Punish the Driver, Not the Car

[spiffyguido]

The following is my opinion, nothing more:

I just want to say that the new law in California to crush street racers' cars is a complete load of bunka. I find the law to be childish and wasteful on the part of the California legal system.

In California, anyone caught street racing will have their car impounded and crushed. I am absolutely against street racing because of the dangers it imposes on the general public, but to crush a good car is purely wasteful, nothing more. I realize that California is trying to utilize the emotional attachment that car enthusiasts feel for their cars to enforce a law, but this is taking it to far.

Why do I oppose this new law?:

-It's unfair:
Theoretically speaking, street racers could come from many economic backgrounds. Ownership of a car can mean far different things between individuals. To some, cars are a dime-a-dozen, to others, a car may represent years of saving. If you crush a car owned by someone who saved for years to buy the car is that punishment equal to crushing the car of someone who will just buy a new one the next day?

-It's wasteful:
A car is a valuable item. Cars have real use, real value and are needed by many different people. To crush a functioning car is a waste. How would the people feel if California decided to demolish the homes of convicted felons? Such a law would never see the light of day.

-It opens too many oportunities for sociological profiling:
I predict that stereotypes will come into play big time with this new law. In my own experience, I have witnessed just as many middle-aged men racing their Porsches through city streets as I have young teenages racing their souped Honda Civics. A street racer is a street racer, but I fear that this law will mainly end up targeting young kids because of the stereotype that has been given to riced out import cars. It likely won't be long before some poor kid gets his ride crushed because he had his subwoofers booming and inadvertedly chirped his tires by accidentally dropping the clutch too hard. Suddenly 'stunting' (as it is referred to in Canadian law) will get kids pulled over by jerk cops and result in the loss of their car.

Bottom line: It's not the car's fault. Punish the driver, not the car.

I would fully support the notion of handing out jail sentences and vehicle seizures for people found street racing; it's a serious crime, and should be dealt with as such. Many people are hurt or killed each year due to street racing incidents, but it's no reason to crush a perfectly good car.

I suppose next we'll see them implementing a law to burn down the house of anyone they deem to be an arsenist? I think not.

See what AutoBlog had to say about this and watch the video of the inaugeral crush:
http://www.autoblog.com/2007/06/20/paul ... et-racers/

PS: May I remind our members that PreludeDriver.com strictly forbids street racing in all forms. Don't do it!

[rancidhooligan]

I could see fining them or possibly giving them community service the first time they get caught. After all, most street racers are probably young and stupid and they don't understand the gravity of what they're doing.

The second time they get caught I could see some real jail time, maybe impounding the car for a certain period of time and having them pay to get it released but to crush it? Just take it away and destroy it? That's not fair.

Whose to say some 17 year old who gets caught street racing won't change his tune? Should his car, that he spent all those summers off from high school working to buy and fix up get crushed because he made one mistake as a teenager? I think not.

[Sanova]

Agreed wasteful was the appropriate word to use.