Let me break it down for you

One of my favorite comments regarding this Strib article:

Commenter says: [How about] donating the money received from these fines to charity. If I break a traffic law, I have no problem paying a fine. It is my responsibility to know my surroundings and what I can and cannot do in certain areas at certain times and if I dont comply, I should have to pay a fine. Thats fine with me.

I ask: What does this person have against the apostrophe? It's a perfectly good punctuation device. Also, I'm not so sure this person IS fine with it considering what he says later. Read on.

S/He says: I just am sick and tired of the police and city taking us for idiots. They say they dont do this to generate revenue. Fine, prove it. Donate the money to charity, there are plenty that need the funds, and I will believe that this is really a safety/congestion issue and not just a way to make money for the city.

I say: Saying something is not done to generate revenue isn't the same as saying that something is not a source of revenue. There is indeed a city to run and it does run on money. Using funds from fines accessed against lawbreakers isn't a terrible thing. And sending the money to charity isn't exactly going to change the way people behave. I don't want a bunch of assholes out there shrugging their shoulders at traffic safety because "at least the dough goes to charity".

The commenter continues: I agree people should follow traffic laws, but I also believe that police could be better using their time than sitting around a corner waiting to hand out a fine. With the murder rate going up so far this year in Minneapolis, I think police should focus their attention on the real criminals...The murderers,rapists,drug dealers and not upstanding citizens who just made a mistake and turned left by accident. Priorities a little out of whack. For every cop that sits waiting for people to do this, thats one less cop keeping us safe from the real criminals.

I say: Ahhh, yes. "Real criminals"! One of my FAVORITE phrases. Because traffic laws aren't "real laws" so people who disobey them aren't "real criminals". They just innocently made a mistake. They didn't realize they were doing something wrong as a line of cars behind them began honk their horns. They had no clue when drivers in cars that managed to whip around them gave them dirty looks and the one-finger salute what they could possibly have done to warrant such anger. They apparently also don't understand the combination of the red circle with the line through it superimposed over the arrow bent to the left.

For every cop that isn't busting jiveass turkeys who hold up traffic to make a left turn where they aren't supposed to, who block intersections when they fucking KNOW they aren't going to make it through the light (11th & Hennepin rush hour drivers heading to 394 I'm looking at YOU!!!), who insist on pulling their cars so far into the crosswalk that pedestrians practically have to walk into the flow of traffic to get to the other side of the street, there's an accident waiting to happen.

Here's another one I just LOVE (copied & pasted as posted on the site so they bad grammar is all hers/his):

About 6 years ago got a some sort of a ticket in Minneapolis. As a result, we have not visited the city since. As very well off, we are happy to deprive the place of revenue. We would encourage you to do the same. Avoid Minneapolis, go have fun somewhere else, do spend money somewhere else.

Translation: I'm rich and therefore, I should be able to come to your dirty little city and do whatever the hell I want. Since you've decided to treat me like I'm *scoff* any other person (the nerve!), I'm going to avoid spending my vast reservoir of wealth there, leaving you poor and desperate which is what you deserve for not catering to ME ME ME!!!

Piss off, you terrible driving dickwad. We don't want your kind or your dollars here. Even though I know that's a filthy lie because a rich, entitled prick like you is so going to have tickets for the Twins season opener at the fancy new stadium which happens to be in that terrible city that holds "well-off" fucktards to the same standards as everyone else. You'll be back and Minneapolis' Finest Revenue Collectors will be waiting, I hope.