Apparently, Councilor Sanchez spent a little time reading a report on MSNBC.com about the city of Dallas' plan to turn off their scam-eras (read it here). The city council in the lone star state has figured out that while the public safety benefits are negligible not to mention in dispute, the monetary benefit is that was initially substantial starts to dwindle if for no other reason than people are generally smarter than the council and simply avoid the stationary revenue generators.
At the heart of the discussions taking place in city councils and county commissions is tension between the twin benefits that were touted when local governments began installing cameras about a decade and a half ago. Officials were promised that the cameras — which take snapshots of busy intersections, capturing the license plates of any cars that are running the light — would simultaneously save lives and generate millions of dollars in extra fines. [emphasis added]
Now that revenue is down - way down - the City of Dallas is considering shuttering as many as a quarter of their installed cameras and Councilor Sanchez wants to look at following their lead. We also don't think it's a coincidence that Sanchez's move comes just after the legislature voted to confiscate the profit from The Almighty Alcalde's scam.
What is particularly alarming here is that people like Councilor Sanchez will shutdown the cameras in a second if they fail to bring home the bacon but could care less about the little things like due process, liberty, justice, and The Constitution for that matter. They claim that their overriding concern is public safety, but when the crash reduction efficacy of the scam-eras cannot be proven those same politicians continue to support its continuation - right up until the revenue dries up.
It has always been about the money. It will always be about the money. And now these yahoos in the city councils of both Dallas and right here in Albuquerque are all but admitting that the only thing that will end the scam is a lack of... money. They should be ashamed of themselves and we should think twice before we send them back their respective legislative bodies.
What is particularly alarming here is that people like Councilor Sanchez will shutdown the cameras in a second if they fail to bring home the bacon but could care less about the little things like due process, liberty, justice, and The Constitution for that matter. They claim that their overriding concern is public safety, but when the crash reduction efficacy of the scam-eras cannot be proven those same politicians continue to support its continuation - right up until the revenue dries up.
It has always been about the money. It will always be about the money. And now these yahoos in the city councils of both Dallas and right here in Albuquerque are all but admitting that the only thing that will end the scam is a lack of... money. They should be ashamed of themselves and we should think twice before we send them back their respective legislative bodies.
