Unleashing My Inner Nanny Democrat
I’m not a fan of handicapped parking spaces. Sure, I think that some people need special access and that is fine. I take issue with the abuse of handicapped stickers and the idiots who park in handicapped spaces without the little sticker. I mentioned before that I thought it was a bit odd that the World’s Largest Athletic Shoe Store had a ton of handicapped spaces. And don’t get me started on the Expectant Mother parking spaces.
A phenomenon I have noticed recently is that a great number of the people I see parking in handicapped spaces have no discernable handicap other than obesity. They’re not limping, they don’t have crutches or anything else that I can see. Not to be totally harsh or anything but these people could use a bit more exercise. Maybe we should force them to park on the far end and take the stairs when there’s an elevator, it’s for their own good.
In fact, I’d like to see parking lots further segregated. Let’s have the following categories:
Crazy Doped-Up Soccer Mom Who Hates Her Life With Four Kids Looking For An Excuse To Go Nuts Parking
Liberal Parking, To The Left Please
113 Pound Woman Driving Big Ass SUV That She Can’t Handle Parking (extra wide spaces)
I’m Just Running In To Pee Parking
Hey, It’s My Birthday Parking
What The Hell Are You Staring At? Parking
I’m On My Lunch Break So Hurry The Hell Up Parking
People Who Nick Car Doors With Their Car Door Parking
POS Parking
September 4th, 2003 at 1:02 pm
Hey I think you’re on to something. This sounds like a god given right that I’ve been refused, someone call the govunm’t. This ain’t right…lets start a movement. .. š
September 4th, 2003 at 2:20 pm
They already have this. In fact, they have their own entire lot. It’s called the Green Hills Mall parking lot, right here in Nashville.
September 4th, 2003 at 2:31 pm
They apparently think they have their own road too. Both lanes of it on alcoa hwy.
September 4th, 2003 at 2:49 pm
*laughs at Chris’comment*
I’m the first one to agree with you about the abuse, but don’t forget that not all handicaps are visisble. My mother(not overweight)has respiratory and vascular issues and cannot walk great distances.
There are way too many people who feel “entitled” to these spaces for some reason, though. I once watched a one-legged guy (who used a regular space by his own choice)screaming at some guy who was waiting in the car in a handicapped space at the grocery. People started appluading.
September 4th, 2003 at 2:50 pm
Of course, my typing handicap is all too visible right now.
September 4th, 2003 at 3:08 pm
I go both ways on the handicapped parking issue.
On the one hand, my father had both of his flesh and blood knee joints replaced by stainless steel and teflon. His recovery is not complete, and given his age, may never be. He did gain a lot of ground from this operation. He has a handicapped parking pass and his infirmity is not visible.
On the other hand, I once had a job delivering kegs of beer. The vehicle had a special pass to park in commercial loading zones. The most important one of these in the whole city was the one in front of the brewery, which had no off-street parking. This spot was frequently occupied by the holder of a handicapped pass (exempt from the commercial load zone’s requirements), who had no visible infirmity and ran a second hand goods/junk stall in the adjacent farmer’s market. They would park there at dawn and stay until dark. When this occurred, I had to park in the next available space, which could be several blocks away, and lug kegs for this distance to load them into the delivery vehicle. Needless to say, this did not sit well with me.
September 4th, 2003 at 3:48 pm
I have on occasion pulled into a handicap space to drop someone off, or to wait while they went (briefly) into the store. But I would have had no problem moving if it was apparent a handicapped person was wanting the space, and would have done so gladly.
It is imperative, however, that the cars display their tags prominantly.
September 4th, 2003 at 4:47 pm
I like to park in expectant mothers spaces just to see people give me the evil eye. If a pregnant woman has trouble negotiating the extra 10 yards from a normal space vs the “stork place” then she doesnt need to be on the fucking road.
September 4th, 2003 at 5:05 pm
My father’s handicapped parking pass is one of those things that hangs from the rear view mirror. He takes it down when he is driving so that he can see. Effectively, this makes his car look like any other while he is behind the wheel…which means Barry’s imperative is always violated, at least in the case I am most familiar with.
September 4th, 2003 at 7:16 pm
It is hard to tell who is and isn’t handicapped. My father isn’t obviously handicapped but has breathing problems.
However, when I see some 17 year old ‘babe’ or ‘dude’ bouncing out of their car parked in a handicapped space, and dancing toward the store, I will admit that I get just a tad bit irritable.
And “New Sports Car Owner” space. Parallel parks in a diagonal parking zone, taking up 3 spaces, for fear that someone might dent his/her new baby.
September 4th, 2003 at 10:55 pm
I have no problem with someone removing their tag while they’re driving, but it needs to be in place when they’re parked. And in my hypothetical situation, if they hung the tag up where I could see it as they were indicating they wanted the space, I would move – no problem.
Oh, and Justin, you’re just a ray of sunshine in a rainy world, you know that?
September 5th, 2003 at 9:12 am
I try my best Barry…oh how I try….
š