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More Americans are using fake license plates

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Re: More Americans are using fake license plates

#81

Post by flangola7 »

kragen wrote: post #71

until about 20 years ago license plates were a reasonable compromise between privacy and accountability: they didn't have your name on them, and looking you up from the number could only be done by the police, who would only do it when it seemed important, and then only if someone made a note of the plate they couldn't, for example, make a list of everyone who was parked near a protest, and then search a database to…

Newer systems don't even need a license plate, they learn the overall appearance of the car.

Re: More Americans are using fake license plates

#82

Post by flangola7 »

WheatMillington wrote: post #48
caturopath wrote: post #17

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I don't think that's a good explanation at all. People are murdering less than a few decades ago, beating their kids less, stealing fewer car stereos. There might indeed be moral decay, but that doesn't answer why fake license plates and not some other thing. I suspect the reason for greater fake license plate use is the same reason for most products picking up: people are selling them, people are hearing about them,…

>People are murdering less than a few decades ago Check your stats, this is quickly becoming outdated. Murder rates are back up where they were in the 90's in many parts of the USA.

Source?

Re: More Americans are using fake license plates

#83

Post by trgn »

andrewmcwatters wrote: post #2

I’m not an old person, but I know I’m going to sound like a curmudgeon saying this. I think it’s just moral decay. I can’t think of any other meaningful reason. In Phoenix, which I consider the national capitol of bad drivers, in the span of less than 10 years, I’ve noticed a staggering number of people in the metro area who just blatantly run red lights now. Sometimes seconds after they’ve turned. It’s straight up r…

I've noticed the same shift.

Drivers are worse now than 10-15 years ago. Drivers are more aggressive (tailgating, rolling stops, speeding, ...), more sociopathic (tinted windows, louder pipes, larger vehicles, fake license plates,...), more negligent (bald tires, texting-and-driving, bumpers ripped off jagged metal sticking out, ...).

Another data point. Dashcams are on the rise, and they are truly the indicator technology of a low-trust society (remember the early car carnage internet videos, those were nearly always from russia or eastern europe, good times!). Wherever dashcams flourish, social contract is fraying.

It does not have to be like this. Many countries in Europe are making quite the opposite shift. Just recently was in London. Unreal! That place is so much more airy and welcoming than just 10-15 years ago. Covent Garden was positively quiet; so many electric cars and utility vehicles, much slower travel speeds, fewer streets, ... phenomenal. Once you experience it, and especially if you have a memory of the dark times, nobody in their right mind will want to turn back.

And wrt:

> People suck.

Do allow me a short digression and light hyperbole.

Maybe it's time to start pointing fingers, something americans, especially on the progressive-side, are too squeamish to do. In City of God, St Augustine blames the fall of Rome on the christians in the city ignoring the depravity of the pagans. Maybe we should take heed his advice, and it's time for the righteous to start calling out the wicked. Some people truly are crap, exhibit trash behaviors, and are making the world, quite simply, _worse_. We need to be confident in our judgements, and have the courage to clearly delineate right from wrong. As americans, live-and-let-live is ingrained in our DNA, but d*mn somethings gotta give here, drivers are really out of control.

Re: More Americans are using fake license plates

#84

Post by King-Aaron »

WalterBright wrote: post #37
King-Aaron wrote: post #16

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I am absolutely not a fan of fixed or hidden speed cameras, but red light cameras are legitimately good because you have zero reason or excuse to go through a red or speed through an intersection.

Avoiding an accident is always a valid reason for breaking a traffic law. For example, on a two lane road I'll move into the left lane if there's a cyclist on the right shoulder, if the left lane is clear. As for a red light, my pedal will be to the metal if my buddy is bleeding out in the passenger seat. Is that far-fetched? It happened to a friend of mine at Boeing. He didn't get his friend to the hospital in time.

You can always fight a ticket if you have a legitimate reason behind it. Whether or not the approving party will see your reasons as legitimate is another story.

Re: More Americans are using fake license plates

#85

Post by prawn »

kstenerud wrote: post #72
andrewmcwatters wrote: post #2

I’m not an old person, but I know I’m going to sound like a curmudgeon saying this. I think it’s just moral decay. I can’t think of any other meaningful reason. In Phoenix, which I consider the national capitol of bad drivers, in the span of less than 10 years, I’ve noticed a staggering number of people in the metro area who just blatantly run red lights now. Sometimes seconds after they’ve turned. It’s straight up r…

> I think it’s just moral decay. This is a cop out; a simple sounding excuse to just throw up your hands, say "kids these days" and then go back to your armchair. The fact is, you have a lot of problems that you're not dealing with, from stroads [1] to an increase in the worst kind of "automated" driving systems that leave people less able to remain alert for road hazards, to an unhealthy increase in inequality that…

I don't think any of these things are primary reasons. My guess is it's more about selfish ("fiercely independent") behaviour and what you can get away with, and a lack of appreciation for rules/regulations that can (on the whole) make for a more reasonable society.

The idea that there are fake plates and minimal enforcement seems ridiculous to me.

(I'm Australian but have driven tens of thousands of miles in the USA.)

Re: More Americans are using fake license plates

#86

Post by InCityDreams »

flangola7 wrote: post #81
kragen wrote: post #71

until about 20 years ago license plates were a reasonable compromise between privacy and accountability: they didn't have your name on them, and looking you up from the number could only be done by the police, who would only do it when it seemed important, and then only if someone made a note of the plate they couldn't, for example, make a list of everyone who was parked near a protest, and then search a database to…

Newer systems don't even need a license plate, they learn the overall appearance of the car.

If only there were some way to then differentiate between the various models.

Re: More Americans are using fake license plates

#87

Post by 121789 »

onetimeusename wrote: post #69
andrewmcwatters wrote: post #2

I’m not an old person, but I know I’m going to sound like a curmudgeon saying this. I think it’s just moral decay. I can’t think of any other meaningful reason. In Phoenix, which I consider the national capitol of bad drivers, in the span of less than 10 years, I’ve noticed a staggering number of people in the metro area who just blatantly run red lights now. Sometimes seconds after they’ve turned. It’s straight up r…

I think this did actually happen but specifically starting in 2020 and I am only talking about traffic violations and not general crime. The article even mentions it and I have posted links to NHTSA statistics showing an increase in road traffic deaths per mile that started in 2020 and then continued to increase. People blamed cars, pandemic stress, and decaying roads but I don't think it's any of those. I think the…

Just want to say I agree with your entire interpretation

Re: More Americans are using fake license plates

#88

Post by mjevans »

trgn wrote: post #76
mjevans wrote: post #29

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Traffic enforcement should REQUIRE a police officer to be physically present at the time of the incident OR a retroactive issue related to an accident that happened. The officer's presence would encourage safer driving at problematic intersections.

I don't get this line of reasoning. A police officer doesn't need to be present for code enforcement (ie. property inspections etc..). A police officer doesn't need to be present for parking enforcement. A police officer doesn't need to be present for toll fee collection enforcement. Why should police then be present when violating traffic rules? What makes speeding or running a red light so meaningfully special that…

Cameras are treated as revenue streams, not safety improvement devices. That's the cover story that's sold to the public, and then it's not unheard of for the light timings to be adjusted to increase revenues rather than promote safety at the intersection.

If an office is stated at an intersection it is an important issue. Similar in spirit to warrants as an important step in violating people's privacy.

Re: More Americans are using fake license plates

#89

Post by hnick »

prawn wrote: post #80
andrewmcwatters wrote: post #2

I’m not an old person, but I know I’m going to sound like a curmudgeon saying this. I think it’s just moral decay. I can’t think of any other meaningful reason. In Phoenix, which I consider the national capitol of bad drivers, in the span of less than 10 years, I’ve noticed a staggering number of people in the metro area who just blatantly run red lights now. Sometimes seconds after they’ve turned. It’s straight up r…

An expressway near me has a speed limit of 100 km/h. Most times I drive it, the fastest driver I might see is In the US, a significant number of people blatantly go 10-30+ km/h over the highway limits. What causes this?

I think it is the other way around. From various accounts I've heard from people coming here, it's more that Australians drive slowly.

There are 2 factors IMO:

* Decades of 'speed kills' advertising without nuance, and automated systems to catch perpetrators. Just wait until a double demerit weekend here in NSW - there is no reason you need to drive 85 in a 100 zone to avoid a ticket, but plenty do it. They're actually scared of that limit and keep a healthy distance from it.

* Car speedometers lying to us - 10% plus 4 km/h is a significant legally allowed error rate, higher than many countries. To actually go 100, my new car reads 105. I tested this with Waze and cross-referenced against GPS dashcam videos. Most people won't. I end up passing a lot of people due to this.

Re: More Americans are using fake license plates

#90

Post by sagarm »

trgn wrote: post #76
mjevans wrote: post #29

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Traffic enforcement should REQUIRE a police officer to be physically present at the time of the incident OR a retroactive issue related to an accident that happened. The officer's presence would encourage safer driving at problematic intersections.

I don't get this line of reasoning. A police officer doesn't need to be present for code enforcement (ie. property inspections etc..). A police officer doesn't need to be present for parking enforcement. A police officer doesn't need to be present for toll fee collection enforcement. Why should police then be present when violating traffic rules? What makes speeding or running a red light so meaningfully special that…

It's obvious--automated enforcement is effective and consistent, and drivers are used to breaking the rules because human enforcement is neither of those things.
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