Friday, Jun 11, 2010 at 09:07
Trevor and Shane
Your points are noted, and your protective instincts are commendable.
But, whether you like the law or not, doesn't matter to me or the relevant authorities who approve the law.
If you purchased a vehicle with an outdated safety certificate and had trouble transferring the rego, you may have a different view.
If the law is set in place with a certain time frame, how much flexibility would you like to be able to break the law by?
If you have 12 months rego, should you be able to drive for 2 weeks more? 4 weeks more?
If you car insurance ran out after 12 months, how much longer would you still expect to receive insurance coverage?
My point is that things can go wrong with a vehicle in the three months after an inspection let alone any extended time you feel may be warranted.
If you were booked for 3kph over the limit, if your window was down "x" cm, or whatever, I would suggest that a better option than expressing your outrage on a blog, would be to talk to your States motoring group, local politicians, maybe even raise a petition.
If you get a fine you consider wrong, don't pay the fine, and stand up in court to explain your point. We see serious offenders receiving virtually no penalties because the State Government can't afford to jail them. A half decent magistrate would probably throw this case out. But then again he may consider the law was followed and the fine stands. That's a choice worth looking at.
I don't feel that open forums linked to a blog, and criticising the police as revenue raisers is the perfect option. The cops have a hard enough time with our weak legal system now.
How do we know the cop wasn't on his way back from telling a family their child has just been killed, or getting spat on by some drunken tart. We all have bad days and overreact. Sometimes the luck is with you, and you get a warning, other days, you meet someone with a grudge, and you go straight to a fine.
I don't know all the circumstances, and frankly don't care.
I've just had a gutfull of people who think the authorities are having a great time doing their job.
If you don't like the rules, go and change them., legally.
If you drive a car that is expected to be roadworthy, and kill yourself, that's fine with me.
That's the great thing about Australia, we have the right to whinge.
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