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Comment by jbaber | Hacker News Reader

I used to think this before I moved to the Eastern seabord of the US. Many freeways have the speed limits randomly oscillate to values ranging from 50 to 75 with the flow of traffic pretending the speed limit is always 65. There are definitely speed traps set up in many unexpected 55 zones which I only know to slow down at from familiarity.

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In western Virginia they sit at the bottom of hills and give tickets to out of state plates that go over the limit by any amount.

Anywhere in Virginia along the North Carolina border area is at extreme risk for out of state tags.

But this doesn't invalidate the OP's point... regardless of how reasonable you believe a change in speed limit to be, you're still obligated to follow it, and if you don't then you might get a ticket. And it's not like these changes are unannounced; there is a sign for every time it changes. Surely if you're going to listen to some "speed trap detecting" contraption, you could also look at the signs that announce the change in speed limit? Or better yet, whatever app you're using to detect speed cameras should give you an equivalent ping every time it detects a change in speed limit...

The argument is not that the law isn’t technically followable. The argument is that the law is not based on safety and is capricious and designed to catch and fine people, which could justify ways of avoiding getting caught.

The argument from OP was:

> the odds you get a ticket from a hidden camera are very low if you just respect the speed limits

And the comment I was responding to was about how speed limits are unreasonable. So I maintain that the comment did not refute OP's point. The reasonableness of the speed limits is irrelevant to whether or not you get fewer tickets when you drive below the posted speed limit.

This is the driving equivalent of "just follow instructions"; you're ignoring that they are intentionally making the speed limits difficult to respect in order so that they can ticket you. Telling people not to get tricked is just victim blaming.

Won't someone think of the overconfident and dangerous idiots who think they are race drivers

Does that characterize everyone transitioning rapidly from 65 to 35 back and forth?

Just because the system works in a certain way doesn't mean it's working correctly.

I could get a ticket for jaywalking a red light even though it's 4am, dead silent and can't see a car for a mile. "The law is the law", if some traffic cop came from around the corner he could ticket me. Now is that right? I think it isn't. Now what are my options? Spend an inordinate amount of time trying to change the way society works or figure out ways to go about my life without having to obey some over-bearing public official's rules.

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