The Game of Life

FAIRNESS

In all fairness to the word I will say it is a rather pretty looking word, although a word that is useless in our language. What is fair? I was taught that “playing fair” means playing by the agreed upon rules. These rules are made to prevent arguments over what is “fair”. These rules are not subject to change. Monopoly has “rules” of this nature and they have been the same for over 20 years! No “amendments” or “ratifications” just consistent “rules of the game.”

In our nation today we change the rules on a daily basis; I am thinking this is to insure that no one “cheats” in life. We change the rules to meet our needs at the time. These rules are never consistent and most of them most of us have never heard of. These rules are “written to protect”, I want to know who they are suppose to protect, me or the people paid to enforce them.

For the most part I am a “law abiding” citizen. I usually wear my seat belt, more for the example for my children than for your personal safety. In fact I am not even sure how me wearing a seat belt insures your safety. I “don’t smoke in public” so it is not my smoke that is causing non-smokers to be cranky. Maybe they should light up! I don’t wear fur; this is a personal preference not an “animal rights” movement. I vote when I am suppose to, maybe not for “who I am suppose to” but I make it to the poles, there fore I also have the right to complain….

More than a complaint, for the first time in my life I am right and the people “who make the rules are idiots! I am not sure why the rest of the world can not see it but our “rules” to make “life fair” are the exact reason life is screwed up!!

A prime example that most states have now enacted is the “Mandatory Insurance Laws”. Now I understand the “need” for insurance. I am also under the impression that insurance was originally started for people to buy to protect themselves. I do believe insurance became a HUGE hit in the 1970’s when people discovered “the right to blame”. At this time everyone and anyone was “suing” anyone and everyone. an easy way to make a dime. This started the whole mess we are in now. More “rules” had to be made to make sure we were all “playing fair”, due to insurance companies having the entire nations police force backing them, they can now charge what ever they want as well as make up their own “rules” to a game we have no choice but to play.

In all “fairness” I should be able to “not play” if I so chose. So my beef is not about mandatory insurance but about the prices and how they are allocated.

A young couple in their 20’s with two small children, starting out their lives trying to “play by the rules” unfortunately they discovered that to “buy into the game” was costly so they have to “rent” from another player. Their “rent” is over half of their income as they are “new to the game” and must start at the beginning.

With the “high cost of living” and the “low wages” society pays for beginning jobs these young people quickly discovered they would have to “cut” corners somewhere. Diapers? Baby formula? Already living without a phone or cable they cut the insurance saving themselves $380 dollars a month!!! See our society requires us to have “insurance coverage” on our automobiles, the banks require us to have “full coverage” on any car with a lean on it therefore the insurance companies can charge what ever they want of our young people, not bothering to consider what these same young people will have to “live without” in order to pay for the insurance.

This young couple is heading home from Anchorage to Wasilla, where they were forced to move in order to afford to live outside of their parent’s home. Both their young babies safely in their car seats sleeping in the back, worried about moose and other motorists they set the cruise control at 60 and settled in to enjoy the ride. Red and Blue lights flashed behind them and they pulled over, they were stopped for having a “dirty license plate” in the spring time in Alaska! Not “cited” for any traffic violations the officer discovered they had no insurance. In our state this is an arrest able offense, although the officer that night was nice and did not “arrest” anyone but the car.

Okay consequences for our actions, it is the law to have insurance, and the law states that your car will be “impounded” if you do not have “proof”. Sounds kind of like a bunch of ten year olds talking about the opposite sex. So this young couple was lucky enough to have just received a “tax return” and they happened to have the money to pay the 300 dollar fine and purchase the insurance so they could provide the “proof”. Taking the day off work to accomplish this so they would have a car for transportation to work, a must if you are going to make it to your place of employment on time, they waited for the impound lot to “return” their call, they waited and waited and waited. Finally a call was received from the lot and the couple was informed that “an officer has 48 hours to turn in his paper work.” Seems like plenty of time to “forget” the facts. Without the paper work the car can not be processed and released. So they must wait. This wait is costing them 150 dollars a day!!! In impound lot fees. So now they are “being punished” for “paying their consequences”, what the hell kind of message is that to send to our young people.

"HEY KID PAY THE CONSEQUENCES FOR YOUR ACTIONS…THEN WE CAN KEEP PUNISHING YOU FOR THE HELL OF IT.”

I want to ask everyone why this is right. Why are we punishing the ones who were not complying for good reason, then do comply? Why is this “little incident” costing my children more than a drunk must pay to “get back on the road”? And how is a young family suppose to “make it” in today’s world?

So this “little ordeal” is not over yet, even though the young couple did what “was required” of them, they were also informed that the car will be released “on bail” when the paper work is processed. What the hell does that mean? Are they afraid the car is going to run? If they do not return to court on the appointed court date, even if they are not arguing the offense, the car will have a warrant put out for its arrest!!! So watch out for the new spike it taxes when we have to pay for all the “retained” automobiles to have wash and wax jobs regularly. Automobile rights activists everywhere will jump on that ban wagon. They have the “right to hold the automobile in custody for 30 days.” Wow that car better not get caught again next time it might get life.

So I want to know why we do not just go back to the days of “flogging”. Seems like a much more humane means of punishment then taking a young family’s transportation to work, charging them all kinds of “momentary fines”, “impound fees”, and still allowing an insurance company to gouge them for another grand up front plus monthly fees of 200 dollars.

This young couple is lucky…they will have family to help them out when they are living in an abandoned house in Mountain View. HELLO WORLD…cant you see it….

You take the car, they still must pay the car payments or the bank will be taking it from the impound lot, you charge them any and all money they have saved for the months bills so they can “retrieve the car” and still get to work then tell them to wait another 48 hours to 30 days, then the land lord wants his rent, the electric company wants their bill paid, the gas company will not wait another month and the cost of fuel to sleep in the car is too high .

Welfare will not “kick in” if you are employed or quit your job due to “lack of transportation”. There is a waiting list miles long to get on state housing, and the local churches are all “maxed out”. So now you have a “desperate young couple”, this young couple has now become high risk for domestic violence, manufacturing and selling drugs for income, and stealing: All due to a “dirty license plate”.

Wake up world my kids are not alone, I am sure millions of young people are driving without insurance, not to be defiant but to survive. Punishing them by taking their “source of survival” is why our young people have turned to “other means” for making money. They no longer “trust” us to “do what is right”. Most of the young people on the streets today have watched society push their parents to the lowest point, why would they trust societies “rules”? Why would they even want to play the game? They are set up to lose the minute they role the first dice. People, the problem does not lie in our schools, it is not “the kids fault”, it is ours, my generation, we have the problem and we need to deal with it. We need to GROW UP and quit “expecting” others to take care of the problems. We need to face up to the fact that we, not the children chose to drive through McDonalds waiting in a line full of cars for 15 minutes when there is absolutely no body in side the store. Obesity is not their fault it’s our life style just as automobile insurance has become our dictator, with the entire police force enforcing their scheme.

So everyone buckle up, make sure your insurance “proof” is in the glove box, pop that hot fry in your mouth, dial up that cell phone, crank the tunes, and drive the two blocks to Safeway for the milk that you can not get at the drive thru. Don’t mind the young family outside the store, they are just passing time” waiting for mommy to get off work” so they can return to their “insured car” and sleep away their hungry tummys.