For more information, and for a reprint of a two-part series of columns on Red Light Cameras I wrote for the Today Newspaper,go to PaulFordReports.com.

Paul

The local level represents one the breeding grounds for the eventual federal scum and villainy…

Gotta start somewhere…

The big states make the news much more than the smaller ones. In this case, it’s because we have more than our fair share of mayors (and therefore nutbag mayors). I can’t even tell you how many cities and towns we have, but its a lot more than most states.

I suspect the mayor will lose his seat at or before the next election, and that will be the correct outcome. It will be the only outcome that helps prevent a reoccurrence because for some reason folks who run for mayor are more afraid of losing their office than going to jail.

Plus the law (’the law is an ass’) states that if you hit someone in the rear of the car, you are at fault and will be ticketed.

I have installed air horns on my cars. Nice and loud.

I have traded off all of my prior vehicles for cars with side air bags, curtain air bags, ABS and the robotic assist brakes which ‘realize’ when you are doing a panic stop to enable full braking.

I’ve sold off my classic 1962 Corvair since the only collapsible steering column is called ‘the human sternum’.

As for politicians like this Mayor who thinks he can simply constantly have his way and to hell with the rule of law, look no further than the white house in the current, prior, and prior administrations to understand where that idea might have filtered down from.

Nuff said.

Really? Last time I was down there I found a few in Austin, but that was it.

Admittedly, I didn’t look very hard.

No, I’m not talking about conservative southern Democrats. I’m talking full on bona fide big government leftist liberals. We actually do have some of them down here too.

Correction: they’re left of centre for Texas.

Signed,
An Actual Leftist

This on top of Texas’ reputation for railroading people into prison and even death, is just sad.

My, my, my, the depth and breadth of ignorance about Texas/Texans is truly stunning to behold – as are the vibes of hate and bigotry.

Overall, I find Texas politics to be the least corrupt of any state that I have lived in except Utah (I’ve resided in California [three times], Maryland [twice], Virginia, Utah, Pennsylvania, Ohio, and Hawaii). By the way, Hawaii is by far the most corrupt.

When Texas has corruption problems they are typically in the big population islands of Houston, Dallas, and San Antonio (I’ve spent years living in each of these cities) where, incidentally, the politicians are largely left of center.

In the rest of the state, incidents like what occurred in Duncanville are anomalies. In this case the mayor will likely (and rightly) lose his job.

PS – I have no fear that I might be railroaded into prison or, shudder, death row.

When I’m in the Dallas area (usually it’s on the north side, where there are more Type A personalities) I know to leave plenty of time for traffic to clear an intersection before entering it. A yellow light ahead seems to be only an order to mash the throttle, on the assumption that if you enter an intersection at 40+ it doesn’t matter that the light has already turned red.

But everything considered, I’d still rather drive in Dallas than in Boston.

Seriously, people complain about corruption and abuse of power at the Federal level, and fret about big government and it’s impinging on freedom. Yet you will never find a more wretched hive of scum an villainy** than at in local politics.

** Had to get the Obi-wan quote in there

Hey, the red light cameras won’t be a problem for long, I suspect. That’s Texas, after all, with a rifle in every rack in every pickup truck. “Be vewy, vewy quiet. I’m hunting camewas…”

Or – as my friend from Arizona says:

“In Arizona, irate drivers blast away at traffic cameras with pistols and shotguns…”

BOHICA!!!!

Tried to go to the hearing, but they wouldn’t see me because the car wasn’t registered under my name. I bought the car and registered it to my mother because I spend 10-11 months of the year overseas. Just so happens, my mother is not even in the US, but overseas herself. So here’s a situation where neither the alleged perpetrator of the crime (me) nor the owner of the vehicle in question who could not possibly committed the violation because she’s on the other side of the planet have ANY recourse.

I talked to my mother about this and she’s been ticketed a few times and so has my father, every instance for right on red. So has more or less everyone I know who lives in that area.

I just returned here and it’s gotten bad enough to the point where people simply won’t make right turns on red at known intersections.

I really couldn’t give two shakes of a rat’s tail about the local politics but I applaud Mr. Ford for making an issue of something that every citizen knows in his gut is just plain wrong.

Every time I come back to the states, things get a little but more off kilter. I split my time in the US between MD and TX and having just read about the MD speed cameras, I wonder more and more if this is the country I want to raise my kids.

I’m sorry you misinterpreted my remark

I do hope that mayor goes down in flames, or in a recall at least.

But I don’t know what kosnofskia’s reference to the Texas death penalty has to do with petty local politics, though.

And FWIW, I prefer that those inmates get, say, Angola Penitentiary instead, for the rest of their natural lives, with no parole.

Just remember, folks: The founding fathers wrote the second amendment in case government tries to take away the first amendment. I see it’s already beginning, and that’s not so much fun. Methinks people are gonna get hurt; but then they always do during revolutions.

Which reminds me, is anybody here planning to go to one of the hundreds of “Tea Parties” across the nation on April 15th?

I thought cities either had the Mayor-Council system, where the Mayor is the executive and the Council is the legislature, or the Council-Manager system, where the Council is the legislature and they appoint a Manager to act as an executive on their behalf.

Second, as stated in the article, it should be up to the governing body to discipline their own. If they vote to remove the councilman, he could then be fined for not leaving the meeting.

The police should also be held accountable to know when and where someone can be arrested.

All in all, this is a very ugly story and I can guarantee it will show up internationally. This on top of Texas’ reputation for railroading people into prison and even death, is just sad.

Population = 38,251

30% below driving age

If all others licensed then lets assume 26,775 drivers (this of course would not be the case).

Article says 43,955 red-light tickets issued.

That’s a whole lotta enforcement action down there.

As government at all levels gets more desperate for money I guess the only response is to drive less, spend less, do more things yourself and in other ways minimize what you feed the beast.

Technically, yes he was arrested at a meeting on street repairs, but you can’t tell me that the mayor isn’t pissed the councilman’s not going along with his plan.

If the agenda topic was street repairs then there isn’t any point, other than making noise, to be going on about red light cameras.

If he’s blocked from getting topics of concern to his constituents on the agenda, including red-light cameras, then that would be what I called “undemocratic”. From this I don’t know whether he even tried or not…he may have, he may not have.

But in any case my point remains that the title of the post is incorrect. He was not arrested for opposing red light cameras.

“The councilmember wasn’t arrested for opposing red-light cameras.”

Technically, yes he was arrested at a meeting on street repairs, but you can’t tell me that the mayor isn’t pissed the councilman’s not going along with his plan.

Mayor David Green – (972) 780-0348

Gee, you say that as if it’s a bad thing. Down here in this part of the country, we think executing vicious slimeballs is a public service. But let us know your address, and we’ll see the next mad dog homicidal maniac is moved in next door to you.