Fredly reports he came out today to find his Prius's rear window smashed, the spoiler broken, a fender keyed and what appear to be kick marks. He was parked behind the State House.
Guess someone took the space saver away before I showed up. ... If you shoveled it, you should get to use the space, but if someone takes it, just write a note, don't get violent.
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Comments
The State House should have
By brianjdamico
Sun, 02/22/2015 - 8:52pm
The State House should have cameras watching around it and Walsh said acts of vandalism would result in arrests so...
You really think the State
By Fredly
Sun, 02/22/2015 - 9:12pm
You really think the State Police would care enough to rewind a tape? The A-1 cop who wrote the report put my location as "Eastie", if it's any indication of their motivation.
The state house will more
By anon
Sun, 02/22/2015 - 9:59pm
The state house will more than likely review the footage if you ask. Suffolk U also has a camera on that street.
World Trash City.
By anon
Sun, 02/22/2015 - 8:59pm
World Trash City.
Good God! I never ....
By anon
Sun, 02/22/2015 - 9:11pm
Clutch the pearls!
Originality
By Lee
Mon, 02/23/2015 - 9:26am
Please move on from the stupid pearl clutching comments. The neighborhood is a lot more diverse these days. You just sound dumb.
This isn't good
By Lior
Sun, 02/22/2015 - 9:22pm
Ok we've already seen a lot of property damage. Someone is going to get hurt. What is wrong with this mayor, supporting this?
With the stress of commuting
By Katie
Sun, 02/22/2015 - 9:35pm
With the stress of commuting and snow removal, I feel as if it's only a matter of time before there is a physical altercation in which someone is hurt, or worse killed, over parking.
Heckuva job, Marty.
By cleokid
Sun, 02/22/2015 - 9:35pm
Heckuva job, Marty.
*slow clap*
Amateur Hour
By anon
Sun, 02/22/2015 - 9:47pm
Mahty's a tool and a homeboy, not a real executive or a real statesman.
Show some real leadership? HAHAHAHAH! Can't possibly apply for federal disaster releaf and use the funds to plow! Can't declare street cleaning on an even odd schedule and clear the snow from the neighberhoods over time! No!
That's not going to please his IOC masters, so he doesn't give a shit. Won't fill his campaign chest with money from the ones browsing at his brown curls.
88 inches of snow in the last
By WS
Mon, 02/23/2015 - 7:40pm
88 inches of snow in the last 2 weeks, Here is an imaginary example -can't blame the Mayor if a massive hurricane came barelling into Boston causing billions in damage, debris on every street making trucks impossible to drive on streets. Well replace the debris with mounds of snow on every street in Boston.
I'm not a big Marty fan, but
By anon
Mon, 02/23/2015 - 9:32am
I'm not a big Marty fan, but this kind of stuff has been going on for years. Seems like he's taking the heat from a lot of people who have never experienced parking in the city during major snow events.
you all sound whiny as hell.
By Scumquistador
Sun, 02/22/2015 - 11:04pm
you all sound whiny as hell. cool little circle jerk about how the mayor must support property damage because he supports space savers though lmfao
One leads to the other
By Lior
Mon, 02/23/2015 - 7:19am
I think it's pretty clear. We don't usually have all this car vandalism. All it's going to take is one confrontation. It could easily be an accidental thing. The mayor was really irresponsible to think that this game of street justice was some appropirate rule for a modern city.
Honestly you can just refer
By Scumquistador
Mon, 02/23/2015 - 8:01am
Honestly you can just refer to my original post for a response to you.
Act your age
By lbb
Mon, 02/23/2015 - 9:27am
For God's sake, grow up. It makes me feel embarrassed for you, just to read such foolishness.
We don't usually have winters
By anon
Mon, 02/23/2015 - 9:34am
We don't usually have winters like this, either. Tempers are flaring, so it's unsurprising to see an increase in vandalism. It's not right at all, but I'd hardly put it on the mayor or suggest he's condoning street justice. The saver system existed before him and likely isn't going away any time soon.
He's the top city executive
By Lee
Mon, 02/23/2015 - 10:52am
For him to say it's okay to use space savers is just irresponsible. So if someone gets hurt, do we sue the city for condoning this? Better to come up with a better plan for plowing, like some have suggested on this board. The saver system would be okay if it didn't lead to idiots keying cars and slashing tires, or maybe worse.
And that's why it's not okay
By Kaz
Mon, 02/23/2015 - 11:42am
Jumping off a bridge in order to fly would be okay if it didn't lead to falling to your death.
The vandalism and vigilantism is the ONLY possible outcome from the saver system. Until using a garden gnome to hold your space gets coded into the city ordinances...or you can call a cop and have someone towed for moving your 15-year old crib out of the street...until those things happen there is zero enforcement of a space saver except whatever you are personally willing to do to the person and/or their car that violated this fake policy. Since a space saver is a hollow victory without punitive retribution for anyone that would violate the honor code, the only answer is to take revenge on the would-be dishonorable person (IF you can even be sure they are the one that actually moved your space saver and didn't come upon an empty space themselves).
Why would anyone save a space if they knew people were going to move it and they'd just have to go "whelp, I tried!" and shrug it off? That system would only punish your NICE neighbors willing to respect your saver and allow your JERK neighbors to park everywhere your NICe neighbors weren't willing to break the code. Why would you help the JERKS in a system where there's no retribution but space savers are allowed (as currently designed by the mayor's own words)?
This is game theory 101: a prisoner's dilemma. In game theory, "space save, but don't vandalize" ONLY works for the worse aspects of both you and your "competitors". The disrespectful competitors get their pick of the spaces that are saved because they are greedy and according to the rule, you can't retaliate. If you get back to your saved space first, then they weren't going to take it whether you saved it or not, since that's the definition of getting there before them. The only competitor you beat is one that isn't disrespectful of your space saving and, really, wouldn't you rather reward them for their inherent kindness rather than the disrespectful competitor?
This 1000 times
By JCK
Mon, 02/23/2015 - 11:48am
The whole system works ONLY because of the (high) possibility of vandalism.
I cannot agree
By Waquiot
Mon, 02/23/2015 - 2:59pm
It depends on your view of human nature. If you think people are basically good, people wouldn't parked in "saved" space, so no threats are needed. If you think people are basically bad, people are just going to mess with you regardless, so you have to respond. Despite what some space saver haters think, bodily harm is very unlikely. This crap is the usual upper bounds. Keying would be the norm.
Taking this story on its face, I would not condone the damage. It's wrong. But whoever decided that they hate space savers so much that they are going around removing them like a vigilante has blame on their hands. Not as much as the psycho who mashed the window, but blame still.
Alternative explanation
By Bob Leponge
Mon, 02/23/2015 - 3:21pm
Alternatively, there are people who believe that spaces are a thing that can be saved, and there are others who simply don't recognize the concept, and so are not acting "bad" when they take what, to them, is a freely available public space.
No, it's dependent on human nature not your view of it
By Kaz
Mon, 02/23/2015 - 3:31pm
It doesn't require a view of human nature. Regardless of whether you think people are "basically good" or "basically bad", there are people who are good and people who are bad. It doesn't matter the proportions or how you expect your fellow mankind to act. There are people who will remove your space saver and park in your spot. Intentionally. What are you going to do about it? You don't condone retribution. So, the answer is nothing. You, being good, are going to do nothing. Then why did you even save the space? To stop the other good people from using it? Congratulations. You just punished the good and held it open until the bad took it from you. Winner: Bad. Loser: You and the other good people who let you hold the space until the bad could take it from you.
But let's play your game of views. If you view everyone as good, then there's no reason to save the space. Everyone won't need to save a space, because everyone is willing to share the space they opened and everyone finds enough space to park as many cars as there were when they were dug out. If you don't find a space, then that means there aren't enough spaces dug out which is a problem for the entire good community regardless of space saving or not. You should all come together to dig more spaces out (many hands working together, etc.).
If you view everyone as bad, then there's no reason to save the space. If you save a space and everyone is evil space stealers, then they will steal it before you return or it would have remained open whether you saved it or not. Also, you are free to steal any other space that is saved because everyone is evil and the person you steal from probably stole another already (or will when they return to find you in theirs).
There is no view where saving spaces makes sense. The people willing to oblige you are good. The people who aren't willing to oblige you are evil. Nothing you put in your space will stop an evil person from taking it. If everyone is good then you have no reason to think there won't be somewhere for you to park because nobody will need to save spaces as a whole.
Unless you see someone else save a space in a world full of good people who don't save their spaces from each other. This means that they are not part of this coalition of the good...so they must be evil. So, if you're the one putting a space saver out, then you must actually be the evil one.
You make good points
By Waquiot
Mon, 02/23/2015 - 4:13pm
As opposed to some others, who still rehash the public property issues.
People are good- you save to tell people "hey, I put in the effort. Don't take my spot." Of course, I will have to note that the assumption is that there is enough snow on the ground that an effort had to be made. If you throw a cone out in July, you're nature is bad, so people are not good to begin with. Since people are good, they will pass over the marked spot to find a place where either the driver decided that they don't care about the space or they will find a place, take their trusty shovel from the trunk, and create a new space. Perhaps they will mark this territory, perhaps not. This is akin to throwing a seat on a chair at a movie theater for a friend or the tradition of saving picnic tables at Saratoga Race Course.
People are bad- yes, you have to gird yourself for the guy from a block over who decides to park in the space you have cleared to pavement for your frail mother who barely speaks English. So, what do you do? This has a lot to do with your nature. The least harmful thing would be to do what was done in the example above. This guy has decided that you should not benefit from your work Your option is to move that 12 x 6 x 3 pile of snow on your block to a place where there wasn't snow before, and as a bonus you can give someone the experience of shoveling out a space. Beyond that, there is a question of what is over the line. Physical assault is definitely over the line, but where is graffiti or keying the car? I'm just glad that I live in the land of savers and nice people (and that my car is off the street.)
I don't like the example. I really don't. But it's the only thing I've got. In international relations, you want to get along well with everyone, but then almost every nation has an army. And sometimes they use it, though most would rather not. Switzerland is neutral, as is Finland, but every adult male in those countries has served time in the army and is subject to recall. The United States gets along with Canada and Mexico, but who knows where things will be in 50 years.
Basically bad
By lbb
Mon, 02/23/2015 - 3:48pm
So if you want to use a public resource, you're not "basically good"? See, this is where we disagree.
What a great big load of horsefeathers.
"It is not yours. You may use it. You may share it. If you will not share it, you may not use it."
- Ursula Le Guin
The great big load of
By anon
Mon, 02/23/2015 - 4:18pm
The great big load of horsefeathers is the people who go around moving savers, or people who are so invested in hating the practice but aren't inside the belly of the Boston winter beast. I have to wonder how many people crying BS about the savers aren't Boston residents.
Those who don't drive or live here should mind their own business. And if you are going to take it upon yourselves to move space savers, at least take advantage of the spot by parking there yourself. It's fun to throw rocks and run away, but would you put your own neck on the chopping block while crying about all the unfairness?
Why the heck
By Sally
Mon, 02/23/2015 - 9:13pm
would anyone who is not inside the belly of the beast, so to speak, move a space saver? You think people are driving up from Florida to park their cars in the spot you shoveled out, just for the heck of it? We are ALL in the belly of the effing beast, aren't we?
It boggles me too, Sally.
By anon
Tue, 02/24/2015 - 1:31pm
Feel free to ask them. A number of people have revealed on here that they don't live in Boston, yet they have strong feelings on the system. A number of people also don't drive, but take it upon themselves to enforce what they feel is right.
That's just wrong
By Bob Leponge
Mon, 02/23/2015 - 9:31pm
A solid ethical principle is that you should do things that, if everyone did them, would make the world a better place, and you should avoid doing things that, if everyone did them, would make the world a worse place.
If every pedestrian took it upon himself or herself to toss space savers, then the practice would die out very quickly. That would be a good thing.
Unfortunately, it takes a concerted effort by a lot of people -- there's kind of a critical mass thing -- so for a small number of people to sporadically move a few space savers merely adds chaos to the system.
There's a cardboard sign on
By Ano
Sun, 02/22/2015 - 11:31pm
There's a cardboard sign on the corner of Schuyler and Maple that says "I shoveled this and I will need it tonight, but please feel free to use it until 5pm". There is a happy medium possible here. Smashing up someone's car is not ok.
Parking or something else?
By JB
Mon, 02/23/2015 - 12:19am
Fredly, how sure are you that this crime was motivated by the parking situation? There was no space saver in the first place.
Good point!
By Scratchie
Mon, 02/23/2015 - 11:48am
How can anyone be sure of anything, really? I mean, "what is 'truth'?", if you know what I mean.
Could have been a car break
By anon
Mon, 02/23/2015 - 8:02am
Could have been a car break-in and had nothing to do with the stolen space saver theory the car owner assumes. Cars are broken into all of the time in cities -- happened to me at least twice since moving to Boston. Never had an expensive car and never left anything in view to have given thieves a reason to smash a window yet they did it anyway. Sucks, but it happens. Also, in other cases where someone was pissed that the space they shoveled was taken by someone else, the shoveler left a nasty message.
Don't you think OP would have
By lbb
Mon, 02/23/2015 - 9:27am
Don't you think OP would have mentioned items being stolen?
Did you read my comment? I
By anon
Mon, 02/23/2015 - 9:42am
Did you read my comment? I said that my car had been broken into twice despite there being nothing to steal... just because nothing was stolen doesn't mean a car window can't be smashed for the purpose of looking for something to steal. Reading comprehension, my friend...
Did you miss the part about a
By tofu
Mon, 02/23/2015 - 9:46am
Did you miss the part about a keyed fender and kick marks? Reading comprehension, my friend...
car was keyed, spoiler broken - thieves generally don't bother
By peter
Mon, 02/23/2015 - 9:46am
Thieves don't usually go out of their way to damage the car beyond getting in. They don't stop to key the fenders, break the spoiler, etc.
Indeed they don't.
By lbb
Mon, 02/23/2015 - 1:30pm
Indeed they don't. They grab and go as fast as possible. The last thing they want to do is hang around and attract attention. A ragey space-saving vigilante, on the other hand, does not even have that level of rationality and smarts.
Seems to be the likely explanation.
By Fredly
Mon, 02/23/2015 - 8:40am
The damage is too varied and widespread to be accidental. And I don't have any other reason for someone to do this to my car. None of the other cars on the block had any damage, either.
You would know because you
By anon
Mon, 02/23/2015 - 9:55am
You would know because you were there. That's right, all people who shovel out parking spaces are savages!
No.
By Sally
Mon, 02/23/2015 - 10:28am
People who shovel out a space and then throw a freaking hissy fit and destroy someone's car because someone parked in said space are savages. Get it?
Just write a note?
By makeshift_vicinity
Mon, 02/23/2015 - 12:27pm
If the only consequence of taking a space that had a space saver was getting an angry note, then people would ignore the whole practice.
The entire space saver system depends upon the threat of violence and property damage in order to "work." That's why it was always an incredibly stupid idea.
If shitty college kids didn't
By gotdatwmd
Mon, 02/23/2015 - 8:03pm
If shitty college kids didn't abandon their cars for an entire semester in residential neighborhoods with free off street parking because they didn't want to pay for their college's overnight lot, we wouldn't need space savers
Really, so this isn't a
By Baker-Christie 2016
Mon, 02/23/2015 - 8:33pm
Really, so this isn't a problem in any neighborhoods with residential parking, like southie? One could argue if townies didnt expect the government to give them free parking in front of their house this wouldnt be an issue.
Are you sure...
By lbb
Mon, 02/23/2015 - 10:08pm
...that this is really such a big issue? I don't think a lot of college kids bother to transfer their registrations (they should, but they don't), and so they can't get resident stickers. So are they really that big a factor?
No...
By MatthewC
Mon, 02/23/2015 - 7:03pm
Don't write a note and don't save the spot. That seems like an easy fix to crazy spoace saver types running amok.
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