[clug] RE: CLUG parking fine

Darren Freeman daz111 at rsphysse.anu.edu.au
Mon Sep 1 10:34:17 EST 2003


On Sat, 2003-08-30 at 12:14, James McNeill wrote:
> >
> >
> >I would have gladly parked elsewhere if I thought I was going to get
> >fined, or if I thought I was causing some inconvenience. But a nearly
> >totally empty carpark right next to the door of where I'm going, at
> >7:30pm, well of course people are parking there.
> >
> Ignorance is no excuse for breaking the law. Never has been.

Nevertheless a certain level of discretion is expected from law
enforcement. That's why we don't have cops chasing down jaywalkers or
people who drop cigarette butts. When something isn't being enforced,
people naturally assume the police don't care, even though they could if
they wanted.

> Why do you expect the ANU to make an effort to make easier the lives of 
> a bunch of hobbiests that use thier fascilities once a month, for free?

Publicity for a start. Considering which building it's in, I'd say it's
a relevant event to have there.

> We could always hold CLUG in some rented community building, and each 
> meeting would cost $4 *on top* of pizza.

It's always a possibility if the ANU wants its room back, but nobody is
talking about moving.

> But really, the ANU's priority is to it's students and reserchers. It's

I'm both a student and a researcher, and I work for the ANU.

I find the CLUG meetings a valuable educational resource and I am
working towards being the IT contact person for my department.

> very important that they try to keep the ANU as researcher-friendly as 
> possible,  otherwise  the big fish would wander over to somewhere where 
> they /know/ that they can part right outside their lab, at any time of day.

The issue is not whether people can or can't get a park (although I'm
99% sure nobody ever got stuck without a park because of me, it was
after 7:30 after all). The issue is that people suddenly got in trouble
for something that's been allowed for so long.

> Methinks there was very little sleep lost over the thought of making 
> CLUGers walk for 1 minute to get to their meetings.

Once again this isn't even remotely what the issue is. Like I say below,
I would have been happy to go somewhere else if I thought there was
someone being inconvenienced.

> >A stern warning would have prevented me parking there just as
> >effectively as a fine. A fine however increases the likelihood that
> >people will resent the ANU as a result (why $60? isn't $20 enough?).
> >
> Plenty of people got a stern warning. Most CLUGers don't spend enough 
> time at ANU to hear about there sorts of things (myself included). But 
> you can hardly expect a TV ad campeign.

I mean a stern warning instead of the first fine. Not everybody is going
to know that they aren't allowing people in there anymore.

> Be glad that it wasn't more. had you been fined 1km east (in civic) you 
> would have been up for at least $63. unfortunatly parking fines don't 
> come with any 'special introductory rates'.

Had I been fined at Flinders University it would have been $20, with the
first fine of the year waived upon a reasonable excuse.

> >Driving away all the pesky visitors would surely make the life of the
> >
> the ANU would function quite happily if only students & staff were

Once again I'm both student and staff. Yes that is possible.

> allowed in. Yes, life for allot of the ANU population would be made much 
> easier if visitors were resticted. I'm sure the cleaners wouldn't mind 
> not having to clean pizza off the floor, the forth friday of every 
> month. don't push your luck.

I'm not pushing anything. The cleaners are a separate group of people to
the parking inspectors. I doubt that the parking inspectors are
intentionally trying to make less work for the cleaners.

> The most you can do now is write to them explaining that you didn't 
> understand the parking restriction, and had been parked there many times 
> before not realising that it was a problem.

That's naturally what I'm planning.

I was hoping to find out if I was the only one who got fined - and from
this thread I find that multiple CLUGers, users of the Sports Centre,
and even staff from nearby, have been fined all of a sudden. That's
evidence that people were genuinely surprised at the situation, as
nobody intentionally gives away that kind of money.

> regards,
> -James

Darren




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