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Politics : Actual left/right wing discussion -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Lane3 who wrote (6887)	6/3/2007 2:48:34 AM
From: TimF	Respond to of 10087

More taking things to the extreme Message 23559563

To: Lane3 who wrote (6887)	6/8/2007 1:40:24 PM
From: TimF	Respond to of 10087

Safer Every Day! Posted by Derek Perverse incentives can work in any direction you choose. I was talking here the other week about lab safety, and how it's a good thing to know where the fire extinguishers are. But what if you're working in a place where discharging one of those extinguishers sets off an avalanche of paperwork and committee meetings? Do you use the thing, or does the vision of all that wasted time give you pause, while the flames leap around your glassware? If it's a seriously nasty fire, you're probably going to pull the pin and worry about the consequences later (and for a fire like that, it's good to remember that going for that second extinguisher is usually a bad idea, compared to, say, diving for the stairs). But what if it's just medium bad, and if you're not sure if it's going to get worse? Other things being equal, you should probably do the most effective thing you can to put it out. But other things aren't always equal in industry. I've worked where the safety culture was limited to occasional warnings not to blow yourself up, and I've worked under intrusive, no-sparrow-shall-fall regimes. Neither of those, as far as I could see, kept me safer than the other. The problem is, if you're going to aggressively document every possible incident and near miss, to be entered into the massive database and discussed in detail at the mandatory regular safety meetings (attendance taken and computed into the year-end bonus formula). . .well, people are going to sit on most of the ones that they think that they can get away with. The harder you work to log every lapse, the more of them you'll miss. Once people have reached a certain level of competence and experience, lab safety is largely a matter of thinking about what you're doing, realizing what you know and what you don't know, and planning ahead. These are all highly desirable qualities, both in and out of the lab, and they cannot be expressed by decree. No safety committee is going to make people smarter, and no multi-page web form will make them more alert. In this world, actually, the opposite is much more likely. . . pipeline.corante.com chicagoboyz.net -- "...“The Iraqi Air Force just published its own safety regulation and they’re beginning to build the foundation for their aviation safety program,” Bonneau said. “This was an Iraqi course with some help from us.” Some of the help includes providing a new attitude toward accident prevention and investigation. “Their primary issue right now is overcoming a previous culture under Saddam Hussein which punished when you had accidents,” Bonneau said. “After an accident landing a MiG-25, one of the pilots was put on house arrest and unable to speak to anyone for three months. He was released when they found out it was a maintenance problem. We’re developing a new attitude to identify hazards and use risk management.”..." centcom.mil

To: Lane3 who wrote (6887)	6/15/2007 10:09:34 PM
From: TimF	Respond to of 10087

Word Cartograms. Maps of the world with the size of each country depending on population, war deaths, size of economy (both 2002 and 1500) and other factors. A Cartogram of the World’s Population strangemaps.wordpress.com How the world really shapes up dailymail.co.uk

To: Lane3 who wrote (6887)	6/25/2007 11:44:11 AM
From: TimF	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 10087

New traffic 'civil remedial fees' will wallop the wallets of traffic offenders Cathy Benson "The General Assembly dubbed the law the 'Dangerous Driver Law,' but it is much more far reaching than that," said Tommy Moore, clerk of the Botetourt Circuit Court. It will keep the clerk's office busy collecting the first of three annual civil fee payments from drivers convicted of any number of traffic violations. The civil fees will be on top of traffic fines courts impose, and are part of the new financial package to help fund Virginia's beleaguered highway department. For instance, an offender charged and convicted of reckless driving for going 20 mph over the speed limit would pay the traffic fines and court costs, plus be accessed a $1,000 civil fee. One-third of the civil fee would have to be paid the day of the conviction. The rest would be paid in two equal installments over the next two years. The Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) is responsible for collecting the final two payments The new system is designed to spread the fees into three yearly payments. The fees could reach into the hundreds or thousands of dollars for some traffic offenders. The idea, according to published a report, is "Drive Safe and Save Money." "We felt it would be a good thing to do for public safety and a unique way to raise more funding," said Del. Steve Landes, (R-Weyers Cave,) who co-sponsored the legislation this past winter. The civil fees will go into a newly created special transportation fund to pay for road construction. Local elected officials didn't want to go on the record commenting on this way of raising funds for transportation in the state, but privately several said it was a way of keeping the Republican-controlled General Assembly from having to implement a new tax or raise taxes for the troubled transportation system. Gov. Tim Kaine, a Democrat, signed the bill into law. Instead of direct taxes to fund transportation, some are calling the civil penalties "hidden fees." They range from $250 to $3,000, depending on the traffic violation, and will be assessed on a variety of misdemeanor traffic violations including being a passenger in a hit and run or the failure to give a proper signal. Moore provided a print out of violations that he received at the circuit court clerks conference on June 4 and 5. The print out filled five pages. Many of the civil fees do address alcohol as was the intent of the "Dangerous Driver Law" when it originated, but the fees also may be accessed for such daily traffic violations as rolling through a stop sign (a fee of $300), or impeding traffic--a charge that's possible when stopping in front of your mailbox to get the mail. The civil fee alone for a conviction on the latter is $300. Play an R or X rated movie on the van DVD player and if it is seen by someone in another vehicle, a driver can be charged and fined with having an obscene video image seen from outside the car. The civil fee is $300. The new law takes effect July 1. Botetourt County Commonwealth's Attorney Joel Branscom feels this will be hitting some folks who can least afford the extra fees. If a convicted traffic offender does not pay the fees for whatever reason, the person's driver's license is revoked. The fees will be hitting many of those who can least afford to lose a driver's permit, and the fallout could keep people from being able to work or pay child support, and that is already a part of the downward spiral many traffic offenders are already facing, said both Branscom and Moore, who see dire effects with the new set of civil fees. "Judges have no leeway with the new law," said Branscom. which means they cannot reduce or suspend the civil fees. According to Moore, after the court collects the first civil fee installment, the DMV collects the next two yearly installments and will use a collection agency to retrieve those final two payments. That adds a layer of cost in collection that will reduce the benefit to road funding. Those who have driving points on their record also will be assessed an additional $175 per point in civil fees for their previous record up to $700 if convicted of a new violation. Drivers from out of state will not be penalized by the civil system of fees because "the state can not go beyond its borders to collect the (civil) fees," said Moore. "These fees are for Virginia residents and those with a permit listing a Virginia address." July 1 looms in two weeks and the clerk's offices around the state are doing what they can to prepare for the collection of the first round of civil fees, which will bring a whole new aspect to traffic court in Virginia. Printer-friendly format Member Opinions: By: reality on 6/20/07 There are many highways where the majority of people exceed the posted speed limit by 20mph and therefore are by definition "reckless" though in reality they harm no one. Why not update the speed limits and make the laws reflect the will of the people instead of creating new laws to extract money from hard working citizens?... ourvalley.org