What's the deal with abuse of handicap stickers?

[Riprorin]

I'm walking out of a grocery store and this a$$hole in a Trans Am or some similar piece of crap almost hits me pulling into a handicap parking space.

The kid's about 20 years old and looks like he's done a bit of body building. He hops out of his car and walks into the store. No sign of a handicap.

WTF?

 

[Fausto]

Dunno. I see that all the time too. I'm sure some of these people have some kind of condition that classifies them as handicapped, but most of them are just lazy dickheads IMO.

 

[captains]

call the cops on him.......especially if your town is like mine and has nothing better to do

 

[Fausto]

There's a local ice cream place near me that has fairly limited parking and a handicapped spot right in front. I'm sitting there indugling in some double dutch chocolate the other day when a full-sized van pulls into the parking spot (with handicap tag hanging from mirror). Family of four gets out. As near as I can tell, no one has any kind of actual handicap aside from all being morbidly obese. The wife in particular was so large she could barely walk.......and they're stopping for a nice big scoop of full-fat handmade ice cream......and parked in the handicap spot.

Nice. :frown:

 

[KokomoGST]

Oh, yes... that kinda stuff pisses me off to no end. There are so many rich people in my area and they all think they own the place. :disgust:

(RANT)
They have a handicap tag in their window from a prior injury or whatnot and they keep using it despite the fact that they know and everyone else knows they aren't handicapped for CRAP. Sometimes I wish I could just grab my lug wrench from my car and beat them back into needing the tag.

Major pet peeve of mine... especially in my local gym's parking lot where it's supposed to be for gym members only. Except everyone from the town decides to park there since it's "free"... leaving REAL members like me without any spots!!!! I don't care if you're a senior citizen or a soccer mom or whatnot. I'm paying for the spot with my membership, you are not and if I get hit in the lot because I'm parked illegally or it's cold and I have to walk from the far end of the lot. GRRRRRRRR!!!
(/RANT)

 

[ThaPerculator]

My girlfriend broke her foot at work like a month ago, and just got her cast off last friday... so we went to go see Bruce Almighty, and of course we used her handicapped tag, because, well, we could Needless to say, some hardass shaved-head stoner 17 year old was like 'hey, you don't look handicapped, wtf' so I went up to the dude and told him he didn't either, but he would soon if he kept harassing my girl... I agree people abuse them, but my logic is that if there are 3 spots open, who really cares if one of them gets abused by someone who is technically able to use it, but probably doesnt need to.

"What's the handicapped parking situation at the special olympics?? Is it still just the 3 spots??" - Jerry Seinfeld

 

[vi edit]

He probably just borrowed one from his parents. I know a few people that have parents that actually DO have medical problems that require the use of handicap parking, and they will often times let a family member borrow the tag for a day if the person borrowing it knows that they will have trouble finding a parking spot.

I must say that it does work well in crowed parking lots like movie theaters.

 

[FeathersMcGraw]

Originally posted by: Fausto1
As near as I can tell, no one has any kind of actual handicap aside from all being morbidly obese.

Which is probably the handicap "qualification" (to be fair, I wouldn't be surprised if there weren't some joint/back ailments which were the real reason). Although you'd think that maybe handicap spaces for people who are severely overweight should actually be on the opposite side of the lot from the store.

 

[Fausto]

Originally posted by: FeathersMcGraw

Originally posted by: Fausto1
As near as I can tell, no one has any kind of actual handicap aside from all being morbidly obese.

Which is probably the handicap "qualification" (to be fair, I wouldn't be surprised if there weren't some joint/back ailments which were the real reason). Although you'd think that maybe handicap spaces for people who are severely overweight should actually be on the opposite side of the lot from the store.

Self-inflicted immobility is not a "handicap".

If you've eaten to the point that you can barely walk, the last fscking thing you need is an extra-short trip to the front door of the ice cream place. It was all I could do not to say anything. :|

 

[amnesiac]

Originally posted by: vi_edit
He probably just borrowed one from his parents. I know a few people that have parents that actually DO have medical problems that require the use of handicap parking, and they will often times let a family member borrow the tag for a day if the person borrowing it knows that they will have trouble finding a parking spot.

I must say that it does work well in crowed parking lots like movie theaters.

Abuse of a handicap placard is punishable by a ticket, fine, and revocation of said placard.

People who abuse it should have their kneecaps shattered.

 

[vi edit]

Family of four gets out. As near as I can tell, no one has any kind of actual handicap aside from all being morbidly obese.

Not that it isn't caused largely by being obese, but many obese people with handicap stickers have terrible sores and problems with their feet due to diabetes that prevents them from being able to walk easily. It's not just that they weigh 300 pounds, it's also that their feet have huge open wounds on them too.

Ewwwww.....

 

I have the ultimate recourse for this problem. As part of my job at DPS, I can write parking tickets for U of M lots. Most tickets (parking in a 'blue' or 'gold' lot without a permit) are $20, but handicapped tickets are $100.

I LOVE MY JOB. I like seeing people try to weasel their way out of handicapped parking tickets. We're allowed to use our discretion for parking permit tickets (i.e. if the person comes out while we're writing it, we'll usually toss it), but our commanding officers have told us that we should have NO tolerance for handicapped parking violators.

 

[Riprorin]

Originally posted by: Fausto1
There's a local ice cream place near me that has fairly limited parking and a handicapped spot right in front. I'm sitting there indugling in some double dutch chocolate the other day when a full-sized van pulls into the parking spot (with handicap tag hanging from mirror). Family of four gets out. As near as I can tell, no one has any kind of actual handicap aside from all being morbidly obese. The wife in particular was so large she could barely walk.......and they're stopping for a nice big scoop of full-fat handmade ice cream......and parked in the handicap spot.

Nice. :frown:

That's funny but really sad too.

It makes feel bad to see obese kids. It was pretty rare in my day and now it's commonplace.

 

[Kevin]

My grandfather has the handicap tag on his car. Whenever he goes shopping (which is the weekly visit to the supermarket), he usually has a hard time finding a spot since they are all taken. Well, my grandmother does all the shopping, and he goes on stakeout of the handicap spots. A few times he got into arguments with young people, and cops actually came over to fight on his side. The best story though was 2 years ago. The Shoprite they go to has special parking spaces for pregnant mothers or something like that. Well, he sees this faily thin woman walking to her car, and he again starts talking. The woman laughed and lifted her shirt showing him her stomach. He told me he was speechless.

My grandfather is a character though. He's not an as-hole like it makes it sound. Most of the time when he argues, its jokingly. He's 85 years old and has really bad hearing from WWII. I don't think anyone whose ever spoken to him dislikes him, he's great.

 

[Salvador]

I know.. I see the nicest cars parked in the handicapped spot. I saw one guy in a Porsche 911 (manual shift) that didn't look handicapped to me. I really hate the abuse and would NEVER do it myself. I had use of a Handicapped thing that you hang from your rearview mirror for 2 years before my grandpa died, mainly to take him around and I never abused it. I never parked in a handicapped spot when I didn't have my grandfather with me.

My dad on the other hand wanted it for himself, so he could park his car and not worry about it being dinged and so he wouldn't have to walk too far even though he walks 18 holes of golf at least twice a week. That's the difference between us I guess and it makes me sick that my dad's like that or anyone else that abuses it.

Sal

 

[Flatline]

We should start a Justice League of some kind for this. They could give out special signals with every handicapped parking permit so that we could come running fully equipped with belt-sanders, bamboo shoots for their fingernails, and a rubber mallet.

 

[Nitemare]

Originally posted by: Salvador
I know.. I see the nicest cars parked in the handicapped spot. I saw one guy in a Porsche 911 (manual shift) that didn't look handicapped to me. I really hate the abuse and would NEVER do it myself. I had use of a Handicapped thing that you hang from your rearview mirror for 2 years before my grandpa died, mainly to take him around and I never abused it. I never parked in a handicapped spot when I didn't have my grandfather with me.

My dad on the other hand wanted it for himself, so he could park his car and not worry about it being dinged and so he wouldn't have to walk too far even though he walks 18 holes of golf at least twice a week. That's the difference between us I guess and it makes me sick that my dad's like that or anyone else that abuses it.

Sal

There is a porsche right outside of my office in a handicap place.

I like the people on the mobile shopping cart at Walmart that are so fat you have to hug the aisle when they attempt to pass you in the aisle. wasn't Canada trying to pass a law in which lardasses could get disability because they refused to stop eating too much?

There needs to be more action against misuse of this as well as parking in fire lanes outside of grocery stores to run in and get something because you are a lazy slob.

 

[Fausto]

There is a porsche right outside of my office in a handicap place.

I'll Paypal you $5.00 if you promise to spend it on eggs.

 

[Amused]

Looks can be deceiving...

My mother walks fine... for about 100 feet. Then she quickly runs out of breath because she suffers from COPD.

My GF's mother looks like she's in good health as well, until you get up close to her and see how gnarled her joints are by rheumatoid arthritis.

Not everyone who walks without a visible limp is free from disability.

 

[kranky]

Originally posted by: ThaPerculator
I agree people abuse them

Not "people" - you.

but my logic is that if there are 3 spots open, who really cares if one of them gets abused by someone who is technically able to use it, but probably doesnt need to.

Must be nice to be so psychic, you know in advance that a handicapped person won't be coming along later and need one of those spots. Do you realize how thoughtless your statement sounds?

 

[skateallday]

yeah i see that crap happen in my town to. i ask them if they are handicap and if they arent tell them to move and if they dont call the cops. people shouldnt be doing that. others will need that space

 

[notfred]

Originally posted by: skateallday
others will need that space

Bullsh!t. 90% of handicapped spots are always empty. There shouldn't even be handicapped parking spots, they're a waste of good parking space.

 

[Flatline]

Wow. Now where did I put that circular saw?

 

Originally posted by: notfred

Originally posted by: skateallday
others will need that space

Bullsh!t. 90% of handicapped spots are always empty. There shouldn't even be handicapped parking spots, they're a waste of good parking space.

You'd be singing a different tune if you broke your leg and had to go to the supermarket. Try walking a mile using someone else's crutches, for a change.

AND another thing - why SHOULDN'T handicapped parking spaces be empty? Do you think there are just as many handicapped people are there are able-bodied people? They're there for people to use them if they need it.

I think fire departments are a waste of money. 90% of the time firemen are sitting in the fire station doing nothing.</response to notfred's idiotic comment>

 

[Fausto]

Originally posted by: notfred

Originally posted by: skateallday
others will need that space

Bullsh!t. 90% of handicapped spots are always empty. There shouldn't even be handicapped parking spots, they're a waste of good parking space.

Three spaces out of 1,000 at your local mega-mart and you're bitching? I suppose we shouldn't bother with wheelchair ramps either since only 0.01% of the population needs them?