Flashing Lights

"May I see your driver's license and proof of insurance?"

This, coming from a cherubic faced, very sincere youngster, wearing a blue uniform and standing next to my window, made me pause and ask myself  "What's up?  Why is this happening?  Who is this person, why is he questioning me?  I'm sure there's a criminal not two miles from where he's standing who needs to be arrested for something.  Why is he doing this to ME???"

We were on our way home from an appointment that had unsettled us but not to the point that I would consider myself "impaired."  I'm a pilot, remember?  I've been trained to think about my physical and mental state before cranking the engine, any engine, and lettinerrip.  I was good to go when I got behind the wheel and fired up the Guzzler Deluxe. 

We made it through the stop and go traffic that is the norm for Bend, Oregon and as soon as we were on the highway we made like Stepphenwolf and headed out.  The speed limit was 55 MPH on the four lane highway and that's where the cruise control was set.  The fluids were at the correct levels and all the lights were working when the beast was last serviced one week/forty-six miles ago. All the tires have around 12,000 miles on them.  I'm telling you this so you can understand my amazement at being pulled over.  

The traffic was fairly heavy and most folks were in a hurry to get where it was they were going.  For that reason we were in the slow lane and the fast lane was full of cars that were passing us when we ourselves passed a cop who was on the side of the road handing out a ticket to one of those in-a-hurry types who was unfortunate enough to be pulled over.  The cop handing out the ticket had a buddy sitting in another cruiser behind him and that was the guy who pulled out, turned on his flashing lights and now was standing beside my door.

The conversation went something like this:
"What's the deal - why didn't you grab one of the speeders? I was only doing 55."

"I stopped you because you didn't move into the far lane when you passed a stopped emergency vehicle."

"What?  There wasn't any room.  The lane was full of people passing me"

"I have videotape of what happened, and you didn't move into the other lane."

"Well, go check the video and let me know just where I was supposed to go."

This went on for several more you didn'ts and I couldn'ts but finally he went back to his car for a few minutes and then returned.

"I'm just gonna give you a verbal warning this time,  but next time move into the other lane."

Wow, Rodney King and I - both saved by the video camera.

What in the world is happening in our country that a citizen who is obeying all the laws can't even go down the highway without being questioned?  How did this happen to us?  When did it happen?   Ya know, I have a theory about this kinda thing.

The cops are afraid of the bad guys so they leave them alone. Can't say that I blame them; they're out gunned and out manned.  We ordinary, honest, tax paying  everyday good guys are much easier marks, so they go for us.  And, it makes perfect economic sense for them to do this.  If, God forbid, they arrest an honest to goodness criminal he goes to jail and that costs money. On the other hand, if they hand one of us mostly law abiding citizens a ticket, it provides money to pay their salaries. 

Anybody else have a better explanation?  I'm listening.


.