[Sca-cooks] OT, OOP--'Full Serve' in Oregon

[El Hermoso Dormido]

On Monday 01 July 2002 01:01 pm, Laura C. Minnick wrote:
> Ok- I have lived in Oregon since 1984, and I have never seen those signs. I
> have however been through those hills East of La Grande, and the frequency
> with which drivers cross the line while going around those turns is really
> scary. Also that is a main truckin groute, and truckers come from all over-
> and laws are not uniform from state to state. Frankly the idea that there
> is frequent signage out there to remind them the We Mean It, Stanley! is
> something like reassuring. I don't think anyone thinks drivers are stupid-
> just unfamiliar, distracted, and probably tired and worried about their
> brakes...
[...] Actually, that idea had occurred to me - I hadn't seen those
signs along the coast when I drove through Oregon there.  The signs were down
in the southeast corner of Oregon, on the highway cutting through there
between Idaho and Nevada.  It just seemed silly to put them EVERY MILE or so
(which means anyone who would be reminded of anything by them will tend to
"tune them out" as a regular feature anyway) and not word them as more of
a blatant warning/threat, i.e. "You WILL be fined for crossing the double
yellow line" (analogous to signs I've seen elsewhere with things like "Double
fines for speeding in construction zones" rather than "it's illegal to
exceed the speed limit"...)

> Dunno where you live, but I'll tell you- in the Portland Metro area, if you
> pull over 10 drivers, chances are really good that 7 of them are from
> Somewhere Else. And I'll tell you, all I had to do, coming from Washington,
> was to surrender my Washington license, take the eye test, and fork over
> the $$$. License transfers do no require a familiarlity with Oregon laws.
> And It has little to do with who we elect- DOT positions are not elective.

I've heard that the People From Somewhere Else(tm) problem is pretty bad in
Oregon.  Nonetheless, though, as far as I know there are NO states where
the double line means anything BUT "do not pass", so no matter WHICH Somewhere
Else they're from, they still ought to already know this.  (Like you say,
though, it probably IS intended as a 'reminder' for people inclined to
disregard them).

It's just that until I saw those signs, the "you're not competent
to pump your own gas" (as I understand it, the law FORBIDS self service, not
just "requires full service to be offered") law was a lone quirk of Oregon
legal attitude that just made the "oh, and you may not realize that double
yellow line means no passing" implication of the signs seem awfully funny
to me when I saw them...)

> OFC- much of the Willamette (*Will-AA-mut* though the 'u' should be the
> upside-down e, the schwa) Valley is agricultural, and you really haven't
> lived until A) you've driven down Hwy 99 near Monroe just after they've
> been cutting the mint, B) been stuck behind a truck full and heaping over
> the top of fat yellow onions. Phwehw!

MMMMmmmmmm....onions.....

Signed
El Hermoso Dormido, who (back on the subject of food) has gotten nigh-
addicted to sauteed onions and garlic chunks....