Please drive carefully today, especially around polling places

"Chuckles" (chucklesw37)
11/06/2018 at 13:56 • Filed to: None

A woman died this morning after being hit by a minivan while she was walking across the parking lot of her local polling place. There are going to be a lot of pedestrians out there today so be extra careful! This is not too far from me:

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DISCUSSION (35)

Just Jeepin' > Chuckles
11/06/2018 at 14:11

I saw a guy drive through a crowded parking lot yesterday, a little faster than I liked, but not terrible...until I saw him repeatedly glance into his lap and realized he was speeding through a parking lot while reading something from his phone and HULK SMASH.

Unfortunately I couldn’t figure out where he went so that I could fillet him for jeopardizing people that way.

OPPOsaurus WRX > Chuckles
11/06/2018 at 14:15

69 news

Kinja'd!!!

Blalock > Chuckles
11/06/2018 at 14:18

This morning I had a woman walk out from behind a bank of parked cars without looking for traffic. Yes, she was staring at her phone at the time. Good thing I was paying attention.

Yowen - not necessarily not spaghetti and meatballs > Just Jeepin'
11/06/2018 at 14:20

another huge problem is people driving through spaces to get to where they want to be, instead of using the lanes like they should.

davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com > Chuckles
11/06/2018 at 14:20

Damn. In the parking lot...

Googly Eyed Plush Toy > Chuckles
11/06/2018 at 14:21

Luckily in my neck of the woods all our polling places are in schools. So there are already cops there most of the day to prevent this sort of bullshit.

Violet Baudelaire > Chuckles
11/06/2018 at 14:22

Walk carefully too, peeps - and I say this as a walker and biker. A lot of accidents can be prevented both by careful and safe defensive driving AND pedestrians staying aware and walking in lanes and areas they are supposed to be in

empanada bruja > Chuckles
11/06/2018 at 14:27

This makes me so mad. I am 31, no kids, but I get worked UP. What is so important that you can’t slow down/allow people to cross? It is 3-5 seconds of your life. If you’re gonna speed, d o it on the highway.

There was this jeep that used to drive fast down the street by my house, every day would zoom past me and my dog. One day a sedan actually stopped for us to cross and we started across the road, the jeep honked and started to drive around the sedan , crossing into the other side of the road. I gave that jeep the coldest glare and shook my head like ‘yup we all know you’re very important. ’ I almost never see that jeep anymore lol.

facw > Chuckles
11/06/2018 at 14:29

Just got back from voting. No spaces, so I made at least 3 illegal left turns (not on a real road) , and drove the wrong way down two aisles (that part wasn’t clear at the time) before I found somewhere to park. Also that somewhere turned out not to be a parking space, but rather a pit of mud adjacent to a parking space (there were cars on the side too though). I was a bit worried it would get stuck (and then possibly launch free at higher than expected speed ) while backing out, but I made it. In any event, I think I was cautious about my bad driving, but the real moral is to have enough space and/or provide guidance to alternate parking.

Just Jeepin' > Yowen - not necessarily not spaghetti and meatballs
11/06/2018 at 14:31

I’ll admit to doing that when I want to pull through to park (I hate, hate, hate backing out because it’s so much more dangerous ) but I always check carefully for cars going through the next lane.

Just Jeepin' > facw
11/06/2018 at 14:32

Yeah, early voting last week was a nightmare parking-wise at a library I often work from. Turnout this year is huge.

AestheticsInMotion > Chuckles
11/06/2018 at 14:36

If only we had some sort of technology that would allow us to vote from inside of our homes

Chuckles > AestheticsInMotion
11/06/2018 at 14:40

I mean, sure. But maybe people should also pay attention while driving. This old woman had a cane so I doubt that she darted out in front of a car or was staring at a smartphone.

It's Ginaaa > Chuckles
11/06/2018 at 14:42

My polling place is on a small street that usually doesn’t get much traffic. It’s the kind of street that only one car can drive through when cars are parked on both sides. It’s currently packed with cars, and people are dropping each other off in driveways across the street to get to the polling place. Because there are so many cars parked close together it’s hard to see pedestrians, and hard for pedestrians to see on coming cars . In the minute it took me to walk from my car to the entrance I saw 2 people step off the curb in between parked cars and almost get hit by a car driving by.

Every year it’s the same thing, and I’m honestly surprised I’ve never heard of anyone getting hit.

Chuckles > Googly Eyed Plush Toy
11/06/2018 at 14:54

In my area it seems to be a mix of schools, private business, and fire/emergency departments. Of course when I was in NC it was at a church.

Urambo Tauro > Chuckles
11/06/2018 at 14:55

A pair of women’s shoes was on the groun d in front of the van.

The story didn’t need this detail, but damn if it isn’t vivid. Even without a photo.

Yowen - not necessarily not spaghetti and meatballs > Just Jeepin'
11/06/2018 at 15:50

yeah, that’s not so bad, I’m talking about people crossing the lot diagonally at 15+ mph. It’s a recipe for accidents.

AestheticsInMotion > Chuckles
11/06/2018 at 16:02

I know I know. I’m just salty. Make a simple online voting portal and suddenly the percentage of voters skyrockets. I doubt that will happen though. And unfortunately I doubt that distracted driving is going to go down either

Just Jeepin' > It's Ginaaa
11/06/2018 at 16:03

I keep thinking I should get formally trained to direct traffic: I rarely am in a hurry to get anywhere, and once every year or so I spot a situation where it would be helpful.

Then I imagine the liability if I screw up and there’s an accident, and sanity prevails.

Chuckles > AestheticsInMotion
11/06/2018 at 16:06

Your premise is also working on the assumption that everyone has Internet at home, and that’s not true even in 2018. We take it for granted, but it would disenfranchise a lot of voters.

AestheticsInMotion > Chuckles
11/06/2018 at 16:10

Smart p hones? N ot everyone, but we get closer every year. Would likely still be a net positive for votor turnout and improve the representation of groups that have lacked it.

I still Mortal Kombat is the best way

Long_Voyager, Now With More Caravanny Goodness > Chuckles
11/06/2018 at 16:14

This is terrible news, but in a ll honesty, I’m surprised more people aren’t injured/killed in parking lots.

Everyone is hauling ass, paying zero attention, and generally impatient as hell.

Long_Voyager, Now With More Caravanny Goodness > Chuckles
11/06/2018 at 16:15

No internet at home here.........

Wife has a smart phone, but to hell if I’m doing anything useful on a smart phone.

Chuckles > AestheticsInMotion
11/06/2018 at 16:18

There’s still a big difference between something that works for most people and something that accommodates everyone. And keep in mind that voting is one of those things that we’re all entitled to do with minimal burden. And we always have to consider the actual ramifications as opposed to intent.

I’ll give an example: a few years ago, PA tried to pass a law requiring a valid photo ID to vote. It was meant as an effort to prevent (essentially non-existent) voter fraud. But what would that law actually do? It would disenfranchise low income voters and especially minority voters. So the PA supreme court abolished it.

Anybody with a smartphone and easy access to the internet should remember that there are a lot of people in this country who don’t have that privilege.

Just Jeepin' > AestheticsInMotion
11/06/2018 at 16:18

There’s also the coercion problem that we already face with absentee voting and voting by mail. Much harder to force someone to vote a certain way in a public space with private voting.

Just Jeepin' > Long_Voyager, Now With More Caravanny Goodness
11/06/2018 at 16:20

One year I rang a bell for the Salvation Army, standing outside Walmart during the (obviously) Christmas shopping season.

I was astonished there weren’t any accidents while I was there. People simply are insane.

Googly Eyed Plush Toy > Chuckles
11/06/2018 at 16:20

still better than my sibling who has voted in some rando’s garage in San Francisco for more than 10 years.

Just Jeepin' > Chuckles
11/06/2018 at 16:21

The GOP’s emphasis on voter suppression is one key reason I’ll no longer vote for any of their candidates.

Long_Voyager, Now With More Caravanny Goodness > Just Jeepin'
11/06/2018 at 16:22

Had a guy pass me on the right at Best Buy when dropping a friend off at the door to run in quick. He literally drove over the curb on the passenger side of my car, about plowing my friend down.

He then proceeded to turn short and hit the front of my car, all because he couldn’t wait 2 secs for my friend to get out.

Wasted 45 mins of his time trying to save 2 secs.

Chuckles > Just Jeepin'
11/06/2018 at 16:23

That is one of many reasons for me. I won't start listing them here, but there's no shortage of them.

Just Jeepin' > Long_Voyager, Now With More Caravanny Goodness
11/06/2018 at 16:58

Lunacy.

Just Jeepin' > Chuckles
11/06/2018 at 16:59

Yep. First time in my life voting a straight ticket.

desolationangel is fallen > AestheticsInMotion
11/06/2018 at 19:03

There is an issue though, based on an article I read, of abusive spouses forcing their wives to vote a certain way. It already happens with absentee ballots of course so I don’t know what the answer is.

AestheticsInMotion > Long_Voyager, Now With More Caravanny Goodness
11/06/2018 at 21:54

I'm the exact opposite. I do all my work on a phone, to the point that I don't see a reason to pay for wireless internet or even own a computer

pip bip - choose Corrour > Chuckles
11/07/2018 at 04:59

voting needs to be on Saturday s not weekdays