What Speed Limit ????????

[VtSteve]

Originally Posted by OCDACTIVE

The arguement is that it is mayham on the lake and safety is being compromised. If this is only effecting a small few boats that can exceed the limits then how can it be mayham unless it is another problem. Not speed.

BI understands the law well, and the real problems on the lake even better. He's not only a realist, he's a pretty good predictor of the future. If you look back over his old posts during and after the first bill's defeat, you'll see that he pushed for a compromise, and warned that if it wasn't achieved, it would become a dictate. The compromise was never fought for, and the bill was signed.

He also knew that there was very limited (if any), support for additional funds for enforcement. So in BI's mind, this bill wouldn't really solve any problems, but maybe it might limit, or even prevent, some of the GF boats from going to Winni.

Far too often today, government relies on premeditated plans to spread as much disinformation as they can to gain support for one cause or another. Kracken explains the theory and practice of the "Nudge". Spot on in many respects. Again, we have far too many people that are only too willing to support a cause by any and all means possible. Proof is not needed, nor are any substantial facts or debate. People will believe a large percentage of anything you throw on the wall, so just throw more than the other side to see what sticks. This happens in all levels of government, from the highest power down to the local levels.

Unfortunately, there's not too much chance in any of these debates for rational, common sense discussions. Careful analysis of facts mean nothing in debates where people choose sides, not solve problems.

BI and myself probably share a lot of common ground in this debate overall, while we may differ in the solutions offered. In fact, many of the SL opponents agree with his statements of concern far more often than the supporters themselves. Unfortunately, it's not folks like BI that have taken leading rolls in battles such as this. It's the combination of political hacks, lobbyists and special interest groups that know their way around that black hole called government, not to mention how to sway or misrepresent public opinion.

I'm going to spend some time in the off season discussing these issues with many fellow boaters and organizations that have been dealing with safety on the waterways. I'll try to share my findings as best I can.