wanders

I was going to post this after the second time it happened within 2 weeks, but last night made the third occurance with the same scenario. Luckily I was expecting it.

I had noticed a pattern that when police are on scene of an accident/traffic stop/harassment of local youths etc.. the other motorists are so busy rubbernecking that they oblivious to anything or anyone else around them. I have had a car pull out of a parking lot almost on top of me and now 2 people coming from the other direction turn into me at a gas station and side road.

Last night when I saw the police car, my first thought was some dingus is gonna pull out on me, and sure effin' enough, they did! I have lights blinkies and a reflective vest but they are no match for the hypnotic powers of the blue light. Consider yourselves warned.

ginsoakedboy

Maybe it's just me, but it seems like cops do more harm than good in our society. I don't see them doing anything to address real crime, and instead they just harass motorists, write tickets to fill their quotas and justify their salaries, employ their heavy-handed sadistic methods against marginalized citizens. When it comes to any real crime, they operate like the Boulder Colorado PD.

I read an article in the paper the other day that said that 1 in 31 adults in this country are either incarcerated or are presently under parole. How do we tolerate laws and a justice system that makes criminals out of that large a segment of our population.

DataJunkie

A good percentage of the time an accident on one side of the freeway results in an accident on the other side due to the gawkers.
Heck, I was riding the bus home last year and it dropped off a passenger at a stop. There was a police officer making a traffic stop on a side street. A SUV plowed into the rear of our very large bus pushing it forward a few feet. Idiots everywhere.

acroy

ah-men. Same experiences here.

Actually I was almost run over by a cop the other night. Not sure what he was doing, but was coming my way in the other direction, then suddenly hung a left right in front of me. I had to slam on the brakes & swerve around. He stopped in the entrance he was pulling into, and I rode around his side of the vehicle & gave him a "what's up" shrug.... he seemed surprised I was there! Weird...

rturpen

Usually when I hear something like "Get off the road ^%&$ *(&^ &*^(*" I let the yeller know that they are number one

The other day this occurred and when I looked to see who I was, umm, complimenting, I saw that it was a Parker (Texas) officer in his cop SUV. I Let him know he was number 11.

Big Tommy C

The solution to people breaking the law is to stop finding them guilty?

wanders

It wasn't a paper, it was a High Times magazine. And it wasn't an article, it was an NORML advertisement.

I was in no way condemning the police actions (I am all for harassing youths who are up to no good anyway- crotchety old man rant over) but the behavior of the motorists around them.

ItsJustMe

I once had a car pull out in front of my car because he was rubbernecking at a fire engine going by the opposite direction at the far side of a 5 lane road. The road was empty so I just pulled to the far lane away from the fire truck. This guy just pulled out in front of me. I took the entire front 2 feet off his car (it was an old 80's cheapo car with a plastic front end). But still, empty road, night time, me with my car with headlights on etc, just pulled on out.

Good tip, thanks.

SDRider

It's just you.

Think about it, as a cyclist would you really want cops to not crack down on speeding, reckless driving or worse, street racing on public roads?

idcruiserman

That's what keeps the crime rate down.

Marrock

I just ride like I'm invisible... which is why I'm usually amazed when someone in their armoured personnel carrier deigns to acknowledge my existence.

maddyfish

Must add to watch for firetrucks as well. One of the few times I have been close to getting hit. A car just had to pass me while I was going 24 in a 25, just as he is beside me a firetruck in the opposite lane flips on it's lights and sirens and as soon as it did, the car started over into me. A good fist whack on the pass side window put a stop to that though.

hanshananigan

That's crazy. The same thing happened to me last night just up the road in Durham outside the Veterans Affairs medical center.

EnigManiac

Two years ago, a cop was directing traffic through an intersection controlled only by stop signs on a minor cross street following an accident. My son and I arrived on our bikes and needed to cross to get home, about 10 houses up the street. The cop refused to assist us across the busy street, but stopped through vehicles for crossing cars, advising us to go back the other way and use the crosswalk at the intersection a half block back. I reminded the officer politely that we were operating legal vehicles and that it is unnecessary and inconvenient to use cross-walks. When he continued to ignore us, we made our own way across, but not before I suggested to the cop that the reason he was middle aged and directing traffic instead of investigating the accident like the 'real cops' behind him was because of both his attitude and his ignorance of the law. I'm not usually abusive or combative, but he was one stupid and bitter moron.

JeffB502

Pretty graphic example here that some of you may not have seen yet. From an episode of Cops. Looks like cyclist was going around a traffic stop taking place in the parking portion of a WOL, and rear ended by a car.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xHNPNQltG2U

Interesting interview with passenger of vehicle that hit cyclist at about 3:45 in. "He was looking at us, then he was looking at you guys, then my aunt hit him."

Cyclaholic

You really haven't given the alternative much thought, have you?

There's plenty of places in the world you can go if you want to experience a society free of police, I'm sure you'll have an enlightening time (if you survive).

mtnwalker

I saw something similar a month ago.

A cop has a car pulled over at the side of the street. The cop and the driver and a passenger are on the sidewalk talking. As I passed the scene and went to the central turn lane to make my left another car coming the opposite direction and making a right turn into the same street I'm turning into plows into another car that is already halfway through its 3 point turn. I wasn't surprised too because I saw the driver of the right turning car looking at the police scene behind me as he was making his right turn. People can be complete idiots most of the time.

The female driver of the other car screamed "Oh my God! My car! I can't believe you hit my car!" at least 3 or 4 times as I passed them. I thought that was pretty funny. I don't know why.

ken cummings

OK, I'll watch out for the police for they watch out for me. I was going down a narrow shoulder section of the 101 freeway near Novato when a CHP pulled a speeding motorcyclist over. The cop knew I was coming so he ordered the Putt-putt another 1/4 mile down the road to an off-ramp so I could pass safely and not have to go out into the 70+MPH traffic. He waved as I went by.

Treespeed

You definitely have to be extra careful anytime motorists have an extra distraction. Driving just turns the most normal and rational people into raving idiots, myself included.

As far as cops go, talk about a thankless job, especially in a city like this. With one exception all of the LAPD I've encountered have been great. I'd hate to see what kind of apocalyptic nightmare this city would descend into in one day without police.

MrCjolsen

Here's what I like about being a cyclist. When you pass an accident or some other interesting occurrence, you can stop and look all you want because you're not a rubbernecker, you're a bystander.

whatsmyname

On topic, one of the big traffic problems in NYC is NYPD parking in bus lanes or other undesireable places that disrupts traffic flow. For instance, when they're doing bag inspections on the subway, the cops will usually just roll up and park wherever requires fewest footsteps into the station, which is more often than not a bus stop - which pushes buses into regular lanes, which holds up regular lanes... This is true when they're on and off duty, AAMOF.

Another annoying tendency is for them to park on the side of the road or roll around town at normal speed with their lights on when they're doing nothing out of the ordinary. People can't work out whether to pull over, slow down or not.
Off the topic, I think the point being made is that incarceration is not a strong deterrent. If that's not the point, it ought to be.

Psydotek

Another advantage of being on a bicycle is that if an accident is blocking the entire road for traffic in both directions (usually a 2 lane road), they'll usually let you through. I've encountered one such occasion in a canyon road and smiled on the inside as i passed all the cars that had to wait for the accident to be cleared up.

ItsJustMe

Just don't be innocent. Whenever a bystander gets hurt, it's always an innocent one. So do something bad while you're there. You know, just to be safe.

MMACH 5

"Real crimes?" Are you serious?
I guarantee if you ever end up in a situation where you're life is in danger, you'll be damn happy to see the police "justify their salary." Their job, in many cases is to lay their lives on the line to protect the general public. Sure, there are some a-holes in any police department, but show me a profession without a-holes.

Do you have a special dark place in your heart for cops and judges or do you also think that fire fighters, teachers and just about any public servants simply spend their time trying to justify their salaries?

Marrock

When it comes to writing someone a ticket for not wearing a seat belt or busting some asshat selling drugs... which seems like the bigger crime?