Subject: Re: What do I do with my Radar Detector while in Virginia?

From: [email-masked] (John Burton)
Date: 08 Nov 1995 15:22:48 GMT

In article <[email-masked]> [email-masked] (Bob Goudreau) writes:

   John Burton ([email-masked]) wrote:
   : As far as radar detectors...The problem isn't the device, its people
   : (like me) cruising down the road at 65-70mph getting literally "blown
   : off the road" by trucks, buses, and cars that feel 80mph is a
   : "reasonable" speed. 
   ...
   : The key is, you are welcome to go to hell in your own handbasket, but
   : doing so on the highway makes it much more likely that you will take
   : me and/or my family with you. You want to speed, go ahead, just don't
   : do it when I'm on the road...

   Why do you reserve for yourself the right to speed (remember, you
   admit to "crusing down the road at 65-70 mph"), but want to deny it
   to others?  Oh, I see, you're one of those hypocritical pro-55 left
   lane hog assholes.  Sorry to intrude on your hell-bound handbasket.

Sorry to burst your bubble Bob, but the speed limit on the Interstate
near my house *is* 65mph, as it is in *many* parts of the State of
Virginia. Perhaps you should be aware of the laws in a state before
you start flaming someone and exposing your ignorance...

   ----------------------------------------------------------------------
   Bob Goudreau			Data General Corporation
   [email-masked]		62 Alexander Drive	
   +1 919 248 6231			Research Triangle Park, NC  27709, USA

John
-- 
John Burton                      GATS, Inc.  
[email-masked]    28 Research Drive
[email-masked]         Hampton, VA 23666
(804) 865-7491 (voice)           (804) 865-1021 (fax)

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From: [email-masked] (John Burton)
Date: 08 Nov 1995 15:52:45 GMT

In article <[email-masked]> JGB-9357 <[email-masked]> writes:

   [email-masked] (John Burton) wrote:

   >Sorry, even that doesn't work (even though its the law :-). As I
   >mentioned in the rest of my post (which you didn't include), the bow
   >wave and wake of a large truck or bus moving at a "reasonable" speed
   >of 75mph can cause a smaller car or motorcycle to lose control. Even
   >the right lane is not safe from the aggressive driver in a
   >hurry. 

   Hence the need for awareness on the road.  Good point and I don't 
   have a reply for that yet.  Give me some time to think about it.

Driving a 650cc motorcycle on an interstate can do wonders for
improving your awareness of the road...bad weather is *really* a trip!

   >People changing lanes to avoid the speeder tend to cause a
   >significant percentage accidents... 

   Hmmmmmm......where is this from?

Actually I don't have the stats, just from personal observation from
many years of highway driving in small cars & motorcycles...its
amazing how many people focus on the speeder coming up behind them and
forget about the little car/motorcycle next to them...

   I'm sure you understand, just because I *say* shear layers don't 
   mix well at supersonic speeds, you're not going to believe me 
   without some referring docs.

Unless I've had experience in fluid dynmaics and compressible fluid
flow...:-)

John

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From: [email-masked] (Alison Rosenstengel)
Date: 2 Nov 1995 17:27:20 -0500

>Matthew T. Russotto ([email-masked]) wrote:
>: Contrary to popular belief, Virginia IS in the United States.  And if a cop
>: asks you how fast you are going or whether or not you were using a
>: radar detector, you are under absolutely no obligation to answer.  
>: My answer would probably be something like "Are radar detectors
>: illegal in this state?" I don't know whether lying can get you into
>: legal trouble-- I tend to doubt that telling a cop that you haven't
>: committed a crime when you, in fact, have can be interpreted as
>: obstruction of justice.  It's not the same as making false statements
>: under oath or on a signed police report.

Here's an analogy, however:  If you see a criminal running away to the 
east, and a policeman comes by and asks which way the criminal went, it's 
not obstruction of justice to say, "I don't know."  I understand, 
however, that it *is* obstruction of justice to say, "He went west."

I don't see why you can't just suck it up and not use the radar 
detector.  It's *the law* and the people of the state like the law.

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From: [email-masked]
Date: Thu, 09 Nov 1995 11:14:39 EST

>detector.  It's *the law* and the people of the state like the law.

Sez you. I live in the state, and I definitely do not like the law. Besides,
just because something is illegal does not make it wrong. Was drinking a
glass of beer or wine suddenly wrong simply because of Prohibition? Does
oral sex suddenly become depraved and immoral because you cross a state line
from where it is legal to where it is outlawed (which it is in Virginia).

The radar detector ban is a bad law. It's only purpose is to reinforce the
speed limits, which by and large are also bad laws. Speed limits in theory
are fine. In practice, they are an unjustified imposition on the motoring
public.

Michael Johnson
Relay Technology, Inc.
The opinions stated above are my own and not necessarily shared by Relay Technology