Raves, Rants & Roses

RESPONSE: I am not against handicap parking as some responders wrote about. I just think there should be some leeway in enforcement so it does not harm the handicapped, but still make available those parts of a parking lot not being used.

Previously submitted was the case of a coach on a rainy Sunday morning where there was not one other car on a parking lot, including 15 handicap spots.

He could not possibly be harming the handicapped's ability to park up close since it was going to be seven days or more before the next game, and he still got a ticket.

My point was, why can't they have a handicap sign like a local church that specifies the times of use.

They have on their sign just below the handicap words, "Sunday Services." That allows their maintenance people to park there at night when there are no services at the church, and where they need the close up spots to perform their work. A small rule change would do it, and not restrict the handicapped.

Another case of building handicap bathrooms... the rules seem to be made with built-in tunnel vision. The case of the new facility that had to replace the two commodes that were 3/4 inch too close, to me, is a bit much.

My own stepson, who is in the building trades, told me of a case where the wall in a handicap restroom was 4 inches too far away from the commodes. You would think it would be a plus for those in wheel chairs, since they would have even more room to maneuver. Wrong!

Rules, rules, rules. He had to build a false wall, 4 inches thick and chest high with a cap on top, to bring it back into the precise distance required. Does it even make sense to have a rule like this, with no allowance for variance?

Then, the most ridiculous of all was when a friend of mine was on a tour of homes and had parked next to an intersection to tour a house on the corner, and when he and wife got back in the car, saw another home just two houses from the corner in the next block.

You guessed it, a policeman saw them drive no more than 150 feet, at less than 10 miles an hour, and issued a double seat belt citation. Rules, rules, rules. Are they crazy, or what?

I think we could all agree the police academy should have some course in humanity and compassion, and teach officers how to ascertain when to issue a ticket or just a warning. We have enough rules on our daily plate now.

Buster Barlow
Tyler