rant about handicapped parking

more like a rant about people who are not handicapped parking in handicapped spots.

Almost got in a fight today with a sterotypical jock like person in a Viper Coupe'. Was on my bike, stopped at a wawa (like a 7-11, but clean) when this idiot in his bright blue viper coupe' pulls into the handicapped spot, parks, and runs in to grab a sandwich. I waited for him (after taking a picture of his car on my phone, making sure to get the license plate, then emailing it to myself) and when he came out, mentioned casually that he really shouldn't park in a spot reserved for the handicapped.

He got seriously in my face about that. I stayed calm, hands on my bike as he went off how I had no right to tell him anything and that I was loser for riding a bike (when obviously a viper is so much better) yadda yadda yadda... I just looked at him as he was inches from me, looking like he was about to hit me and asked he wanted to add assault charges to his list of wrongs today. That was when he realised he had attracted a crowd and there was no way out of this gracefully.

He did smoke the rear tyres quite a distance leaving the parking lot though.

Adrenaline is quite a rush, but I hate the fall afterwards.

My Father is Handicapped, he has two artificial hips thanks to the US military. I have NO time for idiots who think the wide spots by the door are there so their expensive cars do not get door dings. His Viper was not even that nice. It looked a bit "worn" and the driver's side headlight was fogged over with interntial moisture. I was so hoping a cops would have been there sooner so they could see his dramatic escape..

+1

And the people who like to park their car in the "loading zone" while they run inside and get something they need.

I wonder if he would've made the big scene if you were in a wheelchair. Its almost worth carrying one around just for this particular scenario (not on your bike of course).

At a local mall there are eight handicapped spots right outside a bank, drugstore and fast food shop. I call it the speed rack. People park in the handicapped spots "just running in" all the time. My father in law is handicapped. He rolled past the row of cars looking for a spot, none to be had. He backed up, pointed to the cars, no handicap plates, no blue tag in the mirror, get out. I did. He parked his Olds Delta wagon across the back of three cars, locked it up and said "lets go shopping".

I feel strongly about misusing handicapped parking, not sure if I feel strong enough to get knuckled up over it.

Dan

We police the local Family Video pretty hard. There are two HP spots on either side of the foyer and it is common for people to turn in and jump out. The store is right across the street from the cop shop... They can get a tow truck rolling in less than 60 seconds if they want ;)

I work for a pizza delivery "service" that does a lot of business by carry out. Our store is small and has about 3 parking spaces right in front of it, one of which is for handicapped parking. The handicapped parking for the store next to us is right next to our handicapped spot. Even on nights when the rest of the lot is empty, folks feel they can not be bothered to park in a non-handicapped space, and walk those few extra feet. But then again, I've even seen folks sit in their cars, engine idling, waiting for a spot in front of the store to open up so they can drive from one side of the lot to the other. The same kind of folks who think the price of gas is too high.

The local scandal rag has started what they call 'Watchdog' to document different stuff happening in the community. The first thing they went after is this exact problem, they loaned digital cameras to 30 or so local handicap placard holders. The paper published, on the front page, a picture of some assclown's Blazer parked in the wheelchair ramp part of a HCP spot.

They also published pictures of a woman who owns a shop downtown parked in a HP spot, she has a placard etc. and there were pics of her carrying heavy stuff from the car to her store. She was interviewed, it appears she got the placard because her doctor said she was prone to 'anxiety attacks'. She wrote a scathing letter to the editor about it as well, but she still couldn't come up with a physical problem that required her to use handicap spots. It seems that there are docs in the area who will issue handicap placards for just about anything.

The state also has a provision for commercial truck tags allowing parking in loading zones which gets abused quite a bit. There were pictures of a Miata and a Beetle, both with commercial tags, parked in loading zones all day long.

Jensenman wrote: There were pictures of a Miata and a Beetle, both with commercial tags, parked in loading zones all day long.

Were their 4-way flashers on? Because if they were, it's OK.

confuZion3 wrote:

Jensenman wrote: There were pictures of a Miata and a Beetle, both with commercial tags, parked in loading zones all day long.

Were their 4-way flashers on? Because if they were, it's OK.

No, they weren't. That's the whole problem: at the College of Charleston downtown as well as MUSC, parking is a real bitch. So people are getting their kids commercial plates so they can park in loading zones all day.

The states of Arkansas and Texas have quite specific regulations regarding who is eligible for a handicapped parking tag. Those being the two states I am familiar with. The forms that the doctor has to sign have it all spelled out. If you can walk so far, you don't qualify. That anxiety is a BS one and would never fly here. That doc would have issues in AR or TX for that one, and periodically they go after docs for signing off on those when they shouldn't.

It irks me to see people with handicapped tags in a handicapped spot jump out of the car and jog over to the store. Even if they have the tag for a relative, they are not legally allowed to park in a handicapped spot unless they have the handicapped person in the vehicle with them.

It also bothers me when obese people get handicap tags. I understand if there is a serious medical condition causing their obesity, but if they're just fat they should have special tags that make them park in the back of the lot.

I still laugh when I get yelled at for NOT parking in a handicapped spot when I have the wife's car out for errands. I've been told by other people trying to find a spot that I should park in the HC spot so that they can have the spot that I have. This is even after I tell them that the handicapped plate is not mine, but the wife's. Admittedly, some days my body is achey, and I likely look as though I should be parked in the HC area...

When I carpooled with my girlfriend, I'd drop her off at the college park metro station. Regular handicapped parking abuse there, but the best was the "Parking Enforcement Officer" that parked her SRT-8 Magnum in the handicapped spot, all day, as she went somewhere else to do her job.

Got a guy here at the office. He has handicapped tags on all his cars. The 'vert m3, the Mercedes SUV, etc. He strides into his office most days of the week. The people here point him out pretty frequently. He sure looks healthy enough. Then again, I couldn't tell you if he has a heart problem, spine problem or any of those things that aren't readily visible. There is also plenty of HC'ed parking at the building not in use so the issue isn't critical yet. I'm not taking any stand by posting this. Just relating a story that happens to me about once every two weeks.

It irritates me knowing that people abuse the HC spots. We could all use the exercise of walking to the door. I liked what Jensenman's paper did. That's some classic justice right there.

Dickheads are dickheads. Most are horribly inconsiderate in everything they do. They're the same people who won't stop their squawky conversation to say "Thank you" when you hold the door open for them. They're the same people who won't get the berkeley out of the left lane because there's a guy 2 and a half miles up the road that they still want to pass.

I've also noticed that a lot of dickheads get handicrapped tags; and not all are your run-of-the-mill fat berkeley in a moo-moo. My wife had to do one of those "Honey, please just get in the car and let's go home" things last year. Some dickhead sweaty fat berkeley parked his E-class ACROSS a hanicapped spot, and into the next "regular" spot next to him. I remarked about this as we walked in.

When we checked out, there was some E36 M3 head in front of us being really nasty with the cashier. The words "You no what shiny happy person, she can't tell you to berkeley off, because she'll lose her job; but I sure as E36 M3 can" were on the tip of my tongue, but stuff like that really embarasses my wife.

Anyway, we check out and walk outside, and sure enough, the dickhead from the checkout line is the same dickhead parked who has his mercedes parked ACROSS the handicapped spot. I do the typical "rickemrackemfrickemfrackem" as I walk by, just in time to see this mother berkeleyer, too lazy to take his cart over to the little corral thing, PUSHES THE BERKELEYING CART INTO THE DOOR OF SOME DUDE'S TRUCK!

At this point, I freaking lost it. No fists were thrown, no cart was put through the windshield of his berkeleying mercedes, but goddamn, had I had my wits about me, I would've blocked his handicrapped ass in and called the cops.

I once overheard a teenage girl telling her friend the Grandma had gotten her a handicap placard for Christmas. If I'd been alone I'd have read her the riot act. I also phone in many non-placard, non-tagged cars if I see them in the HC spots.

Our daycare has a real problem with people parking in the fire lane directly out front while they drop off or get their kids. You know what? I'm berkeleying going to work too. I've made lots of comments about that.

When the wife's grandmother was still alive, she was not able to get around well at all (arthritis and macular degeneration). For that reason, she got one of those mirror hangers allowing the use of handicap spots and it of course made the rounds of everyone in the family. There were some people who rode with me when I had that thing who couldn't believe I didn't take advantage of it.

I have also seen some of the Harley E36 M3heads who see nothing wrong with parking their Iron Horse or other custom V twin in the handicapped spots. I have more than once had to resist the urge to do the whole Jerry Lee Lewis in Smokey and the Bandit bit. Shiny happy persons.

Yeah, it takes a while to get an shiny happy person's car towed, but it only takes 30 seconds to knock his motorcycle over...

I have also seen plenty of Harley E36 M3heads parked in handicapped spots WITH HANDICAPPED TAGS on their bikes. Lots of handicapped people ride.

Dr. Hess wrote: I have also seen plenty of Harley E36 M3heads parked in handicapped spots WITH HANDICAPPED TAGS on their bikes. Lots of handicapped people ride.

I know that, Hess. In SC you have to have a handicapped tag on your bike in order to park in HC spots. These jackoffs don't have handicap tags. In fact, one of these asswipes lives around the corner from me, I know full well he is not handicapped and I know exactly what his bike looks like because it's painted to match his truck and boat. His Iron Horse was sitting in the Wal Mart handicap spot about six months ago.

There probable is a pretty good percentage of people who have been riding for a long time with bits of metal in one of their legs.

This is one of my soft spots too. Even when I was in a wheel chair I declined the doctors offer for a HC pass. Since I knew the wheelchair was temperary I didn't feel like I deserved one.

A buddy of mine just broke his toe and damned if he didn't hang a HC pass on his mirror. I gave him so much hell he hides it when I'm around.

Snitch him off, JM. He shouldn't be parking there. In Sturgis, they tow them out of the HC spots on main street.

I hold these twits in contempt, but forgive them, based on the logic that going through life without a heart is a terrible handicap.

I confronted a cop last year because he was parked in a handicap spot while having lunch. I assumed he didn't notice, since there were tons of spots, but when I approached the two cops and asked them which one had the cop car in the handicap spot (the other was parked legally) one guy got all smug and gave me the "what's it to ya" routine. The nerve of some people...I bet he's written many tickets for people that have done the same thing (either purposefully or unintentionally) and here he thought he was above it. I didn't make a huge yelling scene out of it, but I made it clear to him and the few people sitting around that he was an embarrassment to law enforcement and decent people in general.

Bryce

NYG95GA wrote: I hold these twits in contempt, but forgive them, based on the logic that going through life without a heart is a terrible handicap.

Yeah, you guys are pretty brutal. Feelings of corner carvers board here. I myself park far far away from the door dinging public.