speed fines do they work

within a year+ of getting my next car i copped 3 fines. mostly i put it down to learning the new vehicle and how it works.

once was when i accidentally ran a red light. yes accidentally. my friend was directing, said turn here, so i slowed to turn, then she said, no this isn't the turn keep going. so i accelerated. as i did the light turned orange and i wasn't going slow enough to stop on time. the car kind of lurched forward as though the press of the accelerator was slow to start and then it was on.
i went to break, knew i would stop over the line so kept going. next thing it's paparazzi and i'm driving down the red carpet. chick chick chick. cameras lighting up.

next was when i was over taking a slow ute driver doing 75 in an 80 zone. he'd been driving slow for kilometers. finally i had a break in traffic and accelerated to move into flowing traffic. trouble was it was a down hill slope. again the accelerator went vroom. and there i am, paparazzi again, doing 85 in an 80 zone. chick chick.

next was ages later driving through town at 60 trying to figure out why my cruise control won't work. i kept pressing cruise on, then pushing the button up or down to set the speed at 60, let go of the accelerator and my speed creeps up again towards 70. i try again and again and again, pressing up and down and around and round. still when i leave it to the car to stay at that speed it creeps up. next thing paparazzi pop out of nowhere, flashing cameras at me like i'm a super star. and i get done for 68 in a 60 zone.

you've got to be kidding me!

what each of those stories have in common, that a stagnant camera on a pole and those who reap the rewards don't care about, is there was never any intent. surely intent has to play a part if it's to be considered a crime.

use to be police had to follow you for 3kms before booking you because they had to know you were deliberately trying to speed. not some accidental press of an accelerator or an inability to work cruise control or stop in time.

on a road (just one road) that generates $20 million a year for the government, there are 2 cameras along one stretch of road only 7kms apart. my friend got done twice in minutes of each other for doing over 100km along that road. got done twice! that's like pulling someone over and giving them 2 fines for the same crime.

so not only do they think people with no intent are criminals, they also book those 'criminals' twice for the same crime. and all because the government has gotten drunk of the lucrative rewards those stagnant (let's take a 1 second view of a person's life and pretend to know they've committed a crime without giving them the benefit of the doubt) cameras bring in.

some times the world is a shameful place to live.