Americade Blockaded

[Checkswrecks]

I submit for your facial contortion exercises, this fine example of fuxwrongwithyou:

As you can see, the finger exercise is merely a bonus and when perfected, serves to enhance the facial expression.

You're welcome.

Oh 'Nut, you have such a way with kids!

 

[ShawnKing]

IMHO: That experience combined with what I am reading in the original article gives only one conclusion; Its a cash grab. And a really big one at that!

No offense but that doesn't make any sense. If it was a cash grab, why would the cops announce ahead of time *exactly* where they were going to be? Why would they be set up in only *one* location? The police have given bikers plenty of warning to travel either on different days or take different routes. If it's a cash grab, it's the most poorly done one in history.

What I don't understand is how it's even legal to discriminate against a certain group of people with no probably cause. The police aren't pulling over *everyone* (as the do when setting up roadblocks for Drinking and Driving checks) they are letting one group of people (car drivers) pass unmolested while stopping *only* bikes. The actions of the police are "guilty until proven innocent" - that is, you have to roll up and prove to the police that you are a law abiding citizen.

And, once we allow the police to abrogate our 4th Amendment Right to be free of unreasonable searches, where does it stop? Do we allow police to set up roadblocks and pull us over to ensure we've paid our taxes? That we are up on our child support payments? That we've been nice to our parents?

I'm appalled that these actions are going unchallenged by those we have put in place to protect us (lawmakers and police) but also because those are the very people who are trying to restrict our Constitutional Rights.

It gets worse when we include all the bikers who think this is no big deal. The group that says, "Well, I'm perfectly legal with my papers, helmet, pipes, etc. So I don't care if the cops pull me over. I've got nothing to hide."

Those who aren't willing to fight for the rights of others will soon find their own rights taken from them - and no others left to fight for them...

 

[twowheelnut]

No offense but that doesn't make any sense. If it was a cash grab, why would the cops announce ahead of time *exactly* where they were going to be? Why would they be set up in only *one* location? The police have given bikers plenty of warning to travel either on different days or take different routes. If it's a cash grab, it's the most poorly done one in history.

Two things come to mind... 1) In a situation like this, it may be required to announce the operation details. I know that here locally, whenever a DUI checkpoint is being set up, they announce it; time, location and duration. The other thing) They can feel free to announce it because no one listens to the news or read the paper locally - the attendees are, for the most part, out-of-towners.

 

[Scythian]

It's win-win

The locals make a few bucks in fines and the old dopes who go to these things get to feel like real outlaws for a while....

 

[Ford68xl]

I re-read the articles again and the reason given for the blockade was the increase in motorcycle fatalities.

"The crackdown was in response to what Sprague called an "alarming trend" in fatalities. In New York, deaths from motorcycle accidents jumped 29 percent from 2004 to 2006 "at a time when we were experiencing record low fatalities in other motor vehicle accidents," Sprague told a morning news conference."

I wonder if the folks that are alarmed by these numbers bothered to look up what was the percentage increase in the number of riders for those years, or what was the increase in the number of miles ridden between 2004 and 2006. To just throw out one statistic as a reason to target bikers is irresponsible at best.

I stand behind my earlier posting...If this is the way NY treats bikers than we need to take our money to another state.