You're viewing a single thread.
Another reason to stay out of the usa. Not just anecdotal, we're talking about a country where walking on a public street can be illegal, and people who do are sometimes called a slur.
Because cities aren't for people to live in, they're for cars to drive trough
In general, the US seems to be weirdly pro-violence.
Being beaten up is portrayed as perfectly normal in media and advocating for violence (like here) seems to be totally okay for many.
That's fucked up.
It's strange because we also have an extreme culture of litigation, and so much as an unwelcome or aggressive touch (without injury) could technically support a civil lawsuit or criminal charges for assault/battery.
The difference is that we apply justice differently depending on your political belief, so the acceptable violence is usually one-directional. Any violence by left protestors will be treated akin to terrorism. If you're a right wing crazy harassing people protesting for a left cause, police will look the other way and you may not even be convicted for murder (e.g., Rittenhouse). Worse, the police are usually the ones being irrationally violent - like the George Floyd protests in which nonviolent civil protest was suppressed with military-level equipment, tactics and violence.
Breaking News: third world country has a corrupt legal system. Citizens shocked. More at 11.
It’s because we have a lot of repressed rage because we know deep down we really are one of the shittiest countries, despite what all the cousin-humping country singers keep caterwauling about.
Cognitive dissonance is a hell of a drug.
Walking on a street can be illegal? How? Can you expand a bit on that, please?
"Jay" is an old English slur. "Jaywalking" refers to walking on a public street illegally. For highways, it makes sense that you're not supposed to walk there. But in America this "jaywalking" can even apply to city streets.
If you're not in America, then it might just sound ridiculous. That's because it is
For highways, it makes sense that you’re not supposed to walk there.
Americans have created such a large and dense web of highways that it is difficult to cross the street in some areas without walking miles in a given direction to reach a crosswalk.
Houston, in particular, has this bad. You can easily find yourself near a freeway or overpass that sends you on a 20-30 minute hike to cross the street.
I once got yelled at by a cop for walking across a nearly empty road in columbus Ohio.
The closest crosswalk was basically 1/4mile in either direction, because the building I was trying to enter is so large.
I was walking with a cane at the time. And no cars were anywhere close so a snail could have made it across with time to spare. It took some people close by stepping in and arguing for me before the Douchebag dropped it.
Im sure if I had looked my usual level of disheveled or had any other shade of skin I wouldn't be so "lucky"
Contrast that with my country which has law state that if there is no crosswalk closer than 100 meters, you are allowed to cross the road, provided you do so carefully - not disturbing traffic etc. You do however
looselose all protections of the law during this, and you cannot pass if there is a suggestion you shouldn't, for example a rail or some other barrier between sidewalk and road.
Why would anyone want to live in such a place?
The land is (re: was) cheap
Fair fair
I'm european.
Walking on a highway is just plain dangerous, to not say stupid. On that context, it is justified. Crossing the road outside the zebra crossing can get you fined, as you are endangering yourself and others. We have those laws as well. But walking on city streets? I can't remember one in the entire country which I can't walk up and down.
A lot of America is made up of roads that most people would agree in isolation should only be crossed at designated/signaled areas. However, if your entire municipality is just made up of those roads and you don't prioritize crossing areas, pedestrians will naturally cross illegally.
I lived in an apartment building that had a parking lot across the street. The nearest crosswalk was a few minutes walk in either direction. The owner tried to petition the city to add a crosswalk, but the laws prohibited too many crosswalks regardless of the practical needs. He even offered to pay for it himself. So, you had tons of people who lived there crossing illegally.
How many runovers?
None while I lived there, which was a few years. I had a close call once because people sped a lot, so the perceived distance wasn't always reliable. Cops camped out not far from the area sometimes because it was instant tickets as a result.
Did they fine the speeders or the jaywalkers?
Speeders. The jaywalking fine in that jurisdiction was negligible because it hadn't been updated in like 100 years, so the cops probably didn't think it was worth their time for a $1 ticket.
Yeah European roads are either stuck where they are for historical reasons or built to be safe.
Not everywhere, in Norway jaywalking is legal. We do have laws against purposely distributing traffic, but regular jaywalking is legal.
Exactly, weird is it not?
Very.
Has anyone actually been charged with jaywalking in the past 50 years tho? I've never heard of anyone giving a shit in any town or city I've been to in the US
"New York City's jaywalking laws may seem obsolete, but the NYPD still tickets hundreds of people a year for the violation." This JUST ended and jaywalking was made legal in NYC in October 2024. However this is a single city example. Jaywalking is still illegal and ticketed throughout the US. Especially if vagrancy laws were already removed, it's a nice loop hole for cops to be able to harass homeless.
Ah, I must be too not-homeless, cuz that's not my experience in NYC. Just another tool for oppression of undesirables then.
I'm in the Netherlands, I'm not bothered
There are jaywalking laws where you can be stopped for crossing against the light, against the right of way in general, etc. Not sure what the slur is. I think Jay used to be a mild insult?
I saw a cartoon on here once with an out-of-towner complaining about all the horse-carriages in this "Jay town" but I can't find it.