Parking meters

[JonM]

Ok, it is disturbingly early in the morning, but this idea seemed at least mildly interesting at 5am.  I was reading about peguinsscareme's dancing expo on TCF from her link and got an idea from a post on page 4.

Now I realized that 40 of the next 45 pages on this thread will be of commentary on his dancing, but so be it.

Anyway, someone mentioned about feeding parking meters ahead of a meter maid, and how they get tweaked at that.  The next reply is of hearing of people being arrested for that sort of activity.  Now I know feeding meters isn't as sexy as buffing nails or going toe to toe with the TSA, but as the summer ramps up and slow news days abound, I toss this idea out for consideration.

A quick search of the statutes doesn't show any prohibition from someone feeding meters on someone else?s behalf, but the state can get creative in it s charges.

Is there any knowledge of a good samaritan being harassed for feeding someone else's meter in the granite state?  Any soft underbelly of resident resentment at parking meters that could be explored?

[Kat Kanning]

Heh, sounds like a fun one   The Rogue Parking Meter Feeders.

[ravelkinbow]

LMAO!!

[hamptoninsider]

Smart business people have been feeding their patron's meters for years. ?McQuades (gone) for years leased municipal parking spaces for their customers across from ?City Hall behind their building on Elm Street .

About 15 years ago, a Manchester or Nashua real estate broker got in trouble for being a meter samaritan. ?He would leave his card on the windshield after performing the deed. ?Guess was observed one time too many. ?I believe the case was thrown out of district court.

Our group in Hampton had an overwhelming mandate against metering of non-metered parking spaces on beach sidestreets. ?The 2004 Petitioned Warrant (Article 32) also mandated no elimination two-sided parking on the same streets. ?

In March our Precinct authorized us to form a Sidewalk and Parking committee to develop alternate sidewalk /parking strategy to avoid elimination of another 300 parkings spaces that are non-metered.

Group has developed a survey that is being conducted. ?One sidewalk injunction was already filed in RCSC. ?See 363 Days of Martial Occupation in Hampton thread. ?Also see Hampton Eminent Domain Bad Boys thread.

It takes a lot of time and energy to fight issues that effect each and every community negatively.
Strategy and alliances with like-minded citizenry help. ? IJ has it right-----they're either for or against your cause. ? We have staved off an eminent domain blanket taking this time....

We will not stop fighting.....and will continue voting dead wood out of office.

[JonM]

I have a sense this one may be best done under the radar.  If there is no law against being a meter samaritan, then giving them advance notice will result in being left alone.  If people just do it and some meter maid gets a bit ticked and hassles the person, then there is a story.

[ravelkinbow]

Then maybe it would be best done with a video camera in hand.

[AlanM]

And how does this promote the idea of personnal responsibility?  ???

[SethCohn]

Concord has a real meter problem around the State House. (wink wink nudge nudge).  You might get the attention of the right people.

Ask Candy about her horror stories.

[ravelkinbow]

To be honest I would like a better understanding.

[JonM]

Should you be subject to arrest (which would likely never stand up in court) or harassasment by officials for being a nice person and feeding parking meters, depriving them of ticketing revenue?  If there is a place in New Hampshire where a meter maid is likely to give you grief for being nice to people because it makes his or her job useless, then why not point that out?

[AlanM]

Should you be subject to arrest (which would likely never stand up in court) or harassasment by officials for being a nice person and feeding parking meters, depriving them of ticketing revenue?? If there is a place in New Hampshire where a meter maid is likely to give you grief for being nice to people because it makes his or her job useless, then why not point that out?

That doesn't answer my question. How does this act promote individual responsibilty? To me it seems to do the opposite. You are taking away from the parkers, the responsibilty of paying for their own parking time. Don't get me wrong, I hate gov controlled meters, but don't see how this attacks gov control or increases personnal responsibility.

[JonM]

Why does it have to promote personal responsibility?  Can we not take issue with government injustice in all its forms?

[Pat McCotter]

I do this. When I am parking downtown (Concord) and the person next to me is expired I put a dime in theirs.

But...

In Concord there is a two hour limit at the parking meters. The parking enforcement officers do look for this also.

There is also a parking enforcement officer with a right-hand drive vehicle who drives along the parallel parking streets painting the treads of vehicles. He then drives along two or three hours later - depending on area - and checks. I haven't seent hem doing this in the diagonal parking on Main St.

Cheers!
Pat

[tracysaboe]

The real problem is parking socialism.

But their isn't much we can do about that untill roads become more of a free market endevor as well.

http://www.lewrockwell.com/gregory/gregory27.html

Tracy

P.S. Is it really vandalism to chop down parking meters like Cool Hand Luke? Our txes pay for them. Aren't they, collectively ours?

This is how socialism creates moral hazards.

[AlanM]

Why does it have to promote personal responsibility?? Can we not take issue with government injustice in all its forms?

It doesn't have to, necessarily. I would just appreciate someone answering my question, that's all. As I see it freedom is about personal responsbility. To me, anyway, a protest, or an act of civil disobedience should be about promoting personal responsibility, not just "sticking it to the Man".