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comment by goobster
goobster  ·  2728 days ago  ·  link  ·    ·  parent  ·  post: Shake it up. Offer up one somewhat unpopular opinion that you hold.

Almost an excellent point, but the "Not all _____" argument is just the millennial's version of the slippery slope.

Sure. Some people don't own a car. That's fine. The vehicle they operate still needs to be maintained by the owner. And the driver still needs to prove they are capable of driving, by taking a test every 5 years. That's not too much to ask from someone sharing the road with me.





cgod  ·  2728 days ago  ·  link  ·  

Lol, I don't even know what you are trying to say with that first bit .

It seems like you are a little confused and really want two different but related things. You want drivers to have to prove they are capable drivers and you want cars to be inspected for safety concerns but you slammed them both together in your first post.

I'm not sure what kind of impact safety inspections are going to make when the rubber hits the road. I've never had an accident caused by poor vehicle maintenance. Before we start charging everyone $50 a pop for each car they own I'd like to see some evidence that it would be worthwhile.

goobster  ·  2727 days ago  ·  link  ·  

    Lol, I don't even know what you are trying to say with that first bit .

Association Fallacy. Aka, "Not all men..." or "Not all police..." or "Not all black men..." etc. It's a red flag that whatever follows the ellipsis is bullshit.

    Before we start charging everyone $50 a pop for each car they own I'd like to see some evidence that it would be worthwhile.

All of the EU. All of Japan. China. Basically any civilized nation in the world has regular inspections for anything that operates in the public sphere, and could harm the public. Elevators, traffic lights, buses, and passenger vehicles, all require regular inspections, and defects found during those inspections must be repaired and validated.

Or, ya know, like every single commercial vehicle operated on any road in America today.

cgod  ·  2727 days ago  ·  link  ·  

And I'd still like to see some evidence.

user-inactivated  ·  2728 days ago  ·  link  ·  

    And the driver still needs to prove they are capable of driving, by taking a test every 5 years.

I agree with that. I think cgod's argument is correct, and I think there's a solution:

Instead of checking the car, take a test. Road signs, situation response, maybe virtual driving around the city. Same $50, reasonable result.

You fail, you take some time and try once more, for another $50.

Speaking of which...

    There isn't anyone in the USA who cannot save $10/year. Or even $1/week for a year.

Personal finance is not the most popular activity even in the US, is it?

goobster  ·  2727 days ago  ·  link  ·  

    Personal finance is not the most popular activity even in the US, is it?

Well, the knee-jerk liberal keyboard-jockey reaction to any sort of regulation is, "But the poor can't afford that! It prevents their access to (insert name of service here)."

Which is patently bullshit. If you have a car, you have far larger expenses on far more regular basis. Coming up with $50 every 5 years is not a tall hurdle. So I wanted to stifle that particular complaint before it came up.

user-inactivated  ·  2727 days ago  ·  link  ·  

Perhaps. I'm out of my depth talking about financing your safety campaign. I was just curious about the situation in the US.