The Ticket

I've resisted blogging this for a while, but I must. Friday last week I was $120 dollars poorer due to a yellow light violation.

When I got this ticket, it was the third time I had been pulled over in 8 days. The first two times I was told my brake light was out, though it was working. The third time was because of running a yellow light.

This ticket theoretically could've been avoided. The cop would've let me go, but I had to speak my mind to him. It was upsetting to me to be pulled over so frequently, having 20 minutes of my time wasted for no good reason. I can't say what was going through this cop's head, but it was obvious that either I go through the yellow light or slam on the breaks. He tried to tell me I was speeding, but he couldn't tell me how fast I was going.

I didn't feel like I was being done a favor to be pulled over on a whim, having my time wasted, then just letting me go. When I got the ticket after argueing breifly with him, I felt better. I knew then and still feel now, that if I wouldn't have spoke my mind to him I would've regreted it. I would've felt victimized and uneasy just driving down the street. I still do, but I don't feel like I just sat there and took it.

Now, I'm well aware that running my mouth cost me money, but the bad part wasn't the ticket. The bad part is feeling like I'm doing something wrong by driving a damaged vehicle. My car is fully operational and I was the one who was the victim of a hit-and-run accident. The cops never did any looking for the guy who damaged my car, but they can harass me because of it. Being harassed is much worse than losing $120.

I've thought about it. I really have. I can't think of anything that I personally could've done wrong to deserve that kind of treatment. For a while, I even felt like it was my fault. I felt like people would tell me I was wrong for doing what I did. That is was me who got myself the ticket for being hot-headed. That wasn't the case though.

When I was in court Friday, I witnessed others who had been victimized in much the same way as I had. Yes, there were some people who were there doing bad stuff like stealing, even at 30 something years old, but many of the people were there for little stupid offenses like I was. Most of the people who were caught with no insurance had been pulled over for making wrong turns or having lights out. All but one was hispanic or black. My insurance at least was current and I could verify that, so that ticket would be thrown out.

I wouldn't call the judge racist, but he treated them all like numbers until one white guy approached the stand. It was funny because he was about my age, maybe a few years older, and the judge was treating him like he was an equal. Asking extr questions, giving him extra opportunities to talk and explain himself before he suggested he get a lawyer. The judge didn't exactly recommend it, but from how he spoke, it was obvious his opinion was weighed to the idea of him getting a lawyer to have the ticket thrown out. When it was my turn I was polite, but I wasn't given the same opportunities. I don't know what I would've said if I could have.

I said my "yes, sirs" and "no, sirs" and not after long, I was handed my slip to pay my $120 after having explained to me that once you enter a yellow light, you must leave on a yellow light. I somehow thought that maybe the judge would think it was silly and just throw it out. After the fined a retarded (mentally challenged, whatever) guy for pissing in public, I knew this wouldn't happen.

The world made a better place by one less person proceeding through yellow lights and one less wall pissed on.

Did I feel like I lost? No. Like I said, the harassment was worse than the money. I just went away with a little less faith in the system and a better understanding of why Snoop Dogg hates the Police so much.

I used to defend cops from that kind of verbal abuse. I used to try to tell my kids that they were the good guys and that the cops keep us safe. I don't know what to tell them anymore. I'm sure they do catch the badguys, but all too often, people of my skin color are looked at as the bad guys. As if our genetic make-up determined whether we were right or wrong doers. I used to dismiss that kind of talk as conspiracy theories, but as I grow older I just realize that I was a kid that wanted to believe better about the world.

I have a story about being thrown in jail for a week for contempt of court, but that's for another time. That one hard to talk about and is way more of an injustice than this.

I still manage to stay in an overall good mood. Complaining helps people deal with stuff like this.