BETWEEN THE LINES

WOEBEGONE, INSANE CALIFORNIA

Exclusive: Joseph Farah explains latest 'loony' bill that encourages irresponsibility

It’s gotten to the point where, if the U.S. can’t figure out a way to ditch California, it’s going to bring the whole nation down.

It’s not that every bad idea, every miserable notion, every destructive concept starts there. It’s just that most of them do – and then spread like a plague across the fruited plain.

What’s the latest wacky, loony, harebrained piece of legislation to be passed in Sacramento with the promise of a signature into law by Gov. Jerry “Moonbeam” Brown, who, at 79, just never grew up?

It seems starting in August, Californians who fail to pay unpaid tickets for moving violations are no longer in jeopardy of getting their driver’s licenses suspended.

Now, I’m going to go out on a limb and suggest this new law will result in more Californians not paying their fines and not showing up for court appearances.

Jerry Brown disagrees.

He says, “there does not appear to be a strong connection” between license suspensions and collecting.

What I think he means is this: There are so many Californians who already have license suspensions that things are out of hand.

Do you want to take a guess how many driver’s licenses in the state are already suspended? As of March the number is an astonishing 488,000. So, the answer from the geniuses in the capital is, obviously, stop suspending licenses.

What happens when there are too many people who rob banks? Decriminalize it?

Brown has some other reasons for signing the bill:

• the punishment doesn’t help the state collect unpaid fines;
• the suspensions can send low-income people into a cycle of joblessness and poverty.

Why doesn’t the punishment help the state collect fines? Because California doesn’t impound the vehicles of those drivers who fail to produce a valid license. Instead, officers just issue another ticket that won’t be paid.

And, as to Brown’s other bleeding-heart excuse for low-income people being pushed into a cycle of joblessness and poverty, why would it? There’s already no consequence for driving without a license anyone can get – including illegal aliens. There are already half a million out there who have suspended licenses. Does anyone actually believe they have all lost their jobs and plunged into destitution?

There’s another problem. More suspended licenses equals more drivers without insurance. Guess how many Californians are already driving without insurance – 4.1 million! In fact, you can’t get auto insurance if your license is suspended – unless, of course – and I’m not joking here – you have a Mexican identification card, which you can use as a substitute for a valid state license.

Sen. Bob Hertzberg, a Van Nuys Democrat who sponsored the legislation, said the new law will ensure that people’s lives “are not derailed by traffic tickets.” Derailed? I thought we were talking about driving cars not trains.

And what about the poor, law-abiding, play-by-the-rules drivers who pay their tickets? Why should they? There’s no penalty! Does Jerry Brown really believe that won’t have an impact on the number of fines paid?

The naivete is simply unbelievable to me.

Then the question becomes, what does a Californian have to do to lose his or her license? Can you get an unlimited number of traffic tickets, not pay them, and keep driving? Or can you just plead poverty and get away with a pattern of unaccountable reckless driving?

And here’s another shocker! The new law will not apply retroactively to people whose licenses are already suspended for failing to pay fines. Why not? Isn’t what’s good for the goose good for the gander? A guy who gets his license suspended on July 31 is forced to play by different rules than one who does the same thing on Aug. 1?

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By the way, this is part of a pattern in California, and increasingly in other states, of not punishing bad behavior, dangerous conduct and holding people accountable for their actions – especially the “poor.” Don’t have a job? Then give the jobless someone else’s money. Like to shoot heroin? Give junkies free needles so they can do so more safely. Like to smoke pot all day? Make it legal to do so. Don’t have health insurance? Then force someone else to pay for it. Enter the country illegally? Come live in our sanctuary state or city.

Get the picture?

What about the rest of the responsible citizens? Are we creating a better society for them? Or are we just encouraging irresponsibility?

Hertzberg, the sponsor of the bill, has more on his agenda. He has another one advancing through the Legislature that would allow “low-income” people who cannot afford to pay their traffic tickets to ask the judge to lower the fines or allow them to perform community service.

Pretty soon, there won’t be any advantage to working hard and making money. It’s already a disincentive for many. At some point, when slothfulness is encouraged, it becomes a disadvantage for the rest of us.

http://www.wnd.com/2017/07/woebegone-insane-california/