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THE DAILY COLLEGIAN Tuesday, January 30,1996 Opinion Managing Editor: Robert Bilvado Telephone: (209) 278-5732 Nice guys finish last... especially when driving By Paul McCauley Special to the Collegian My tale all begins on a recent summer day when I went to the store for some snacks. However, the trip wasn't without an unex¬ pected incident. In fact, as I was making a right turn into a parking lot, I was struck by a pick-up truck making the same turn as me. While I was a bit shaken from the actual accident, I didn't begin, to feel injured until I started talking with my insurance company. The first statement that caught me off guard was that my insurance company had concluded that the accident was more than likely my fault-despite the fact that I was the one who was hit and had begun to slow down to turn. The other driver claimed/mal he never had any idea that I intended to turn , Apparently the blinking turn signal and illuminated tail light Were Lust a little to subtle for my new playmate. It is true that I might have been making the turn a little wide, obvious from the fact the someone was able to gel their truck between my car and the parking lot. This first bomb didn't bother me as much as the next thing the agent in charge of my claim said. "Well. Mr. McCauley. I need to inform you that the fact the other driver doesn't have insurance / doesn't affect the way this casVwm^ be handled." Not an exact quote, but close enough to capture the nature of the comment. Now, maybe I'm no expert when it comes to the law, but I seriously do remember hearing that it is against the law to operate a motor¬ ized vehicle in California without some kind of insurance. If this is fact a law, then for any¬ one to be driving without insurance would seem, to me at least, to be against the law. In other words the act of a criminal. Last time I checked it was stan¬ dard procedure to punish those in¬ dividuals who decide to operate outside the law. Yet in this case, not only is the other driver not be¬ ing punished, but his truck will be repaired courtesy of my insurance company. In the long run he gets his truck back in working order, I get blamed for his running into me, and my rates will now skyrocket in order to cover the cost of repairing both vehicles. The situation is this—I, followed the rules and am ultimately going to pay for it through higher insur¬ ance rates and an at fault accident on my driving record, while the other driver who disregarded the law only has the inconvenience of a few days without his truck. Just goes to show that playing by the rules is really for losers. Not to be like others who merely point out the, problems of society, I have a harsh, but effective solution to this problem. If you drive in California and are involved in an accident without insurance-your license,nf you have one. will be re¬ voked, your car will be impounded, and j ou will be responsible for cov¬ ering the cost of all damage which resulted during the accident. Another solution requires that insurance companies stop paying uninsured drivers. When there is another insurance company they've got a ton of lawyers ready to try every trick under the sun to avoid paying as much as possible, but with the uninsured they simply roll over and play dead. Anyone twho drives without car insurance is breaking the law and should not be allowed to benefit in any way from their actions. If they are willing to take the gamble, they need to be ready to lose all they pwn. CORRECTION NOTICE I In the story titled "$1.4 million grant targets women" on pg."6 of yesterday's Collegian, Claudia Andresen was incorrectly identified as the principal of Edison High School. Andresen is the principal of Edison Computech Middle School 1 Fresno needs exit from urban sprawl freeway By Jim Ward Senior Staff Writer Southern California. La-La Land. Home of jury nullifications, rac¬ ist police forces, and bankrupt coun¬ ties. It's a hellhole of strip malls. urban decay, and congested free¬ ways. Following the example of Los Angeles, Fresno is hurtling down the same haphazard development path as our unfortunate neighbors to the South. Fresno's down¬ town is decaying, while unchecked development is spreading like an untreated virus on the outskirts of town. These thoughts, along with dodging speeding motorists who don't know how to use their turn signals, came to me while driving to Southern California for a wed¬ ding. The wedding, which was only a slightly unpleasant experience as weddings go, was held in Riverside, a rather gloomy bedroom commu¬ nity of Los Angeles. bors to the south—Hemet and Moreno Valley—have been hit hard b) the real estate crash and defense industry cuts. Vast tracks of unfinished hous¬ ing developments dot the land¬ scape—foreclosures have reached 50 percent in some areas—while whole shopping malls, betting on customers from the new housing developments that never material- developers. The influence land developer; yield over local city councils ani planning commissions in the V i ley have come under a new foun scrutiny with the indictments ot cui rent and former Clovis city cbunc members In Clovis, it appeals developers rule the planning pro cess. The apparent poor planning am urban sprawl Fresno's downtown is decaying, while unchecked development is spreading like an untreated virus on the outskirts of town. ized, go bankrupt. . ,. It's all so eerily familiar. The Blackstone Ave. retail corridor is dying and the city fathers don't seem to care. Take a look at Blackstone Ave., with its vacant buildings and boarded-up shops and then drive out to W Shaw with its new theaters, music stores, and discount super stores. Any community pjanojng seems haphazard, almost ar^lDrary. It's as nc if Fresno's planning OQntfaission is Riverside, and its smaller neigh; . little more than anflj Bkmp for l Senior Staff Writers: Matthew Hart and Jim Ward Staff Writers: Dernice Triml Spoi Brian R. Fisher Feature Editor Lea Perich Photo Editor kteve R. Fujimoto Richard Ahmed Business Manager David Stanley lvj*Toi Croce, Personale, Trey Wagner. Johnson, Jabari Lawrence, Patrick Houlinhan, Casey Angle Photographers: Paul Martinez, Fresno's growth and development calls into question the rationale and motives behind the city's develop¬ ment. Fresno must begin dealing with urban sprawl—one of the late 20th century's most vexing problems now. To effectively tackle this prob¬ lem, though, it will take enlight¬ ened, honest leadership. Without this leadership, Fresno, and the neighboring, communities will head e path of urban sprawl Southern California, tely^ as commercial to crumble while push against the •doesn't look in Fresno. t necessarily d J Col legian staff. 1 right to edit letters f< To be considered for publicatioo, letter* must be typed and should not exceed 250 words. Ctaky e Daily Collegian Keats Campus Building Fresno, CA 93740-0042 mmm
Object Description
Title | 1996_01 The Daily Collegian January 1996 |
Alternative Title | Daily Collegian (California State University, Fresno) |
Publisher | Associated Students of Fresno State, Fresno, Calif. |
Publication Date | 1996 |
Description | Daily (except weedends) during the school year. Microfilm. Palo Alto, Calif.: BMI Library Microfilms, 1986- microfilm reels; 35 mm. Vol.1, no.1 (Feb 8, 1922)- |
Subject | California State University, Fresno -- Periodicals. |
Contributors | Associated Students of Fresno State. |
Coverage | Vol.1 no.1 (Feb 8, 1922)- to present |
Format | Microfilm reels, 35 mm. |
Technical Information | Scanned at 600 dpi; TIFF; Microfilm ScanPro 2000 "E-image data" |
Language | eng |
Description
Title | January 30, 1996, Page 2 |
Alternative Title | Daily Collegian (California State University, Fresno) |
Publisher | Associated Students of Fresno State, Fresno, Calif. |
Publication Date | 1996 |
Description | Daily (except weedends) during the school year. Microfilm. Palo Alto, Calif.: BMI Library Microfilms, 1986- microfilm reels; 35 mm. Vol.1, no.1 (Feb 8, 1922)- |
Subject | California State University, Fresno -- Periodicals. |
Contributors | Associated Students of Fresno State. |
Coverage | Vol.1 no.1 (Feb 8, 1922)- to present |
Format | Microfilm reels, 35 mm. |
Technical Information | Scanned at 600 dpi; TIFF; Microfilm ScanPro 2000 "E-image data" |
Language | eng |
Full-Text-Search | THE DAILY COLLEGIAN Tuesday, January 30,1996 Opinion Managing Editor: Robert Bilvado Telephone: (209) 278-5732 Nice guys finish last... especially when driving By Paul McCauley Special to the Collegian My tale all begins on a recent summer day when I went to the store for some snacks. However, the trip wasn't without an unex¬ pected incident. In fact, as I was making a right turn into a parking lot, I was struck by a pick-up truck making the same turn as me. While I was a bit shaken from the actual accident, I didn't begin, to feel injured until I started talking with my insurance company. The first statement that caught me off guard was that my insurance company had concluded that the accident was more than likely my fault-despite the fact that I was the one who was hit and had begun to slow down to turn. The other driver claimed/mal he never had any idea that I intended to turn , Apparently the blinking turn signal and illuminated tail light Were Lust a little to subtle for my new playmate. It is true that I might have been making the turn a little wide, obvious from the fact the someone was able to gel their truck between my car and the parking lot. This first bomb didn't bother me as much as the next thing the agent in charge of my claim said. "Well. Mr. McCauley. I need to inform you that the fact the other driver doesn't have insurance / doesn't affect the way this casVwm^ be handled." Not an exact quote, but close enough to capture the nature of the comment. Now, maybe I'm no expert when it comes to the law, but I seriously do remember hearing that it is against the law to operate a motor¬ ized vehicle in California without some kind of insurance. If this is fact a law, then for any¬ one to be driving without insurance would seem, to me at least, to be against the law. In other words the act of a criminal. Last time I checked it was stan¬ dard procedure to punish those in¬ dividuals who decide to operate outside the law. Yet in this case, not only is the other driver not be¬ ing punished, but his truck will be repaired courtesy of my insurance company. In the long run he gets his truck back in working order, I get blamed for his running into me, and my rates will now skyrocket in order to cover the cost of repairing both vehicles. The situation is this—I, followed the rules and am ultimately going to pay for it through higher insur¬ ance rates and an at fault accident on my driving record, while the other driver who disregarded the law only has the inconvenience of a few days without his truck. Just goes to show that playing by the rules is really for losers. Not to be like others who merely point out the, problems of society, I have a harsh, but effective solution to this problem. If you drive in California and are involved in an accident without insurance-your license,nf you have one. will be re¬ voked, your car will be impounded, and j ou will be responsible for cov¬ ering the cost of all damage which resulted during the accident. Another solution requires that insurance companies stop paying uninsured drivers. When there is another insurance company they've got a ton of lawyers ready to try every trick under the sun to avoid paying as much as possible, but with the uninsured they simply roll over and play dead. Anyone twho drives without car insurance is breaking the law and should not be allowed to benefit in any way from their actions. If they are willing to take the gamble, they need to be ready to lose all they pwn. CORRECTION NOTICE I In the story titled "$1.4 million grant targets women" on pg."6 of yesterday's Collegian, Claudia Andresen was incorrectly identified as the principal of Edison High School. Andresen is the principal of Edison Computech Middle School 1 Fresno needs exit from urban sprawl freeway By Jim Ward Senior Staff Writer Southern California. La-La Land. Home of jury nullifications, rac¬ ist police forces, and bankrupt coun¬ ties. It's a hellhole of strip malls. urban decay, and congested free¬ ways. Following the example of Los Angeles, Fresno is hurtling down the same haphazard development path as our unfortunate neighbors to the South. Fresno's down¬ town is decaying, while unchecked development is spreading like an untreated virus on the outskirts of town. These thoughts, along with dodging speeding motorists who don't know how to use their turn signals, came to me while driving to Southern California for a wed¬ ding. The wedding, which was only a slightly unpleasant experience as weddings go, was held in Riverside, a rather gloomy bedroom commu¬ nity of Los Angeles. bors to the south—Hemet and Moreno Valley—have been hit hard b) the real estate crash and defense industry cuts. Vast tracks of unfinished hous¬ ing developments dot the land¬ scape—foreclosures have reached 50 percent in some areas—while whole shopping malls, betting on customers from the new housing developments that never material- developers. The influence land developer; yield over local city councils ani planning commissions in the V i ley have come under a new foun scrutiny with the indictments ot cui rent and former Clovis city cbunc members In Clovis, it appeals developers rule the planning pro cess. The apparent poor planning am urban sprawl Fresno's downtown is decaying, while unchecked development is spreading like an untreated virus on the outskirts of town. ized, go bankrupt. . ,. It's all so eerily familiar. The Blackstone Ave. retail corridor is dying and the city fathers don't seem to care. Take a look at Blackstone Ave., with its vacant buildings and boarded-up shops and then drive out to W Shaw with its new theaters, music stores, and discount super stores. Any community pjanojng seems haphazard, almost ar^lDrary. It's as nc if Fresno's planning OQntfaission is Riverside, and its smaller neigh; . little more than anflj Bkmp for l Senior Staff Writers: Matthew Hart and Jim Ward Staff Writers: Dernice Triml Spoi Brian R. Fisher Feature Editor Lea Perich Photo Editor kteve R. Fujimoto Richard Ahmed Business Manager David Stanley lvj*Toi Croce, Personale, Trey Wagner. Johnson, Jabari Lawrence, Patrick Houlinhan, Casey Angle Photographers: Paul Martinez, Fresno's growth and development calls into question the rationale and motives behind the city's develop¬ ment. Fresno must begin dealing with urban sprawl—one of the late 20th century's most vexing problems now. To effectively tackle this prob¬ lem, though, it will take enlight¬ ened, honest leadership. Without this leadership, Fresno, and the neighboring, communities will head e path of urban sprawl Southern California, tely^ as commercial to crumble while push against the •doesn't look in Fresno. t necessarily d J Col legian staff. 1 right to edit letters f< To be considered for publicatioo, letter* must be typed and should not exceed 250 words. Ctaky e Daily Collegian Keats Campus Building Fresno, CA 93740-0042 mmm |