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The City of Keller has gotten a reputation as one where the police are rather strict about enforcing traffic laws.  Perhaps to the point of being overbearing.  However, on the good side, criminals also know about this reputation and will often avoid the area.

The police are a bit sensitive about this, likely due to the number of complaints they get from people who feel they were unfairly stopped.  What I’ve learned, though, is that the reality isn’t quite what people are perceiving.

• The city uses tickets as a source of revenue.  It turns out that most of the money from traffic fines goes to the state.  For example, of a $200 ticket, only $50 is retained by the city.  So it’s a good racket for the state, but not so much for the city.  If the ticket is contested in court, the city will likely lose money because of having to pay overtime for the officer to appear (in Keller the officers are subpoenaed to appear, so it’s not like in Dallas or Ft. Worth where some people take a chance on court in the hope that the officer won’t show up).
• The police are engaging in racial profiling.  First, by law, they keep statistics of race/gender for every stop.  But aside from that, they showed us some videos of traffic stops and I also went on a ride-along last Friday.  In many cases, it’s difficult to tell how many people are in the vehicle from behind, much less their race, especially at night(*).  From what I saw on the videos and first-hand on the ride-along, the officers are stopping people because they’ve committed a traffic offense, not because of race or any other factor.
• The police are being too hard on people (usually related to the idea that tickets are a source of revenue).  The average ticket in Keller is written for 17mph over the limit.  In fact, they usually don’t bother to stop anyone for less than 15mph over the limit.  KPD gives a lot of verbal warnings and only writes up serious speeding or traffic infractions.

I was previously one of the critics.  It seemed to me that everywhere you looked the police had someone pulled over.  But now that I’ve seen what they’re really doing, it doesn’t bother me so much.  While I think most of the speed limits around town are set too low, I don’t think they’re 15mph too low.  And from my experience, there are a lot of impatient and pissed-off drivers out there that need a few reminders to slow down.

(*)  This is true even from “The Beast” (the nickname given to KPD’s black-and-white Ford Expedition by the sergeant I was riding with). 

As I was working in the back yard yesterday I heard engines overhead, but they didn’t seem to be moving very fast.  Looking up I noticed a blimp coming over the house, but it wasn’t like any blimp I’ve ever seen before.  I went into the house to grab my camera and by the time I’d gotten back out it wasn’t over the house anymore.  Fortunately, I was able to zoom in and get a decent picture of it. 

For your viewing pleasure, I present the pimp blimp:  (click for supersize)

This definitely isn’t your father’s Goodyear Blimp…

I’m not dead (yet).  Although if this heat continues…

Anyhow, my lack of posting can be attributed to two things.  First, my laptop has been on the fritz.  The hard drive is dying and I’m still waiting for a replacement (which is on backorder).  It works intermittently and will fail at random and inopportune times.  A bit of percussive maintenance (a sharp rap with a fingertip) will often get it going again, but it’s living on borrowed time.  I suppose I could post from my work PC, but after spending all day working in my office, I don’t have much desire to go back in there when the day is done.

Second, the pollen counts were in the 7000-8000 range, which just completely sapped my energy.  The Claritin worked, but just barely.  Even though it controls the symptoms of sneezing and watery eyes, it can’t completely hide the fact that your immune system is at war with a foreign invader, which uses a lot of energy.

On each of the last two evening dog walks I’ve noticed a motorcycle rider going south on Rufe Snow.  The reason I noticed the rider is that I happened to recognize him and he stood out because he wasn’t wearing a helmet.  Texas requires a helmet, unless you’re over 21 and have taken the MSF course or you show proof of having at least $10,000 in medical insurance.  I’m not sure that’s enough, since you can blow through $10,000 in a day or two these days.  But I at least like the approach.  If you choose to take the risk of riding without a helmet, then you should also assume the responsibility for your own care if you injure yourself while riding.

So why did I pay particular attention to this rider?  He’s the chief of EMS for our fire department.  I suppose if anyone is aware of the risks of riding without a helmet, it would be him…

There’s a cat that roams the neighborhood at night.  Whenever my dog detects the cat outside she goes a bit nuts, banging on the window and barking.  I get the impression that she’d dearly love to take a bite out of that cat.

In the meantime, though, she has found something that she thinks is the next best thing: cat poop.  I don’t know why, but whenever she finds cat crap she tries to eat it.  It’s a filthy and disgusting habit. 

At least she obeys my command to “Drop It!”  (although she does so very reluctantly).

It seems that legislators in the Texas house have taken time from their busy tax-raising schedule to send HB2893 out of committee.

What is HB2983? First, iIt requires the insurance companies to report all automobile insurance policy purchases, renewals, and cancellations to the state.

Sec. 601.502.  REPORTING REQUIREMENTS. (a) The motor vehicle liability insurance compliance program shall require that, on or after the effective date of this subchapter, when an insurance company authorized to write motor vehicle liability insurance in this state or its designated agent issues or renews a motor vehicle liability insurance policy that provides the minimum coverages required by this chapter to a person who is required to maintain insurance under this chapter and who is the holder of a Texas driver’s license or a Texas commercial driver’s license, or terminates or cancels such a policy, the insurance company or its designated agent shall furnish to the department or administering entity the following information:
          (1)  the insurance policy number;
          (2)  the effective date of the policy;
          (3)  the make, model, license plate number, and vehicle identification number of each vehicle covered by the policy; and
          (4)  any other information reasonably required by the department.
     (b)  The required information relating to an insurance policy that is issued or renewed shall be provided to the department or administering entity not later than the third business day after the date of issuance or renewal.
     (c)  The required information relating to an insurance policy that is terminated or canceled shall be provided to the department before the effective date of the termination or cancellation.

But once the state has its grubby paws on the data, they plan to do far more with it than just check vehicles at registration renewal.  The bill would also add RFID tags to inspection stickers, such that these tags could be read by existing toll-tag readers as well as any other readers that our “friends” in Austin decide to set up.

Sec. 601.507.  SPECIAL INSPECTION CERTIFICATES. (a) Commencing not later than January 1, 2006, the department shall issue or contract for the issuance of special inspection certificates to be affixed to motor vehicles that are inspected and found to be in proper and safe condition under Chapter 548.
     (b)  An inspection certificate under this section must contain a tamper-resistant transponder, and at a minimum, be capable of storing:
          (1)  the transponder’s unique identification number; and
          (2)  the make, model, and vehicle identification number of the vehicle to which the certificate is affixed.
     (c)  In addition, the transponder must be compatible with:
          (1)  the automated vehicle registration and certificate of title system established by the Texas Department of Transportation; and
          (2)  interoperability standards established by the Texas Department of Transportation and other entities for use of the system of toll roads and toll facilities in this state.

By the way, the next section of the bill establishes that if a vehicle is spotted via tag reader that doesn’t have current insurance, the system automatically mails a $250 ticket to the registered owner of the vehicle.

Here’s the full text (PDF) for those who may be interested.

The bill calls for “tamper-resistant” transponders.  Would it be tampering to hit it with an EM pulse?  After all, you didn’t actually touch the device.  Of course, the downside is that a strong EM pulse is difficult to generate and would also fry your car’s electronics.

Maybe a clear metal-film layer applied over the glass instead?

Bitter points us to these doofuses who seem to be missing a few eggs from their coop.

It seems they’re up in arms about the treatment of chickens.  I’ve always preferred my chickens treated with breading and fried…  What?  They didn’t mean preparation?  Oh…

Anyhow, this bit was pretty funny:

Chickens are cheerful, intelligent birds. The mother hen tenderly cares for her chicks, and roosters protect their families and flocks.

Obviously, these people have never actually been around a chicken.  Chickens are stupid, disgusting birds that would just as soon eat poo as anything else.  I don’t often eat chicken, but I may have to make an exception on Wednesday, just to piss off these wankers.

As a rule I never give out my address or phone number when making a retail purchase.  However, the ZIP code is another story.  It’s not personally identifiable (unless you are the only person living in that zipcode), but it’s still annoying.  It’s yet another little irksome thing that retailers have piled on to the whole retail experience. 

I suggest that when asked for a ZIP code that everyone use 75755.  It sounds vaguely plausible at first, since it’s not (yet) a popular and recognizable ZIP code.  Of course, when Best Buy or World Market (the offender that set me off last night) decides that they’re seeing a spike of traffic from this ZIP code and decides to investigate the area, they’ll realize they’ve been faked. 

Even if you don’t use 75755, then at least always give some kind of fake ZIP code.  If we make the data gathered useless, perhaps they’ll stop bothering us at checkout when all we want is just to be done with the sale and go home.

It appears that online retailers are learning some interesting things through all the user tracking garbage they’ve added to their sites.

The Internet might be turning into the ultimate window shopping experience for online shoppers. Greater sophistication with browsing is making consumers more prone to comparison shop online before actually buying.

Internet shoppers are more prone to visiting 10 or more Web sites before returning to a favored location hours or days later to make a purchase. This new trend of leaving a Web site before completing a sale suggests that Internet merchants need to rethink their marketing strategy and Web site design, says the author of an exhaustive study.

According to the report on Internet shopping habits, online merchants need to shift their focus from why shoppers abort shopping carts to why they leave Web sites without buying.

…

Online consumers are no longer rushing to click the shopping cart button on Web sites. Instead, they spend days digitally window-shopping before buying, abandoning shopping carts with an ease that frustrates and often confuses online retailers.

“The shopping cart abandonment issue is the most important thing that we uncovered,” Ken Leonard, CEO of ScanAlert, told the E-Commerce Times. “Most merchants think that shopping cart abandonment is just part of the online shopping process.”

His study showed the average time delay between a consumer’s first visit to a Web site and the first purchase was just over 19 hours. About 35 percent of all tracked shoppers took more than 12 hours to make a buy decision, while 21 percent took more than three days, with 14 percent taking more than one week to decide where to buy.

According to Leonard, the abandonment issue and the delay in completing the shopping cart purchase shows behavior that is radically different from two years ago.

This mirrors the experience I had while searching for an HT after I got my amateur technician license.  I scoured the net, looking at manufacturer websites, searching Usenet for opinions, checking reviews, and finally comparison shopping between various online retailers.  I eventually settled on a Yaesu FT-60R, although there were a lot of good radios out there.  It got to the point where I printed out spec sheets for each one and put them all on a table, then went back and forth over them for a few days.

One reason people abandon carts, though, is because retailers often require you to put the item into your cart to see the price or to compute shipping and handling.  That doesn’t bother me too much, though.  It’s the ones who don’t show you any information on taxes or shipping until after entering credit card data that don’t usually get a sale from me. 

As an example, while their site is a bit “old school*” in terms of look-and-feel, Austin Amateur Radio Supply does some good things in their cart.  Here’s an image of their cart after adding an item:

Note that it gives the shipping and handling amount and also tells you very specifically what the taxes will be if they apply to you (and they only apply to Texas residents).  It also tells you that “nothing is final” at this point.  It doesn’t require you to give up any personal information until you decide to complete the sale.  I also like the fact that it will take you back to the page you started with if you hit “Continue to Shop” (some online retailers send you back to the home page, which is bad if you were thinking of ordering some accessories that were also listed on the original item’s page).

The only thing I’d add would be an indicator about the free shipping “clip level.”  If you order over $200 from them they give free shipping.  I only discovered this when I added some accessory items to the order.

Via Slashdot.

*As for the “old school” comment above, I’ve noticed that most ham radio retailers are a bit behind the times (to be polite) when it comes to web design.

I have absolutely zero tolerance for vandalism, so my sympathy meter is at a negative reading on this one.

Three of the five Pilot Point high school students accused of vandalizing a football stadium say the charges they face just don’t fit the crime.

Seniors Steve Stratso, Josh Chacon and Matt Hatten are among five students accused of defacing Massey Stadium on the school’s campus just off Highway 377, and are facing criminal mischief charges.

The three students claim the vandalism started out as an idea for a senior prank; they cemented a basketball goal in the middle of the football field.
…
The vandals spray-painted graffiti on the track and field house, making it look like they were from rival Celina High School. They also painted disparaging remarks about Pilot Point coaches.
…
Pilot Point school administrators punished the boys with a three-day suspension. Additionally, they each paid $293 in restitution, were banned from attending the prom and had to help clean up the mess. Those who were baseball players were also kicked off the team.
…
“I think the punishment fits the crime,” Hatten said. “I think we all agreed on that.”

But, the police still filed charges against them. The teens said it’s double jeopardy.

“Everyone’s going to have their opinion about what we did, but all we can do is work to correct it,” Stratso said. “I think we have without the cops stepping in.”

Two other teens accused of the crime, Britton Foster and Drew Fuller, chose not to talk with News 8 on camera. However, the teens who did said they’ve learned a lesson.

“Not to do stupid stuff, and not to mess with other people’s property,” Chacon said.

Pilot Point police chief James Edland isn’t showing any sympathy for the students. He said a crime was committed in this case, and now that suspects have been charged it’s his responsibility to file those charges with the Denton County District Attorney.

These stupid little wankers destroyed property by CEMENTING a freakin’ basketball goal in the middle of the football field and spray-painting grafitti on the track and fieldhouse.  That kind of thing can end up costing quite a bit of money to fix, so I hope they get the book thrown at them.  I don’t see any “double jeopardy” here.  Punishments for this sort of thing often include both jail time and restitution as well as cleaning up the mess, so there doesn’t seem to be anything inappropriate about criminal charges being filed.