On Wed, 15 Oct 2014 05:12:42 -0700, Norminn wrote:

...snip....

I get a little absent minded now and then. When I drove an '84 Buick
Regal, it was easy to find my car in a parking lot. Now I drive a
silver '10 Corolla and twice I've opened the door of the wrong car in
the grocery store parking lot just as the owner was approaching their
car. Embarassing; they just smiled.

Don't do what I did once. In a rental car went to Disney, Anaheim [forgot
to really, really identify exactly where parked] go to Disney World and
spend at least four hours, then come out and look for a car that you've
really only seen from the INSIDE! well, ...uh, it's white.

The only thing that lightened my day was since the four hours were spent
in lines, I got my money for entrance AND the money for parking refunded!
Plus, some nice guy in a pickup truck offered to drive us up and down the
rows and rows in the area I thought it was parked in. So we did find the
rental rather quickly.

Now, to avoid that scenario I walk backwards away from the car to remember
what it should look like as I'm going towards it. [trick learned from a
mountaineer] So far works well. You see the way the car sits, the
landscape, the background, haven't lost another car since then.

Oren wrote:
On Wed, 15 Oct 2014 12:28:28 -0400,
wrote:

On Wed, 15 Oct 2014 11:08:36 -0500, Moe DeLoughan

wrote:

On 10/15/2014 10:17 AM, wrote:
On Wed, 15 Oct 2014 06:42:51 -0400, "BurfordTJustice"
wrote:

How Do You Look up License Plate Numbers?
http://thelawdictionary.org/article/...plate-numbers/


If it is worth $25 to you


Except that most states have data privacy laws that
restrict the
amount of information that is considered public, which
usually
renders the information available next to useless for
the average
snoop. Also, it's not unusual to restrict individual
access to only
that individual's information; if you want someone
else's, you need
their written consent.

I doubt these data mining companies really care about the
law and
some are actually located offshore.

The site pointed to in the above link is not offshore

www.peoplepublicrecords.org

Hosted in: Garden City, New York, United States.

just sayin'

there is also http://publicdata.com/ for 9.95 you get 400
searches a month.
used them before and can cancel anytime

On 10/15/2014 12:47 PM, Pico Rico wrote:
"Oren" wrote in message
...
On Wed, 15 Oct 2014 10:21:41 -0700, "Pico Rico"
wrote:

I doubt these data mining companies really care about the law and some
are actually located offshore.

The site pointed to in the above link is not offshore

www.peoplepublicrecords.org

Hosted in: Garden City, New York, United States.

just sayin'

and how careful are they in verifying a person's authorization? I am
pretty
sure at least one has been forged in the past.

I'm not certain what you mean by "authorization". I maintained
network nodes to access government information before, but was not
authorized to use it myself. It was very specific as to who had
access to the data and how it was conducted and accounted for.

I was referring to this type of authorization/consent:

"Also, it's not unusual to restrict individual access to only that
individual's information; if you want someone else's, you need their written
consent."


It has most certainly happened. For instance, the birther lunatics
have openly boasted about forging credentials in order to unlawfully
access the President's Selective Service record. They've also gained
access to commercial databases to get his SSN and publicized that. In
my state, there's a huge pile of lawsuits pending due to persons
working in law enforcement and other parts of the government who
habitually snooped the records of many private individuals. It's one
thing to have a cop run your plate on a traffic stop. It's another
thing to find out that the cops were routinely looking up information
on any pretty girl they encountered, as well as on their neighbors,
and their exes' significant others, etc.
People found this out by filing requests to see who'd accessed their
data. One woman discovered that her records had been accessed by
dozens of cops hundreds of time. It turned out that one of the cops
decided she was hot, and spread the word, so all of his buddies looked
her up, too.

On 10/15/2014 3:44 PM, RobertMacy wrote:
Don't do what I did once. In a rental car went to Disney, Anaheim
[forgot to really, really identify exactly where parked] go to Disney
World and spend at least four hours, then come out and look for a car
that you've really only seen from the INSIDE! well, ...uh, it's white.

The only thing that lightened my day was since the four hours were spent
in lines, I got my money for entrance AND the money for parking
refunded! Plus, some nice guy in a pickup truck offered to drive us up
and down the rows and rows in the area I thought it was parked in. So we
did find the rental rather quickly.

Now, to avoid that scenario I walk backwards away from the car to
remember what it should look like as I'm going towards it. [trick
learned from a mountaineer] So far works well. You see the way the car
sits, the landscape, the background, haven't lost another car since then.

I do that "walk backwards" now and again.
Great technique. I've also been known to
put some thing on the dash board, like
pair of gloves.

--
..
Christopher A. Young
Learn about Jesus
www.lds.org
..

On 10/15/2014 12:58 PM, Nil wrote:
On 15 Oct 2014, "Bob F" wrote in
alt.home.repair:

Many cities have laws limiting the time you can legaly park in one
spot, so this isn't an unusual occurance.

In my town it's illegal to leave your car parked on the street
overnight. The police don't rigorously enforce the law, but I was
ticketed once many years ago.


Same here. So when a car was left overnight across the street from my
house, my neighbors called the cops. The cops blew them off. So the
hubby goes to check out the car. He discovered it was unlocked and had
camera and computer gear on the front seat. He called the cops again,
thinking it must have been stolen, only to be blown off again. He was
*furious* - and then he got a call from the chief of police. It was a
bait car. They were trying to catch a thief, but all the attention he
was paying to the car was not helping. The chief asked him to knock it
off and keep quiet about it. Naturally, he spread the word, and
naturally, no thief touched the car. After a week, the cops showed up
and towed it away.

On Wed, 15 Oct 2014 15:02:51 -0500, "ChairMan"
wrote:

I doubt these data mining companies really care about the
law and
some are actually located offshore.

The site pointed to in the above link is not offshore

www.peoplepublicrecords.org

Hosted in: Garden City, New York, United States.

just sayin'

there is also http://publicdata.com/ for 9.95 you get 400
searches a month.
used them before and can cancel anytime


Hosted in Carrollton, Texas

Buy America...

On 10/15/14, 2:31 PM, micky wrote:
On Wed, 15 Oct 2014 08:29:52 -0400, Stormin Mormon
wrote:

On 10/15/2014 8:12 AM, Norminn wrote:
I get a little absent minded now and then. When I drove an '84 Buick
Regal, it was easy to find my car in a parking lot. Now I drive a
silver '10 Corolla and twice I've opened the door of the wrong car in
the grocery store parking lot just as the owner was approaching their
car. Embarassing; they just smiled.

I'd be tempted to put some nondescript
sticker inside one of the windows.

Kids animated figure or some thing. Just
so your car is distinctive.

My mother put some plastic fern or ball on the antenna, but that was
more so she could find it in a parking lot than to distinguish it from
cars that looked alike.

My antenna retracts, so I couldn't do that if I wanted to. And a lot
of people don' have antennas?, or have little ones.

Some parking lots are huge. I've had the experience of approaching a
parked car that looked like mine. I've experienced a moment of fear
when I walked down the row where I thought it was, and it wasn't.

A strip of red reflective tape, 2 or 3" wide, across the car, just above
the windshield, and another just above the back window. If you can see
the roof line, you'll know your car from hundreds of yards away.

If you're coming over a rise at 60, and a car is at a stop sign ahead,
only your roof line may be visible. Depending on the color of your car
and the background, it may be inconspicuous. The strip of red should
catch the driver's eye.

That tape is hard to remove. If I were looking for cars to steal, I
wouldn't consider one with red tape that made it stand out like a sore
thumb.

Oren wrote:
On Wed, 15 Oct 2014 15:02:51 -0500, "ChairMan"

wrote:

I doubt these data mining companies really care about
the
law and
some are actually located offshore.

The site pointed to in the above link is not offshore

www.peoplepublicrecords.org

Hosted in: Garden City, New York, United States.

just sayin'

there is also http://publicdata.com/ for 9.95 you get 400
searches a month.
used them before and can cancel anytime


Hosted in Carrollton, Texas

Buy America...

just tryin to keep business in the great state of Tejasg

On Wed, 15 Oct 2014 18:27:07 -0400, J Burns
wrote:

On 10/15/14, 2:31 PM, micky wrote:
On Wed, 15 Oct 2014 08:29:52 -0400, Stormin Mormon
wrote:

On 10/15/2014 8:12 AM, Norminn wrote:
I get a little absent minded now and then. When I drove an '84 Buick
Regal, it was easy to find my car in a parking lot. Now I drive a
silver '10 Corolla and twice I've opened the door of the wrong car in
the grocery store parking lot just as the owner was approaching their
car. Embarassing; they just smiled.

I'd be tempted to put some nondescript
sticker inside one of the windows.

Kids animated figure or some thing. Just
so your car is distinctive.

My mother put some plastic fern or ball on the antenna, but that was
more so she could find it in a parking lot than to distinguish it from
cars that looked alike.

My antenna retracts, so I couldn't do that if I wanted to. And a lot
of people don' have antennas?, or have little ones.

Some parking lots are huge. I've had the experience of approaching a
parked car that looked like mine. I've experienced a moment of fear
when I walked down the row where I thought it was, and it wasn't.

A strip of red reflective tape, 2 or 3" wide, across the car, just above
the windshield, and another just above the back window. If you can see
the roof line, you'll know your car from hundreds of yards away.

If you're coming over a rise at 60, and a car is at a stop sign ahead,
only your roof line may be visible. Depending on the color of your car
and the background, it may be inconspicuous. The strip of red should
catch the driver's eye.

That tape is hard to remove. If I were looking for cars to steal, I
wouldn't consider one with red tape that made it stand out like a sore
thumb.
And red reflective tape on the front of a car is ILLEGAL.

I generally don't have a problem - my vehicles are usually rather
UNIQUE. But I get out of the vehicle, imprint on my brain exactly
where it is - like the row that lines up with the L on Big Lots, or
whatever If I KNOW where I parked it, I can always find it quickly. If
I just park and run it can take a little longer to figure it out.
Nothing like walking into the mall, walking around for a while,
shopping for this and that, and forgetting not only where you left the
car, but what entrance you came in- - - -. Or like my wife,
forgetting which vehicle she was driving - walking past the car
looking for the OTHER one!!

On 10/15/2014 4:13 PM, Moe DeLoughan wrote:


Same here. So when a car was left overnight across the street from my
house, my neighbors called the cops. The cops blew them off. So the
hubby goes to check out the car. He discovered it was unlocked and had
camera and computer gear on the front seat. He called the cops again,
thinking it must have been stolen, only to be blown off again. He was
*furious* - and then he got a call from the chief of police. It was a
bait car. They were trying to catch a thief, but all the attention he
was paying to the car was not helping. The chief asked him to knock it
off and keep quiet about it. Naturally, he spread the word, and
naturally, no thief touched the car. After a week, the cops showed up
and towed it awaY

Good. I don't like the idea of using bait cars, bikes, etc. It may
catch a thief, but it may tempt an otherwise non=thief to make a dumb
decision. If I was a judge, I'd toss most of those cases.

On 10/15/2014 1:06 AM, micky wrote:
OT Should I tell the police?

About three or four weeks ago, I saw a sticker on the rear window of a
car parked in my n'hood, the parking lot of a townhouse n'hood, saying
it would be towed away because it had a flat tire. No deadline was
given. The HOA does this, aiui, only if someone has complained. Of
course we have more than our share** of petty people who would complain.

**Unless there are so many petty people in the world that we have no
more than our share.

So I pumped his tire up.

Today I pumped it up again, which means the leak is slow.

The car is in excellent condition, has no dents or scratches, the paint
is perfect, it's not dirty, and looks very nice. Valid plates. I
assume someone went on vacation and will start driving it again when he
gets back.


I know the car you speak of. Go by it today, there's an odor coming
from the trunk.

On 10/15/14, 7:56 PM, wrote:
And red reflective tape on the front of a car is ILLEGAL.

Where is it illegal?

My bike has a fairing 33" wide. It was black when I bought it in 1972.
From the front view, most of it was the windshield, which sometimes
broke when I hit potholes.

The more massive I looked from the front, the less I had to leave the
road because a driver looked right at me and violated my right of way.
To look more massive and make the windshield smaller and less prone to
breakage, I used fiberglass to extend the fairing up to 52". I painted
the whole fairing yellow. Above it, across the base of the windshield,
I put a piece of red reflective tape, 2" wide and 20" long. It's at the
height of the top of a car windshield. I didn't care if it was
reflective. I wanted it bright and permanent.

I've ridden that way in 49 states and 6 provinces. No one has ever told
me it was illegal or even shown disapproval.

I haven't done it to a car, but in some circumstances I've thought a
bright color just above the windshield would have made a car easier to
spot, like my bike.

On Wed, 15 Oct 2014 20:36:22 -0400, J Burns
wrote:

On 10/15/14, 7:56 PM, wrote:
And red reflective tape on the front of a car is ILLEGAL.

Where is it illegal?
Everywhere - red reflectors and lights are illegal to be shown on the
front of ANY vehicle except an emergency vehicle.

My bike has a fairing 33" wide. It was black when I bought it in 1972.
From the front view, most of it was the windshield, which sometimes
broke when I hit potholes.

The more massive I looked from the front, the less I had to leave the
road because a driver looked right at me and violated my right of way.
To look more massive and make the windshield smaller and less prone to
breakage, I used fiberglass to extend the fairing up to 52". I painted
the whole fairing yellow. Above it, across the base of the windshield,
I put a piece of red reflective tape, 2" wide and 20" long. It's at the
height of the top of a car windshield. I didn't care if it was
reflective. I wanted it bright and permanent.

I've ridden that way in 49 states and 6 provinces. No one has ever told
me it was illegal or even shown disapproval.

I haven't done it to a car, but in some circumstances I've thought a
bright color just above the windshield would have made a car easier to
spot, like my bike.

On Wed, 15 Oct 2014 18:27:07 -0400, J Burns wrote:



Some parking lots are huge. I've had the experience of approaching a
parked car that looked like mine. I've experienced a moment of fear
when I walked down the row where I thought it was, and it wasn't.

I've lost my car t twice. Once was at Coney Island, when I thought I'd
parked on the street 2 blocks from the amusement parks, but it was
really 3.

But the first time, I was on a first date with a girl and we went to the
ball game at Shea Stadium. So busy thinking about her, maybe, that I
didn't pay attention. We had to wait until all the other cars had left
to find mine.

Later, she told me she was older than I thought, so I added one year to
my age, said I was 27, thinking that would solve the problem. Still
later, I found out she was 14 years older than I. I was amazed.

I haven't been in NYC for a few years and I looked her up online. She
still in the same n'hood, maybe the same apartment. Hard to believe
she's 81 years old now. But I bet she still looks good.

On Wednesday, October 15, 2014 1:38:51 AM UTC-4, Robert Macy wrote:
On Tue, 14 Oct 2014 22:06:18 -0700, micky wrote:



...snip...

Would you tell the police where it is before they told you it was stolen

or misplated?



Wow! I sincerely hope it is as you envision, and you're truly helping. It

is very sad that police have instilled so much distrust. Here's a case of,

"I would call a friend in the department and talk to him/her." Do you know

anybody with close ties? I would also be very reluctant to say anything

'generically'. I've seen people who wish to help by giving eye witness

statements end up coming under scrutiny as the perp!! And if you knew

them, anyone would see that was ridiculous. The police had no discernment

and should have known better.



Do you have a good relationship with your auto insurance rep? If so, they

have access to all kinds of information, they don't have to tell you any

details, but confirm any information for you without breaching any of

their confidentiality. It would be nice to find out the guy just parked

his car there, so he wouldn't have to pay airport parking, or such.

Envision the guy returning at 2am to pick up his car and now he won't find

the tire flat.

Of course people mistrust the police that much... it's sad but true. Yeah, you have to know people, and I think Micky did the right thing by not giving them the location without some assurances.

nate

On Wednesday, October 15, 2014 8:36:22 PM UTC-4, J Burns wrote:
On 10/15/14, 7:56 PM, wrote:

And red reflective tape on the front of a car is ILLEGAL.



Where is it illegal?


I would assume verywhere in the US. Red is reserved for the rear, amber or white only on the front. That is definitely true for lights; I would assume the same would be true for retroreflective sheeting. If nothing else, it's a spectacularly bad idea, as it gives a conflicting message to other road users - red indicates the rear of a vehicle, therefore it ought to be moving away from the viewer, but in reality it's the front and it's not.

Other colors (blue, green, etc.) are illegal as well; blue because it is reserved for emergency vehicles and other colors simply because they have no function assigned.

If you wish to research this in more depth, start with FMVSS 108, that is the basic document that lays out requirements for lighting and conspicuity devices for road vehicles.

nate

On Wednesday, October 15, 2014 9:58:15 PM UTC-4, N8N wrote:
On Wednesday, October 15, 2014 8:36:22 PM UTC-4, J Burns wrote:

On 10/15/14, 7:56 PM, wrote:



And red reflective tape on the front of a car is ILLEGAL.







Where is it illegal?





I would assume verywhere in the US. Red is reserved for the rear, amber or white only on the front. That is definitely true for lights; I would assume the same would be true for retroreflective sheeting. If nothing else, it's a spectacularly bad idea, as it gives a conflicting message to other road users - red indicates the rear of a vehicle, therefore it ought to be moving away from the viewer, but in reality it's the front and it's not.



Other colors (blue, green, etc.) are illegal as well; blue because it is reserved for emergency vehicles and other colors simply because they have no function assigned.



If you wish to research this in more depth, start with FMVSS 108, that is the basic document that lays out requirements for lighting and conspicuity devices for road vehicles.



nate

To add; I've used 3M retroreflective tape on both bicycles and cars; I've done "DIY wheel reflectors" with it on some racey type wheels (Velocity Deep V's) looks Fredly but better Fred than dead. I also added a red/white stripe on the latch area of the doors just in case I miss a car approaching from the rear when parallel parking and I throw the driver's door open (my car is a coupe with long doors, and there aren't any factory supplied lights or reflectors on the doors other than "puddle lights" - an oversight IMHO on the part of the usually thorough and rigorous Krauts.)

I would actually call your plan a good idea assuming you don't mind the look - as long as you change the red tape above the windshield to white or amber.

nate

On 10/15/2014 9:58 PM, N8N wrote:
On Wednesday, October 15, 2014 8:36:22 PM UTC-4, J Burns wrote:
On 10/15/14, 7:56 PM, wrote:

And red reflective tape on the front of a car is ILLEGAL.



Where is it illegal?


I would assume everywhere in the US. Red is reserved for the rear, amber or white only on the front. That is definitely true for lights;
Except for the amber rear turn signals.



I would assume the same would be true for retroreflective sheeting. If
nothing else, it's a spectacularly bad idea, as it gives a conflicting
message to other road users - red indicates the rear of a vehicle,
therefore it ought to be moving away from the viewer, but in reality
it's the front and it's not.

Other colors (blue, green, etc.) are illegal as well; blue because it is reserved for emergency vehicles and other colors simply because they have no function assigned.

Green is for emergency medical personnel, at least in CT

On Wednesday, October 15, 2014 10:58:48 PM UTC-4, Ed Pawlowski wrote:
On 10/15/2014 9:58 PM, N8N wrote:

On Wednesday, October 15, 2014 8:36:22 PM UTC-4, J Burns wrote:

On 10/15/14, 7:56 PM, wrote:



And red reflective tape on the front of a car is ILLEGAL.







Where is it illegal?





I would assume everywhere in the US. Red is reserved for the rear, amber or white only on the front. That is definitely true for lights;

Except for the amber rear turn signals.

those are allowed (ought to be mandated) what I meant was that white and amber are the only colors allowed to be forward-facing.

I would assume the same would be true for retroreflective sheeting. If

nothing else, it's a spectacularly bad idea, as it gives a conflicting

message to other road users - red indicates the rear of a vehicle,

therefore it ought to be moving away from the viewer, but in reality

it's the front and it's not.



Other colors (blue, green, etc.) are illegal as well; blue because it is reserved for emergency vehicles and other colors simply because they have no function assigned.



Green is for emergency medical personnel, at least in CT

I haven't seen that here (NoVA/DC area) but there's a good example of why just picking a color that isn't used in your area is a bad idea.

nate

I don't know why you are so concerned about something that has nothing to do with you and you know nothing about. Jesus! Just call the cops and let them handle it. That's what they get paid to do. Let the man said, if there is nothing suspicious, they won't do anything.

"micky" wrote in message ...
OT Should I tell the police?

About three or four weeks ago, I saw a sticker on the rear window of a
car parked in my n'hood, the parking lot of a townhouse n'hood, saying
it would be towed away because it had a flat tire. No deadline was
given. The HOA does this, aiui, only if someone has complained. Of
course we have more than our share** of petty people who would complain.

**Unless there are so many petty people in the world that we have no
more than our share.

So I pumped his tire up.

Today I pumped it up again, which means the leak is slow.

The car is in excellent condition, has no dents or scratches, the paint
is perfect, it's not dirty, and looks very nice. Valid plates. I
assume someone went on vacation and will start driving it again when he
gets back.

OTOH, most people don't take three week vacations and conceivably, the
car was stolen and left here, parked properly with the door locked.
(well, I haven't tried the door. I just assume it's locked) If it's
stolen, the real owner should get it back before he buys another car.

So I called the police and just wanted them to run the plate, and if
they said it was stolen, I'd tell them where they or the owner can come
and get it.

But the cop wants me to tell him where it is, so they can "roll by and
look at it", and he says they won't do anything if there isn't a
problem.

What problem could there be except that the owner reported it stolen?**
If they tell me that I'll believe them and I'll tell them where it is.
But if it's not stolen, I DON'T WANT TO CAUSE TROUBLE FOR THE OWNER, and
the police, for all the good they do, are also very good at causing
trouble. After all, I'm the one pumping up the tire so it won't be
towed away.

**One idea, it could have the wrong plates on it, but we could probably
verify that on the phone too. The DMV records show the make. Do they
also show the model and color? I think so. If the plates don't match
the make or model or color, then too I would tell them where the car is.

Would you tell the police where it is before they told you it was stolen
or misplated?

"Norminn" wrote in message ...
On 10/15/2014 1:06 AM, micky wrote:
OT Should I tell the police?

About three or four weeks ago, I saw a sticker on the rear window of a
car parked in my n'hood, the parking lot of a townhouse n'hood, saying
it would be towed away because it had a flat tire. No deadline was
given. The HOA does this, aiui, only if someone has complained. Of
course we have more than our share** of petty people who would complain.

**Unless there are so many petty people in the world that we have no
more than our share.

So I pumped his tire up.

Today I pumped it up again, which means the leak is slow.

The car is in excellent condition, has no dents or scratches, the paint
is perfect, it's not dirty, and looks very nice. Valid plates. I
assume someone went on vacation and will start driving it again when he
gets back.

OTOH, most people don't take three week vacations and conceivably, the
car was stolen and left here, parked properly with the door locked.
(well, I haven't tried the door. I just assume it's locked) If it's
stolen, the real owner should get it back before he buys another car.

So I called the police and just wanted them to run the plate, and if
they said it was stolen, I'd tell them where they or the owner can come
and get it.

But the cop wants me to tell him where it is, so they can "roll by and
look at it", and he says they won't do anything if there isn't a
problem.

What problem could there be except that the owner reported it stolen?**
If they tell me that I'll believe them and I'll tell them where it is.
But if it's not stolen, I DON'T WANT TO CAUSE TROUBLE FOR THE OWNER, and
the police, for all the good they do, are also very good at causing
trouble. After all, I'm the one pumping up the tire so it won't be
towed away.

**One idea, it could have the wrong plates on it, but we could probably
verify that on the phone too. The DMV records show the make. Do they
also show the model and color? I think so. If the plates don't match
the make or model or color, then too I would tell them where the car is.

Would you tell the police where it is before they told you it was stolen
or misplated?


I don't see a problem with telling police where it is; I'd also write
down the VIN. Plates could be stolen and that owner not aware? Causing
problems for owner? I think they already have problems, ie leaving a
car with a flat. Back in my younger days, our decrepit Simca was
towed....finally....'cause we couldn't drive it and couldn't afford to
fix it. Barely could afford food, and that was one student and one
employed newlyweds )

I haven't thought about a Simca in 40 years. We had one in the 60's. Great little car. Too small for busy roads though.

PS -- No offense. I didn't mean to be rude.... It's great to be concerned, but you really should let the fuzz take care of these kind of things.

"Guv Bob" wrote in message ...
I don't know why you are so concerned about something that has nothing to do with you and you know nothing about. Jesus! Just call the cops and let them handle it. That's what they get paid to do. Let the man said, if there is nothing suspicious, they won't do anything.

"micky" wrote in message ...
OT Should I tell the police?

About three or four weeks ago, I saw a sticker on the rear window of a
car parked in my n'hood, the parking lot of a townhouse n'hood, saying
it would be towed away because it had a flat tire. No deadline was
given. The HOA does this, aiui, only if someone has complained. Of
course we have more than our share** of petty people who would complain.

**Unless there are so many petty people in the world that we have no
more than our share.

So I pumped his tire up.

Today I pumped it up again, which means the leak is slow.

The car is in excellent condition, has no dents or scratches, the paint
is perfect, it's not dirty, and looks very nice. Valid plates. I
assume someone went on vacation and will start driving it again when he
gets back.

OTOH, most people don't take three week vacations and conceivably, the
car was stolen and left here, parked properly with the door locked.
(well, I haven't tried the door. I just assume it's locked) If it's
stolen, the real owner should get it back before he buys another car.

So I called the police and just wanted them to run the plate, and if
they said it was stolen, I'd tell them where they or the owner can come
and get it.

But the cop wants me to tell him where it is, so they can "roll by and
look at it", and he says they won't do anything if there isn't a
problem.

What problem could there be except that the owner reported it stolen?**
If they tell me that I'll believe them and I'll tell them where it is.
But if it's not stolen, I DON'T WANT TO CAUSE TROUBLE FOR THE OWNER, and
the police, for all the good they do, are also very good at causing
trouble. After all, I'm the one pumping up the tire so it won't be
towed away.

**One idea, it could have the wrong plates on it, but we could probably
verify that on the phone too. The DMV records show the make. Do they
also show the model and color? I think so. If the plates don't match
the make or model or color, then too I would tell them where the car is.

Would you tell the police where it is before they told you it was stolen
or misplated?

Put a big sign on the car that reads "FREE DONUTS".

Cops will be there in 3 minutes.

On 10/16/2014 3:33 AM, Jack wrote:
Put a big sign on the car that reads "FREE DONUTS".

Cops will be there in 3 minutes.

OH gosh - that got me totally ROTFLMO and then some! Thanks for the
giggles

Sky

On 10/15/14, 9:58 PM, N8N wrote:
On Wednesday, October 15, 2014 8:36:22 PM UTC-4, J Burns wrote:
On 10/15/14, 7:56 PM, wrote:

And red reflective tape on the front of a car is ILLEGAL.



Where is it illegal?


I would assume verywhere in the US. Red is reserved for the rear,
amber or white only on the front. That is definitely true for
lights; I would assume the same would be true for retroreflective
sheeting. If nothing else, it's a spectacularly bad idea, as it
gives a conflicting message to other road users - red indicates the
rear of a vehicle, therefore it ought to be moving away from the
viewer, but in reality it's the front and it's not.

Other colors (blue, green, etc.) are illegal as well; blue because it
is reserved for emergency vehicles and other colors simply because
they have no function assigned.

If you wish to research this in more depth, start with FMVSS 108,
that is the basic document that lays out requirements for lighting
and conspicuity devices for road vehicles.

nate


Wow, 27,000 words. Apparently it's manufacturing specs. I read it and
couldn't find what you were talking about. So I searched for "red," 44
times. It says what must be red. I searched for "not," 201 times. It
doesn't prohibit red anywhere.

When "clare" said it was ILLEGAL, I googled. People have asked about
putting reflective tape on cars and bikes. The only restrictions on
reflective tape that people have found are state laws regarding trucks
and trailers. I can see that. If I came over a rise and thought I saw
the back of a truck, I'd hate to find out too late that it was the side
of the truck crosswise on the road.

I didn't have reflectivity in mind when I applied the tape, but I was
glad when I saw it. At night, I didn't want oncoming traffic to wonder
if I was a one-eyed car. No car would have a reflective stripe the
width of a man's shoulders, 16 inches above a headlight. It gives the
immediate impression of a rider in a jacket with a reflective band.

Because it doesn't resemble the rear of a vehicle, it never occurred to
me that the tape is a different color. I checked tonight. With the
bike on its center stand, the stripe is visible above the roof of my
car. Red goes from 620-750 nm. I'd say the car reflectors were around
725 - deep red. I'd say the tape was around 675 - red with an orange
hue. By day or night, it has a day-glow effect, much brighter than the
tape that marks the rear of a trailer. I've used that tape to mark tool
handles I want to spot 100 yards away in brush, day or night.

There aren't many sidewalks around here. If I'm walking on the road, I
watch and listen for cars and step off the road if there could be a
problem. As a driver, I like to be aware of pedestrians well in
advance; so at night I do drivers a favor by wearing light pants.

The road past my house has a 20 mph limit, although I think 35 would be
perfectly safe. A neighbor would drive a lot faster, maybe 50 or 60.
At that speed, he was betting the unexpected wouldn't happen. He
regularly ran the blind stop sign by my house without even slowing much.

One night I wore dark pants because all my light ones were awaiting
washing. I heard him about 400 yards behind me. As any vehicle was
pretty much out of control with him at the wheel, I walked 6 feet from
the pavement, on mowed grass. When he passed, a stop sign and street
light were 5 yards ahead of me. He hardly slowed.

He parked in his driveway and rushed back to point out my fault: he
hadn't seen me because I was wearing dark pants. I didn't point out
that as long as he didn't veer 6 feet off the road, I'd been in no
danger. I didn't point out that children and pets may be harder to see
than a man under a street light at a stop sign. As a devout Christian,
he lived in a special glow from which he perceived sin in others.

Neither he, nor any other Christian neighbor, friend, relative, or
policeman, ever said there was anything confusing about the red tape at
the base of my windshield. When I'd get inspected, mechanics would
scratch their head and ask if it was an airplane. A relative once told
me I'd embarrassed her when I rode behind her school bus; all the other
kids said I looked like another school bus. Nobody has ever remarked on
the red tape.

Go ahead, try it! Slap a stripe of red tape across your car, above the
windshield and above the back window! When your insurance agent sees
it, he'll give you a 90% reduction on liability, collision, and theft
insurance! The next time you have to ask mall security where you left
your car, they'll be able to tell you immediately!

On Wednesday, October 15, 2014 8:15:26 PM UTC-4, Ed Pawlowski wrote:
On 10/15/2014 4:13 PM, Moe DeLoughan wrote:





Same here. So when a car was left overnight across the street from my

house, my neighbors called the cops. The cops blew them off. So the

hubby goes to check out the car. He discovered it was unlocked and had

camera and computer gear on the front seat. He called the cops again,

thinking it must have been stolen, only to be blown off again. He was

*furious* - and then he got a call from the chief of police. It was a

bait car. They were trying to catch a thief, but all the attention he

was paying to the car was not helping. The chief asked him to knock it

off and keep quiet about it. Naturally, he spread the word, and

naturally, no thief touched the car. After a week, the cops showed up

and towed it awaY



Good. I don't like the idea of using bait cars, bikes, etc. It may

catch a thief, but it may tempt an otherwise non=thief to make a dumb

decision. If I was a judge, I'd toss most of those cases.

Fortunately you're not a judge, those cases have withstood legal challenges
and they almost always result in a conviction. I see absolutely nothing
wrong with a bait car,
where they leave a rigged car in a high car theft area, leave it unlocked,
keys in it. I'm amazed you'd think that's tempting a non-thief. If
you go into a car you don't own and drive away, you are a thief, period.
If they didn't take the bait car, it would be someone else's car and
the perps would likely never be caught.

On Wednesday, October 15, 2014 11:09:58 AM UTC-4, Pico Rico wrote:
"micky" wrote in message

...

OT Should I tell the police?



About three or four weeks ago, I saw a sticker on the rear window of a

car parked in my n'hood, the parking lot of a townhouse n'hood, saying

it would be towed away because it had a flat tire. No deadline was

given. The HOA does this, aiui, only if someone has complained. Of

course we have more than our share** of petty people who would complain.



**Unless there are so many petty people in the world that we have no

more than our share.



So I pumped his tire up.



Today I pumped it up again, which means the leak is slow.



The car is in excellent condition, has no dents or scratches, the paint

is perfect, it's not dirty, and looks very nice. Valid plates. I

assume someone went on vacation and will start driving it again when he

gets back.



OTOH, most people don't take three week vacations and conceivably, the

car was stolen and left here, parked properly with the door locked.

(well, I haven't tried the door. I just assume it's locked) If it's

stolen, the real owner should get it back before he buys another car.



So I called the police and just wanted them to run the plate, and if

they said it was stolen, I'd tell them where they or the owner can come

and get it.



But the cop wants me to tell him where it is, so they can "roll by and

look at it", and he says they won't do anything if there isn't a

problem.



What problem could there be except that the owner reported it stolen?**

If they tell me that I'll believe them and I'll tell them where it is.

But if it's not stolen, I DON'T WANT TO CAUSE TROUBLE FOR THE OWNER, and

the police, for all the good they do, are also very good at causing

trouble. After all, I'm the one pumping up the tire so it won't be

towed away.



**One idea, it could have the wrong plates on it, but we could probably

verify that on the phone too. The DMV records show the make. Do they

also show the model and color? I think so. If the plates don't match

the make or model or color, then too I would tell them where the car is.



Would you tell the police where it is before they told you it was stolen

or misplated?



reading all the responses, I will toss in mine:



1. try again with the police. Maybe go to the station with the license

plate written down. I have had it go both ways "we can't tell you - where

is the car?" and a smirk, eyes rolling directed at the "smarty pants

citizen", run the plate, and then "yes, it is stolen - where is it?". If

they won't just run it, tell them where it is and let them investigate.



2. If you can, see if the police will at least tell you if the registered

address is in your HOA, so you can try to locate the owner and prevent it

being towed by the HOA. I have had a cop in a cruiser tell me the

registered address so I could walk across the street and tell them to move

their car or it will be towed. Of course, this was right there, and the cop

told me the address once he realized what the deal was - I was dong this guy

a favor.



3. Does your HOA not keep a list of license numbers and HOA owners? Many

do. Do any neighbors know who the car belongs to? Are their assigned

parking spaces?



4. If you can determine the car is not stolen, belongs to an HOA owner, and

you can locate him (or the police can do a welfare check), and you realize

he is simply out of town, tell the HOA to give the guy and his car a break.

If they seem belligerent as most HOAs are, keep filling up the tire, or

forget about it - your choice.





I concur with the thoughts to let the police do their job. The car could be

stolen, or it could belong to a lady who has fallen and can't get up. Try

to eliminate these types of possibilities first.

Note that none of the above is consistent with letting the police do
their job. Having folks waste police time, trying to get them to
run license plates, when they refuse to do it, isn't productive. Police
won't just run plates for you. I think they are probably rightly
concerned that they might be running the plate for a stalker, ****ed of
husband, etc up to no good. If I was a cop, I'd wonder what the hell is
wrong with someone that is so obsessed with a car that they want to come
over and talk to me about it, badger me, when I offered to take care of
the mystery car if they just tell me where it is. I'd might start to
run a check on them.

"trader_4" wrote in message
...
On Wednesday, October 15, 2014 11:09:58 AM UTC-4, Pico Rico wrote:
"micky" wrote in message

...

OT Should I tell the police?



About three or four weeks ago, I saw a sticker on the rear window of a

car parked in my n'hood, the parking lot of a townhouse n'hood, saying

it would be towed away because it had a flat tire. No deadline was

given. The HOA does this, aiui, only if someone has complained. Of

course we have more than our share** of petty people who would
complain.



**Unless there are so many petty people in the world that we have no

more than our share.



So I pumped his tire up.



Today I pumped it up again, which means the leak is slow.



The car is in excellent condition, has no dents or scratches, the paint

is perfect, it's not dirty, and looks very nice. Valid plates. I

assume someone went on vacation and will start driving it again when he

gets back.



OTOH, most people don't take three week vacations and conceivably, the

car was stolen and left here, parked properly with the door locked.

(well, I haven't tried the door. I just assume it's locked) If it's

stolen, the real owner should get it back before he buys another car.



So I called the police and just wanted them to run the plate, and if

they said it was stolen, I'd tell them where they or the owner can come

and get it.



But the cop wants me to tell him where it is, so they can "roll by and

look at it", and he says they won't do anything if there isn't a

problem.



What problem could there be except that the owner reported it stolen?**

If they tell me that I'll believe them and I'll tell them where it is.

But if it's not stolen, I DON'T WANT TO CAUSE TROUBLE FOR THE OWNER,
and

the police, for all the good they do, are also very good at causing

trouble. After all, I'm the one pumping up the tire so it won't be

towed away.



**One idea, it could have the wrong plates on it, but we could probably

verify that on the phone too. The DMV records show the make. Do they

also show the model and color? I think so. If the plates don't match

the make or model or color, then too I would tell them where the car
is.



Would you tell the police where it is before they told you it was
stolen

or misplated?



reading all the responses, I will toss in mine:



1. try again with the police. Maybe go to the station with the license

plate written down. I have had it go both ways "we can't tell you -
where

is the car?" and a smirk, eyes rolling directed at the "smarty pants

citizen", run the plate, and then "yes, it is stolen - where is it?". If

they won't just run it, tell them where it is and let them investigate.



2. If you can, see if the police will at least tell you if the registered

address is in your HOA, so you can try to locate the owner and prevent it

being towed by the HOA. I have had a cop in a cruiser tell me the

registered address so I could walk across the street and tell them to
move

their car or it will be towed. Of course, this was right there, and the
cop

told me the address once he realized what the deal was - I was dong this
guy

a favor.



3. Does your HOA not keep a list of license numbers and HOA owners? Many

do. Do any neighbors know who the car belongs to? Are their assigned

parking spaces?



4. If you can determine the car is not stolen, belongs to an HOA owner,
and

you can locate him (or the police can do a welfare check), and you
realize

he is simply out of town, tell the HOA to give the guy and his car a
break.

If they seem belligerent as most HOAs are, keep filling up the tire, or

forget about it - your choice.





I concur with the thoughts to let the police do their job. The car could
be

stolen, or it could belong to a lady who has fallen and can't get up.
Try

to eliminate these types of possibilities first.

Note that none of the above is consistent with letting the police do
their job.

I say again:

"If they won't just run it, tell them where it is and let them investigate."

On Wed, 15 Oct 2014 13:10:04 -0700, Stormin Mormon
wrote:

...snip...
I do that "walk backwards" now and again.
Great technique. I've also been known to
put some thing on the dash board, like
pair of gloves.


Usually 'head in' parking, so memo to self: "Must get one of those 'wobbly
head' dolls to place in rear window!"

However, today it's a lot easier to use the key and simply push the button
to unlock the car, flashing its lights.

On Wed, 15 Oct 2014 01:06:18 -0400, micky
wrote:

OT Should I tell the police?

I haven't read all the replies yet, but I want to give the remainder of
the story before the list of threads moves on

I decided to call the non-emergency number, like the preceing cop told
me to do, and to call from a pay phone, so I'd be anonymous and could
hang up whenever I wanted to.

I can't remember where any pay phones still are so I went to a suburban
hotel. I figured they'd have one but they didn't. She had me use the
house phone, labeled free for local calls. The woman who answered said
we don't run plates here, but if you give me the location I'll send a
police car out to check it out. I said no and thanked her and hung up.

Later, farther out of town, I drove right past a state police
"barracks". That hadn't even occurred to me, but I stopped. At 6PM
there was no lighting in the lobby, just a dim light coming from behind
the state policeman sitting in a plexiglass cave.

He too wanted to know where the car was. I said my girlfriend told me
not to say.

Finally I said, "I"m not asking you to tell me who owns the car, only if
it is reported stolen", and then he said okay, and he went to another
corner of the room and came back and said it wasn't reported stolen yet.

So that's good.

I wonder if I'd said that to the first cop, if he'd have done what I
wanted. I was clear, I just asked if the car were stolen, never who
owned it, but people hear the same question that is usually asked.

As far as a neighbor being dead in his home, if he's dead now, he was
dead 2 weeks into this, when I was sure he was on vacation. Now that
he's gone so long, he/she might be in the hospital himself, or he/she
might have gone to his parents to take care of his mother or father, who
is still sick.

Also the mailmen are supposed to keep track of who doesn't empty his
mailbox and do something if it appears the person inside is too sick to
do that. That won't work for me. I have a slot in the door and it
would take 10 years before he pile of mail in the hall reached that
high.

Thanks for all the advice. It was interesting to see your views on
this.

Micky

About three or four weeks ago, I saw a sticker on the rear window of a
car parked in my n'hood, the parking lot of a townhouse n'hood, saying
it would be towed away because it had a flat tire. No deadline was
given. The HOA does this, aiui, only if someone has complained. Of
course we have more than our share** of petty people who would complain.

**Unless there are so many petty people in the world that we have no
more than our share.

So I pumped his tire up.

Today I pumped it up again, which means the leak is slow.

The car is in excellent condition, has no dents or scratches, the paint
is perfect, it's not dirty, and looks very nice. Valid plates. I
assume someone went on vacation and will start driving it again when he
gets back.

OTOH, most people don't take three week vacations and conceivably, the
car was stolen and left here, parked properly with the door locked.
(well, I haven't tried the door. I just assume it's locked) If it's
stolen, the real owner should get it back before he buys another car.

So I called the police and just wanted them to run the plate, and if
they said it was stolen, I'd tell them where they or the owner can come
and get it.

But the cop wants me to tell him where it is, so they can "roll by and
look at it", and he says they won't do anything if there isn't a
problem.

What problem could there be except that the owner reported it stolen?**
If they tell me that I'll believe them and I'll tell them where it is.
But if it's not stolen, I DON'T WANT TO CAUSE TROUBLE FOR THE OWNER, and
the police, for all the good they do, are also very good at causing
trouble. After all, I'm the one pumping up the tire so it won't be
towed away.

**One idea, it could have the wrong plates on it, but we could probably
verify that on the phone too. The DMV records show the make. Do they
also show the model and color? I think so. If the plates don't match
the make or model or color, then too I would tell them where the car is.

Would you tell the police where it is before they told you it was stolen
or misplated?

On 10/16/2014 11:22 AM, RobertMacy wrote:

However, today it's a lot easier to use the key and simply push the
button to unlock the car, flashing its lights.

You know, I've never had a vehicle new enough
to do that. You're right.

--
..
Christopher A. Young
Learn about Jesus
www.lds.org
..

On Thu, 16 Oct 2014 08:24:21 -0700, micky wrote:

...snip....
Finally I said, "I"m not asking you to tell me who owns the car, only if
it is reported stolen", and then he said okay, and he went to another
corner of the room and came back and said it wasn't reported stolen yet.

Thanks for the update.

In California, you can call the DMV give the plate numbers and find out if
stolen, or lien, not get the owner's name though.

On Thu, 16 Oct 2014 08:34:42 -0700, Stormin Mormon
wrote:

On 10/16/2014 11:22 AM, RobertMacy wrote:

However, today it's a lot easier to use the key and simply push the
button to unlock the car, flashing its lights.

You know, I've never had a vehicle new enough
to do that. You're right.


I still drive the younger of my two cars, the 1977 Mercedes.

What I keep losing are those 'rentals'

On Wed, 15 Oct 2014 08:22:51 -0400, "Robert Green"
wrote:

Moe DeLoughan" wrote in message
...
On 10/15/2014 12:06 AM, micky wrote:
OT Should I tell the police?

About three or four weeks ago, I saw a sticker on the rear window of a
car parked in my n'hood, the parking lot of a townhouse n'hood, saying
it would be towed away because it had a flat tire. No deadline was
given. The HOA does this, aiui, only if someone has complained. Of
course we have more than our share** of petty people who would complain.

**Unless there are so many petty people in the world that we have no
more than our share.

So I pumped his tire up.

Goofy move number one.

So I called the police and just wanted them to run the plate, and if
they said it was stolen, I'd tell them where they or the owner can come
and get it.

But the cop wants me to tell him where it is, so they can "roll by and
look at it", and he says they won't do anything if there isn't a
problem.

What problem could there be except that the owner reported it stolen?**
If they tell me that I'll believe them and I'll tell them where it is.
But if it's not stolen, I DON'T WANT TO CAUSE TROUBLE FOR THE OWNER,

Goofy move number two. Why the hell are you playing cop? This isn't
your issue.

After all, I'm the one pumping up the tire so it won't be
towed away.

Just think - someone out there may have had his/her car stolen, and
you're keeping the cops from finding it because you for some ungodly
reason decided to obstruct the police from doing their job.

**One idea, it could have the wrong plates on it, but we could probably
verify that on the phone too. The DMV records show the make. Do they
also show the model and color? I think so. If the plates don't match
the make or model or color, then too I would tell them where the car is.

Would you tell the police where it is before they told you it was stolen
or misplated?

I'd call the cops and let them do their job. You don't know whether it
is a stolen car. For all you know, the trunk has a body in it. For all
you know, the cops placed it there as a bait vehicle to catch robbers
breaking into cars. The only thing you know is, it has a flat tire.
Let the cops figure it out.

Wow! Definite plus 1. If it's been used in a crime then Micky's
contaminated the crime scene.

The only crime it might have been was auto theft, and I didn't
contanimate anything. I didn't touch anything but the right rear tire
valve.

There are so MANY reasons to let the cops do

But none that are good.

their job and so FEW to pump up the tire

I only claim there is one, buit it's a very good one. They were going
to tow the car away if I didn't pump up the tire. That means possible
damage during the hookup or tow, that the car won't be there when the
owner gets home, that he'll have to pay for the tow and, as of now,
about 4 weeks of storage. That's hundreds of dolllars. Plus a taxi
or a favor from a friend to get to the two lot, which is about 10 mile
from here and would take 3 buses to get there on public transportation.

That if he's gone too long, because he's unconscious in a hospital
perhaps, they will eventually sell his car.

All because he has a slow leak he might well not have known about, A
tire that stayed inflated 3 or 4 weeks since the last time I pumped it
up.

or touch the car in any way. If
something happened to the owner, delaying contact with police could have
really bad results.

The police insisted that they wouldn't do anything unless the car was
stolen, if they came out here. Now you're suggesting they would check
the owner's home address, ring the doorbell, knock on the door, and
break in if he didn't answer. Even I don't think t hey woudl do that.
Were that their plan, and he was out of town, that's all the more
reason I don't want the police involved.

FWIW, by asking to run the plate but refusing to say
where it was you've now placed yourself among the people cops think are
suspicious.

That's why I wanted to stay anonymous.

I'll bet they have your caller ID and have already started
looking around. For you. (-:

I doubt it. My other interactions with the police convince me that they
rarely go to so much trouble. It's not like TV. Neither number I
called was 911 or an 800 number. They still might have caller id, even
in the face of *67, but I'm not worried. If I had yelled at them, "I'm
not giving you the address so you can screw over the owner," then they
might have pursued me, because they're annoyed, but I'm polite and don't
make accusations.

On Wed, 15 Oct 2014 08:42:39 -0700, Oren wrote:

On Wed, 15 Oct 2014 10:34:30 -0400, "Phil Kangas"
wrote:

Perhaps the HOA should contact the cops?


Seems they should already know if the vehicle belongs in the community
or not. Generally, they will send a letter to the homeowner, warning
them before the car is towed.

Not here. That's partly because very few cars are registered with
the HOA. For decades, none were, and there was also no towing by the
HOA, until we went through a period where a lot of families had more
than 2 cars, and then it was hard to park even in the center of the
street, away from the homes. Even though there are about 30 spaces in
the center (5 or 7 of which are used by the small number of houses that
have only one parking place right in front of the house.)

They made stronger rules and started towing cars that didn't have plates
or didn't run, and that should have been more than enough, but once
people get the hang of something, they keep it up even wheni it's not
necessary. (Now just about every car in the n'hood is used every day.
In the middle of the day, there might be 10 cars left in the are out of
more than 100 that are here at night. And it's not the same 10 that
stay home every day) At night there are still 5 or 10 empty spots, and
there are no cars with expired plates, none that don't run, and so
there's no real need to tow. Certainly not for a flat tire.

On 10/16/2014 7:41 AM, trader_4 wrote:


where they leave a rigged car in a high car theft area, leave it unlocked,
keys in it. I'm amazed you'd think that's tempting a non-thief. If
you go into a car you don't own and drive away, you are a thief, period.
If they didn't take the bait car, it would be someone else's car and
the perps would likely never be caught.


You are assuming they would take another car. I'm sure some would, but
if you leave a piece of candy on the table, would your 6 year old just
ignore it?

Maybe I'd go after a repeat offender, but I'd not jail a first offender.

"Ed Pawlowski" wrote in message
...
On 10/16/2014 7:41 AM, trader_4 wrote:


where they leave a rigged car in a high car theft area, leave it
unlocked,
keys in it. I'm amazed you'd think that's tempting a non-thief. If
you go into a car you don't own and drive away, you are a thief, period.
If they didn't take the bait car, it would be someone else's car and
the perps would likely never be caught.


You are assuming they would take another car. I'm sure some would, but if
you leave a piece of candy on the table, would your 6 year old just ignore
it?

Maybe I'd go after a repeat offender, but I'd not jail a first offender.

I am sure they are not going after 6 year olds.

And "first time caught" does not equate to "first time offender". Nobody's
luck is that bad.

On Thursday, October 16, 2014 3:49:31 PM UTC-4, Pico Rico wrote:
"Ed Pawlowski" wrote in message

...

On 10/16/2014 7:41 AM, trader_4 wrote:





where they leave a rigged car in a high car theft area, leave it

unlocked,

keys in it. I'm amazed you'd think that's tempting a non-thief. If

you go into a car you don't own and drive away, you are a thief, period.

If they didn't take the bait car, it would be someone else's car and

the perps would likely never be caught.





You are assuming they would take another car. I'm sure some would, but if

you leave a piece of candy on the table, would your 6 year old just ignore

it?



Maybe I'd go after a repeat offender, but I'd not jail a first offender.



I am sure they are not going after 6 year olds.



And "first time caught" does not equate to "first time offender". Nobody's

luck is that bad.

When I worked law enforcement, I was told generally a person did not end up with jail time before the 5th offense, unless it was a major one.

"TimR" wrote in message
...
On Thursday, October 16, 2014 3:49:31 PM UTC-4, Pico Rico wrote:
"Ed Pawlowski" wrote in message

...

On 10/16/2014 7:41 AM, trader_4 wrote:





where they leave a rigged car in a high car theft area, leave it

unlocked,

keys in it. I'm amazed you'd think that's tempting a non-thief. If

you go into a car you don't own and drive away, you are a thief,
period.

If they didn't take the bait car, it would be someone else's car and

the perps would likely never be caught.





You are assuming they would take another car. I'm sure some would, but
if

you leave a piece of candy on the table, would your 6 year old just
ignore

it?



Maybe I'd go after a repeat offender, but I'd not jail a first
offender.



I am sure they are not going after 6 year olds.



And "first time caught" does not equate to "first time offender".
Nobody's

luck is that bad.

When I worked law enforcement, I was told generally a person did not end
up with jail time before the 5th offense, unless it was a major one.

I have heard that burglars commit dozens and dozens of offenses before they
are caught.

On Thu, 16 Oct 2014 04:33:39 -0400, Jack wrote:

Put a big sign on the car that reads "FREE DONUTS".

Cops will be there in 3 minutes.

No, no, no. Doing that will cause a stampede. People can get
seriously hurt. Maybe even run over by overzealous cops in a squad
car!

Three minutes is a long time when only seconds count.
--
Liberals are like Chameleons. They keep changing colors. -- © Oren