Yesterday the second of April was the last day of conductors on the buses. On April fools day evening one of the conductors asked us for our tickets back so she could sell them again! Impending poverty creates strange new rules.
I shall miss the ladies. Most of them were at least 70 and seriously formidable. Some have become legends. Two of the girls on the Airport bus, both in their 60s were clearly highly educated and spoke marvellous English. they always went out of their way to help tourists. The company and Latvia should have been really proud off them. One lady on the 21 bus was hilarious. Again about 70 years of age she used to take naps in her conductors seat and if there were lots of people on the bus she stayed put and everyone at the back of the bus got a free trip. I shall miss her. Sadly they are no more and we now have to buy an electronic ticket or pay the driver. But there has been no comment that now all tickets are 50 centimes not the 40 we payed the conductors. A silent 20% price hike.
Spring is here at last. Except in the forest the snow really has gone. The new government is in place and despite not having met the standards required by the President by 31 March, he has let it stay . Not that anyone expected anything else from him really. But we shall see what they can do. The teachers marched in protest today, hundreds of them. One was on television last night. He earns 180 lats a month. You cannot live on that.
Showing posts with label John Adams US President. Show all posts
Showing posts with label John Adams US President. Show all posts
Thursday, April 2, 2009
Saturday, November 22, 2008
DANGEROUS DRIVING, THE LAW, AND THE PRESIDENT
Of the five worst examples of dangerous driving I have ever seen, two were in Italy. The first was on a mountain road near the Brenner pass into Austria in the early 80s. I was heading to a ski camp in Antholz. A fiat overtook me on a sharp blind corner going far too fast. About 5 km later I was not at all surprised to see the car in a snowy field where the driver had steered it off the road rather than crash into an oncoming lorry. The driver was standing by the car clearly shaken but unhurt. He was lucky.
The second incident was on the Bologna - Padova motorway when I was coming back from an evening at the Jazz club in Bologna. (totally sober I might add) I drove into the inevitable thick mist that every autumn and winter covers the flat plain 30km either side of the river Po. The visibility was about 15m so I slowed down and drove very very carefully. Suddenly a container lorry passed me in the outside lane driving at least 100km an hour. It was going so fast the trailer was swaying dangerously behind it and it forced me to swerve hard onto the hard shoulder. I was seriously shaken and almost missed the Ferarra turnoff a few minutes later. I was grateful to get home alive that night.
The other five dangerous examples have all been in Riga and concern the police escort drivers. At least two of these have been with the President and a third I was not sure because they were going so fast it was impossible to see who the cars were carrying. I have watched cars swerve away out of their lanes to escape the aggressive attack, and people jump back onto the pavement in fear. Sooner or later these police will kill someone who cannot get across a crossing fast enough when they jump the red lights. It is inevitable. It will be a mother with pram or someone disabled who simply cannot move away.
There are many facets to this. The first is that dangerous driving is against the law and these police should be prosecuted like anyone else. The second is that they appear to believe that breaking the law is alright for them but not for others. Why do the traffic police not stop and arrest them for example? Are they given orders by senior police not to do so. If so the senior police should resign and go and farm somewhere. They are not doing their job.
The third thing is that by convention, the senior person in a car or in a cavalcade is the person responsible for the way that the cars are driven. This places the responsibility firmly upon the head of the President. Why does he allow this dangerous practice day after day? We are not in Belgrade or any high risk security area. If there is a death then who will be guilty of manslaughter, the driver or the President? Cars when driven aggressively are a weapon and should be considered as such by law.
John Adams, the second president of the United States was fond of saying that he wanted a country that was ruled by law and not by men. We need that too in Latvia. This means that Presidents and police should also abide by the law. If they do not, then what point is there having any law at all?
The second incident was on the Bologna - Padova motorway when I was coming back from an evening at the Jazz club in Bologna. (totally sober I might add) I drove into the inevitable thick mist that every autumn and winter covers the flat plain 30km either side of the river Po. The visibility was about 15m so I slowed down and drove very very carefully. Suddenly a container lorry passed me in the outside lane driving at least 100km an hour. It was going so fast the trailer was swaying dangerously behind it and it forced me to swerve hard onto the hard shoulder. I was seriously shaken and almost missed the Ferarra turnoff a few minutes later. I was grateful to get home alive that night.
The other five dangerous examples have all been in Riga and concern the police escort drivers. At least two of these have been with the President and a third I was not sure because they were going so fast it was impossible to see who the cars were carrying. I have watched cars swerve away out of their lanes to escape the aggressive attack, and people jump back onto the pavement in fear. Sooner or later these police will kill someone who cannot get across a crossing fast enough when they jump the red lights. It is inevitable. It will be a mother with pram or someone disabled who simply cannot move away.
There are many facets to this. The first is that dangerous driving is against the law and these police should be prosecuted like anyone else. The second is that they appear to believe that breaking the law is alright for them but not for others. Why do the traffic police not stop and arrest them for example? Are they given orders by senior police not to do so. If so the senior police should resign and go and farm somewhere. They are not doing their job.
The third thing is that by convention, the senior person in a car or in a cavalcade is the person responsible for the way that the cars are driven. This places the responsibility firmly upon the head of the President. Why does he allow this dangerous practice day after day? We are not in Belgrade or any high risk security area. If there is a death then who will be guilty of manslaughter, the driver or the President? Cars when driven aggressively are a weapon and should be considered as such by law.
John Adams, the second president of the United States was fond of saying that he wanted a country that was ruled by law and not by men. We need that too in Latvia. This means that Presidents and police should also abide by the law. If they do not, then what point is there having any law at all?
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