleaders. Last year, if you made over a million dollars a year, you got an extra $85,000 rather than the $300 that most families got, if that. The rich pay less in taxes now proportunately than any time in the last 100 years. Less tax money hasn't slowed down government spending either, and so the answer has been to borrow from social security to the tune of $120 billion last year alone. Yep, your social security payments are going to finance today's spending instead of your retirement, so while some get a nice big tax break, the average worker gets an uncertain future in return. Back to the ticket...what would be so unfair about saying everyone pays a fixed % of their monthly earnings for a ticket? Seems to me like everyone would feel the sting equally. Oh yeah, if your reading this and thinking to yourself "that wouldn't be fair - they'd target the rich!!!" Please keep this in mind, Ken Lay is still walking around free to spend the billions he looted and Rush can get high as a kite, all the while small-timers go to jail because they can't buy their way out with good legal advice. So I ask you, is this the sort of 'fairness' we should cherrish, or possibly look to improve? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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