Wednesday, November 26, 2014
No, it's not a fucking jar.
Idiot Civic Engagement types are always telling us that we need to "Vote", whatever the fuck that means, so we can "Hold Government Accountable", whatever the fuck that means.
In my 65 years on this earth, I've only observed ONE INSTANCE when "We The People" actually did Hold The Government Accountable.
1974. Congress, blindly obeying Comrade Nader and his hagminion Joan Claybrook, required cars to include shoulder belts, which was a good idea ... and also required the cars to FORCE you to use the belts, which was a terrible idea.
Detroit made shoulder belts unspeakably inconvenient. You had to disentangle several dozen belt parts, figure out which two pieces were the lap belt for your side, buckle those pieces first, then figure out which two pieces were the shoulder belt for your side and buckle those. If you didn't get it right, the car buzzed at you and refused to start.
No excuse for the separate belt pieces. That was Detroit's fault. (Euro carmakers had already perfected the three-point belt with retractors.)
The buzzing-refusing was purely Congress's fault.
"We the people" told Congress what we thought, and Congress retracted the buzzer-refuser law.
That was the one and only time Congress responded to "We The People". Plenty of laws have been revised or repealed because superrich fuckheads objected. Never again would a law be made or revised to suit mere humans.
Much later correction: I was unfair in showing an AMC Matador with the tangled-up belts. AMC actually adopted Euro-style three point belts in '74, which were much easier to use than the Big Three's punishment belts.
¶ 8:48 AM 
1974. Congress, blindly obeying Comrade Nader and his hagminion Joan Claybrook, required cars to include shoulder belts, which was a good idea ... and also required the cars to FORCE you to use the belts, which was a terrible idea.
Detroit made shoulder belts unspeakably inconvenient. You had to disentangle several dozen belt parts, figure out which two pieces were the lap belt for your side, buckle those pieces first, then figure out which two pieces were the shoulder belt for your side and buckle those. If you didn't get it right, the car buzzed at you and refused to start.
No excuse for the separate belt pieces. That was Detroit's fault. (Euro carmakers had already perfected the three-point belt with retractors.)
The buzzing-refusing was purely Congress's fault.
"We the people" told Congress what we thought, and Congress retracted the buzzer-refuser law.
That was the one and only time Congress responded to "We The People". Plenty of laws have been revised or repealed because superrich fuckheads objected. Never again would a law be made or revised to suit mere humans.
Much later correction: I was unfair in showing an AMC Matador with the tangled-up belts. AMC actually adopted Euro-style three point belts in '74, which were much easier to use than the Big Three's punishment belts.
¶ 8:48 AM
