Sarah Palin's bus tour a hazard to motorists

Sarah Palin's tour a rolling menace

http://www.politico.com/news/stories...#ixzz1OFuEvCZu

SEABROOK, N.H. — Sarah Palin’s bus is plastered with a mock-up of the
U.S. Constitution. But her entourage — both the three-vehicle
motorcade that includes the bus and the smaller, two-SUV version she
uses for smaller events — hasn’t been very respectful of traffic laws.

They speed. They run red lights and stop signs. They make last-second
lane changes to get off the highway, sometimes without signaling.

So do the reporters following them.

Journalists in the caravan trailing her “One Nation” tour bus describe
the experience as harrowing, a rolling menace careening up the East
Coast in hot pursuit of the former Alaska governor who declined to
provide any advance itinerary of her tour over six days on the road.

As they left the clambake she attended Thursday in New Hampshire,
Palin’s two-SUV caravan traveled at 52 miles per hour in a 35 mph zone
as it peeled away from the hosts’ neighborhood. Both cars blew through
a stop sign about a mile later. They did 70 mph in a 55 mph zone on
I-95 — and then, after they got off, without signaling, flew right
past a flashing sign informing them they were going 45 mph in a 35 mph
zone.

And that was after they had already stormed the major cities — and
just missed driving through a tornado on the road into Boston.

On Tuesday, the bus nearly hit a biker turning off of Pine Street in
Philadelphia.

On Wednesday, after a police escort led the bus through a closed
section of the Lincoln Tunnel, the bus ran at least two red lights
racing up Sixth Avenue and through Columbus Circle in Midtown
Manhattan. Before long, a cop pulled up, pointing out to the first
reporter trailing the bus how many lights they were running. The
reporter apologized — but begged to stick with the bus. The perplexed
cop let him go.

On Thursday, the story was much the same. Palin’s two SUVs — used for
minor events and tight spaces — braved the tiny, winding streets of
Boston’s North End. And when the bus joined them, the trailing car in
the entourage ran two red lights after the bus barely made it through
the yellow, as did the media caravan, leaving behind a traffic jam for
the locals.

The reporters who are speeding, tailgating, cutting off other cars,
blasting through roundabouts and passing on the right in an effort to
keep up, say they have no other choice since they never know what
Palin’s up to or where she’s headed — and aides typically won’t tell
them anything. Once they’re on the road, they’re filing urgent updates
by phone and figuring out unorthodox bathroom breaks, like the
reporter who pulled over to relieve himself on the side of the highway
going from Gettysburg, Pa., to Philadelphia — drawing notice from both
Palin aides and the rest of the trailing press.

“It’s like paparazzi,” said one reporter who followed Palin to the
Thursday evening clambake. “It’s like following Princess Diana.”

On 6/3/2011 7:06 PM, lyon_wonder wrote:

> The reporters who are speeding, tailgating, cutting off other cars,
> blasting through roundabouts and passing on the right in an effort to
> keep up, say they have no other choice since they never know what
> Palin’s up to or where she’s headed — and aides typically won’t tell
> them anything. Once they’re on the road, they’re filing urgent updates
> by phone and figuring out unorthodox bathroom breaks, like the
> reporter who pulled over to relieve himself on the side of the highway
> going from Gettysburg, Pa., to Philadelphia — drawing notice from both
> Palin aides and the rest of the trailing press.
>
> “It’s like paparazzi,” said one reporter who followed Palin to the
> Thursday evening clambake. “It’s like following Princess Diana.”

How many reporters got tickets for that sort of crap?

On 6/3/2011 7:06 PM, lyon_wonder wrote:
> Sarah Palin's tour a rolling menace
>
> http://www.politico.com/news/stories...#ixzz1OFuEvCZu
>
> SEABROOK, N.H. — Sarah Palin’s bus is plastered with a mock-up of the
> U.S. Constitution. But her entourage — both the three-vehicle
> motorcade that includes the bus and the smaller, two-SUV version she
> uses for smaller events — hasn’t been very respectful of traffic laws.
>
> They speed. They run red lights and stop signs. They make last-second
> lane changes to get off the highway, sometimes without signaling.

A lot of speed limits, especially in a state like NH, are underposted.
I'm sure that NH posts unnecessary stop signs. As for signaling, I
rarely see other drivers signal when they change lanes, so that's
nothing new as well.

> They did 70 mph in a 55 mph zone on I-95

I'm sure that's as fast as most traffic flows through there.

In article >,
lyon_wonder > wrote:

> http://www.politico.com/news/stories...#ixzz1OFuEvCZu

According to the photo caption, two of the three vehicles in her
motorcade are Segways.

On Fri, 03 Jun 2011 18:06:49 -0500, lyon_wonder
> wrote:

>Sarah Palin's tour a rolling menace
>
>http://www.politico.com/news/stories...#ixzz1OFuEvCZu
>
>SEABROOK, N.H. — Sarah Palin’s bus is plastered with a mock-up of the
>U.S. Constitution. But her entourage — both the three-vehicle
>motorcade that includes the bus and the smaller, two-SUV version she
>uses for smaller events — hasn’t been very respectful of traffic laws.
>
>They speed. They run red lights and stop signs. They make last-second
>lane changes to get off the highway, sometimes without signaling.
>
>So do the reporters following them.
>
>Journalists in the caravan trailing her “One Nation” tour bus describe
>the experience as harrowing, a rolling menace careening up the East
>Coast in hot pursuit of the former Alaska governor who declined to
>provide any advance itinerary of her tour over six days on the road.
>
>As they left the clambake she attended Thursday in New Hampshire,
>Palin’s two-SUV caravan traveled at 52 miles per hour in a 35 mph zone
>as it peeled away from the hosts’ neighborhood. Both cars blew through
>a stop sign about a mile later. They did 70 mph in a 55 mph zone on
>I-95 — and then, after they got off, without signaling, flew right
>past a flashing sign informing them they were going 45 mph in a 35 mph
>zone.
>
>And that was after they had already stormed the major cities — and
>just missed driving through a tornado on the road into Boston.
>
>On Tuesday, the bus nearly hit a biker turning off of Pine Street in
>Philadelphia.
>
>On Wednesday, after a police escort led the bus through a closed
>section of the Lincoln Tunnel, the bus ran at least two red lights
>racing up Sixth Avenue and through Columbus Circle in Midtown
>Manhattan. Before long, a cop pulled up, pointing out to the first
>reporter trailing the bus how many lights they were running. The
>reporter apologized — but begged to stick with the bus. The perplexed
>cop let him go.
>
>On Thursday, the story was much the same. Palin’s two SUVs — used for
>minor events and tight spaces — braved the tiny, winding streets of
>Boston’s North End. And when the bus joined them, the trailing car in
>the entourage ran two red lights after the bus barely made it through
>the yellow, as did the media caravan, leaving behind a traffic jam for
>the locals.
>
>The reporters who are speeding, tailgating, cutting off other cars,
>blasting through roundabouts and passing on the right in an effort to
>keep up, say they have no other choice since they never know what
>Palin’s up to or where she’s headed — and aides typically won’t tell
>them anything. Once they’re on the road, they’re filing urgent updates
>by phone and figuring out unorthodox bathroom breaks, like the
>reporter who pulled over to relieve himself on the side of the highway
>going from Gettysburg, Pa., to Philadelphia — drawing notice from both
>Palin aides and the rest of the trailing press.
>
>“It’s like paparazzi,” said one reporter who followed Palin to the
>Thursday evening clambake. “It’s like following Princess Diana.”


That's pretty much how everyone drives in China.

On Jun 4, 12:45*am, Arif Khokar > wrote:

> A lot of speed limits, especially in a state like NH, are underposted.

Even if your claim is true, it is irrelevant.

We live in a civil society. If everyone picked and chose what laws to
obey and what laws to ignore because they didn't like them, we'd have
anarchy.

On 06/05/2011 02:35 PM, wrote:
> On Jun 4, 12:45 am, Arif > wrote:
>
>> A lot of speed limits, especially in a state like NH, are underposted.
>
> Even if your claim is true, it is irrelevant.
>
> We live in a civil society. If everyone picked and chose what laws to
> obey and what laws to ignore because they didn't like them, we'd have
> anarchy.

Or a revolution... much like the one that founded this country...
unreasonable laws NEED civil disobedience, challenges in the courts, etc.

nate


--
replace "roosters" with "cox" to reply.
http://members.cox.net/njnagel

On 6/5/2011 2:35 PM, wrote:
> On Jun 4, 12:45 am, Arif > wrote:
>
>> A lot of speed limits, especially in a state like NH, are underposted.
>
> Even if your claim is true, it is irrelevant.
>
> We live in a civil society. If everyone picked and chose what laws to
> obey and what laws to ignore because they didn't like them, we'd have
> anarchy.

I'm talking about a speed limit that has a fraction of a percent
compliance. Your reductio ad absurdum isn't applicable in this case.

On Jun 5, 2:47*pm, Nate Nagel > wrote:
> > We live in a civil society. *If everyone picked and chose what laws to
> > obey and what laws to ignore because they didn't like them, we'd have
> > anarchy.
>
> Or a revolution... much like the one that founded this country...
> unreasonable laws NEED civil disobedience, challenges in the courts, etc.


Then I'm sure you'll appreciate and applaud "lawnchair" highway
planning which takes place in some cities. There, citizens blockade a
highway until speed limits are lowered and enforced and stop signs
installed. Or, "civil disobediance" in the effect of throwing eggs at
drivers going too fast through a neighborhood.

Likewise, I'm sure you support citizen enforcement where private
citizens file formal police complaints against things like parking in
a hadicapped zone or speeding. The motorist, unless they're willing
to plead guilty to the charges, must appear in court and fight them.

On Jun 6, 10:20*am, wrote:
> On Jun 5, 2:47*pm, Nate Nagel > wrote:
>
> > > We live in a civil society. *If everyone picked and chose what laws to
> > > obey and what laws to ignore because they didn't like them, we'd have
> > > anarchy.
>
> > Or a revolution... much like the one that founded this country...
> > unreasonable laws NEED civil disobedience, challenges in the courts, etc.
>
> Then I'm sure you'll appreciate and applaud "lawnchair" highway
> planning which takes place in some cities. *There, citizens blockade a
> highway until speed limits are lowered and enforced and stop signs
> installed.

Stop signs have no place on a "highway." Neither to people not in
vehicles.

>*Or, "civil disobediance" in the effect of throwing eggs at
> drivers going too fast through a neighborhood.
>
> Likewise, I'm sure you support citizen enforcement where private
> citizens file formal police complaints against things like parking in
> a hadicapped zone or speeding. *The motorist, unless they're willing
> to plead guilty to the charges, must appear in court and fight them.

The funny thing is, it seems that in a schadenfreudey sort of way, the
people complaining about driving transgressions in a neighborhood are
often the ones subsequently complaining about being cited for those
same offenses once the targeted enforcement for which they clamored is
actually instituted.

That makes me smile.

nate