# "You know, that's handicapped parking spot!" **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [June 13, 2011, 5:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-know-thats-handicapped-parking-spot/585328 "2011-06-13T17:13:55Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 14
**Author:** ![LilyoftheField](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/13edae/32.png) [@LilyoftheField](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LilyoftheField)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2011, 6:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-know-thats-handicapped-parking-spot/585328/261 "2011-06-14T18:32:36Z")
> [@billfish678](#): > > The OP broke the letter of the law by parking there (and everybody here has done something similiar sometime, probably for even more minor reasons than the OP had). > > The OP was a bit of a dick for pitting the complaining lady (though do note he was actually decent to her in person). > > He didnt actually cause anyone in real life any problems. It sounds like the probability he might have possibly done so had things gone poorly was still pretty damn close to zero. His only real crime that I can see is starting the pit thread in first place (lordy save us all from such heinous crimes). > > IMO a good fraction of those giving him grief (but not all, some are decently thoughtful/logical posts chastising the OP) are even more entitled, stupid, illogical complaining pricks than the OP ever was. > > And I say this as someone who has much sympathy for handicapped folks, knows a few, and as best as I can remember has never for any reason parked in a handicapped spot in first place (even in the damn middle of the night in an empty parking lot with the businesses closed). > > But hey, this is the pit where everybody gets to be an ass so carry on. I’m quoting this post in its entirety because I agree with every paragraph. QFT. (By which I mean, if I agree with it, it must be true! 😃 ) ---
**Author:** ![MeanOldLady](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/meanoldlady/32/10737_2.png) [@MeanOldLady](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MeanOldLady)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2011, 6:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-know-thats-handicapped-parking-spot/585328/262 "2011-06-14T18:36:15Z")
> [@billfish678](#): > > The OP broke the letter of the law by parking there (and everybody here has done something similiar sometime, probably for even more minor reasons than the OP had). > > The OP was a bit of a dick for pitting the complaining lady (though do note he was actually decent to her in person). Ya rly. If that were me, I’d have thought to myself “Cool your jets, lady,” and that would have been the end of it. My brother is disabled, and I still don’t think what the OP did was the worst thing in the world. I know in threads like these everyone comes out the woodwork with a sister’s best friend’s baby’s mama’s cousin who has a disability, so they know what they’re talking about, but my brother actually has been disabled for the past seven years. Like for real, and not this “I once sprained my ankle after tripping over a cord” crap. When your brother is hospitalized then comes out months later without use of his legs, you notice (abysmally lacking) ADA compliance enough that you start to think [this guy](http://articles.latimes.com/2008/nov/18/local/me-wheelchair18) isn’t so bad, even though almost all of his law suits were entirely fraudulent. Even so, come the fuck on. A quick unload in a parking area with other available handicapped spots is the very antithesis of a “bfd.” I almost never park illegally, and don’t think I’ve ever used a handicapped spot for any reason, but I’d be a liar if I said I’ve never parked illegally before. Hell yeah I’ve used loading zones when I wasn’t loading, and I may have even double parked for two minutes. I could have been blocking the vehicle of someone who was going into labor, but no one seems to get worked up into a lather about that. What _is_ it about the words “handicapped spot” that bring out that froth? ---
**Author:** ![Bridget\_Burke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7cd45c/32.png) [@Bridget\_Burke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bridget_Burke)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2011, 6:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-know-thats-handicapped-parking-spot/585328/263 "2011-06-14T18:59:47Z")
> [@Eonwe](#): > > If there’s one thing this thread has convinced me of, it’s looking for a decent hand truck. Good. Ask any _professional_ musicians you might know where to buy one. ---
**Author:** ![2gigch1](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/2gigch1/32/3313_2.png) [@2gigch1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/2gigch1)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2011, 7:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-know-thats-handicapped-parking-spot/585328/264 "2011-06-14T19:25:40Z")
> [@MeanOldLady](#): > > A quick unload in a parking area with other available handicapped spots is the very antithesis of a “bfd.” I can see your point, but it’s the “there was a legal parking spot 15 feet away” part that still gets me. It’s like folks in DC and Baltimore who double park in traffic _right next to an open legal parking spot._ To get offended when someone actually calls you on it is even sillier. This is just a fun trainwreck of a thread and it has been amusing to post in it. ---
**Author:** ![billfish678](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7bcc69/32.png) [@billfish678](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/billfish678)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2011, 7:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-know-thats-handicapped-parking-spot/585328/265 "2011-06-14T19:38:48Z")
> [@Bridget\_Burke](#): > > Good. Ask any _professional_ musicians you might know where to buy one. They can’t afford one either 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2011, 7:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-know-thats-handicapped-parking-spot/585328/266 "2011-06-14T19:44:38Z")
The handicapped bathroom stall is not analogous. Those stalls are not intended to be reserved exclusively for people with disabilities, but are simply stalls made _accessible_ to them. You are allowed to use the handicapped stalls. It’s not illegal. If no other option is available, it’s not even rude to make a person with disabilities wait their turn like everybody else (though, obviously, it would be rude to use that stall if another stall is available). It’s akin the wheelchair ramps next to the steps outside. You can walk up the ramps if you want to, as long as you aren’t impeding anybody. They aren’t reserved exclusively for the disabled. Those parking spits _are_. ---
**Author:** ![MeanOldLady](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/meanoldlady/32/10737_2.png) [@MeanOldLady](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MeanOldLady)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2011, 8:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-know-thats-handicapped-parking-spot/585328/267 "2011-06-14T20:27:24Z")
> [@2gigch1](#): > > I can see your point, but it’s the “there was a legal parking spot 15 feet away” part that still gets me. It’s like folks in DC and Baltimore who double park in traffic _right next to an open legal parking spot._ > > To get offended when someone actually calls you on it is even sillier. This is just a fun trainwreck of a thread and it has been amusing to post in it. Yeah, the 15 feet away thing is like, “Dude, come on” and getting antsy because a woman dared reprimand him for improper use of the handicapped space is a bit silly, but I can’t wrap my head around all the moral outrage that’s going on here over this benign infraction. This is the tiniest fd in the world. ---
**Author:** ![mhendo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mhendo/32/3159_2.png) [@mhendo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mhendo)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2011, 8:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-know-thats-handicapped-parking-spot/585328/268 "2011-06-14T20:42:42Z")
> [@2gigch1](#): > > It’s like folks in DC and Baltimore who double park in traffic _right next to an open legal parking spot._ This used to infuriate me when i lived in Baltimore. My first few years there, i lived on Calvert Street, which is one of the main roads heading north out of downtown. It is a one-way street, with parking on either side of the road in addition to two lanes of northbound traffic. Cars would constantly stop in one of the driving lanes when there were literally dozens of open parking spaces on the block. Delivery drivers (pizza, etc.) were especially bad, but plenty of other people did it too. Sometimes there would be someone blocking the left traffic lane, and then someone blocking the right traffic lane 30 yards further along, meaning that traffic not only had to filter into single file, it also had to slalom from one side to the other in order to get through. Fucking insane. ---
**Author:** ![curlcoat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ea5d25/32.png) [@curlcoat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/curlcoat)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2011, 8:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-know-thats-handicapped-parking-spot/585328/269 "2011-06-14T20:45:51Z")
> [@bengangmo](#): > > Three times I got a ticket for parking just like the OP did, and three times I’ve appealed the ticket succcessfully on the exact same grounds as the OP. When you posted to show this to be true (once at least) you didn’t show the grounds you used to win the appeal. > [@The\_Niply\_Elder](#): > > I’m with the OP on this one. > > First of all, handicapped parking spots are the most underutilized spots of all. There is a glut of them, compared to the proportion of our society who is actually handicapped. Perhaps where you live. Here, they are almost always full. > [@](#): > > Second, while I appreciate the several testimonials put forth by members who are handicapped, the general spirit of the law of the road is that no one is entitled to anything. Everyone has the privilege to use public property for transportation, and this includes handicapped spots. :dubious: Where did you learn to drive? There are all sorts of places you are not allowed under the law to park, not just handicapped spots. > [@](#): > > Last, I think society can maximize the benefit derived from these spaces by accommodating immediate loaders/unloaders provided there are other available handicap spots, and provided the unloaders can yield the spot to a handicapped person if requested. I think it’s totally reasonable to have a hierarchy of preferred users for these spots. All is required is for people to be able to carry on a normal adult conversation. You think that an able bodied person, who is apparently too lazy or too cheap to buy a hand truck, has precedence over a handicapped person? Particularly when that lazy cheap able bodied person could have parked a mere 15 feet away legally? > [@](#): > > Frankly I don’t understand the faux proxy rage of the vast majority of the responses. Do people not see that handicapped spaces are but empty gestures that hardly truly improve the lives of handicapped people? Try being handicapped and you will see how wrong this statement is. > [@Eonwe](#): > > Maybe my response to you was strong, but there’s a very fine line, IMHO, between choosing to insist that a person does not know something he says he knows, and calling him a liar. There was no one who needed that spot. Fact. Why is it so unbelievable? Well, I suppose because your story keeps changing. Also because at the time you parked in that spot, before you even left your car, you had no idea if that spot would be needed because you cannot see into the future. If the other two handicapped spots had filled up, there is no way you would have stopped what you were doing and moved to a non-handicapped spot, based on what you have said here. For some reason, you think lowering your inconvenience is more important than whether or not someone can actually shop, so I just don’t see you immediately leaving that handicapped spot when the other two filled up. > [@](#): > > Not backpedaling. How far do your eyes work? Imagine, if you will. Door on the side of the building. Sidewalk runs parallel to the side of the building, straight to the parking lot. Total length, who the fuck knows; I don’t want to make it up for fear of exaggerating one way or another. But, aside from when I was inside the door to grab my things, I had a straight line of sight to the parking lot. So, yes, I was able to see the lot and my car for the entire duration, minus the times I ducked in the door, grabbed my waiting gear, and turned around again. Sorry, you didn’t get me. I’m sure if you look hard enough you can find some other inconsistency in something I’ve posted that you can grab onto as further indication of what a bad, selfish, dishonest person I am. You backed up the whole time walking away from your car? 😃 Yeah, that’s silly, but so is your attempt to justify what you did, and trying to claim that you were looking at your car almost the whole time it was there. Also, if the door was that far away and you don’t have a problem with breaking the law and inconveniencing others, why didn’t you just park right next to the door? > [@](#): > > And, earshot is also relevant because cars make noise. When they run. With their motors and stuff (well, I guess a Prius would have escaped my aural notice). So you are saying that if you had heard a car drive by, you would have raced out to see if it was a disabled person who needed your spot? :dubious: > [@Chessic\_Sense](#): > > Handicapped spots are there to help the disabled access the building safely and easily, not to compensate them for an otherwise difficult life. The OP was clearly handicapped by the heavy equipment, which made it difficult to safely and easily access the building. He’s not hurting anyone else (probably). What’s the big deal? The big deal is that the OP can do something about his “handicap”, i.e. buy a hand truck, get help, whatever. People with real handicaps are stuck with them. > [@Zeriel](#): > > I was once told by a firefighter that, essentially, he was (when driving a fire truck responding to a fire) allowed to run right over cars illegally parked in the fire lane. > > Accordingly, I think people with handicapped plates also should be issued a bulldozer blade or cowcatcher or something, so that in the event that the OP miscalculates the utilization of said spaces, they can simply push his car out of the way. :D:D ---
**Author:** ![Blaster\_Master](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/cab0a1/32.png) [@Blaster\_Master](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Blaster_Master)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2011, 9:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-know-thats-handicapped-parking-spot/585328/270 "2011-06-14T21:11:47Z")
> [@MeanOldLady](#): > > Nope. Just saying he parked in a handicapped space for any reason for any duration equals immediate harping. This is a fact. > [@MsWhatsit](#): > > To be fair, **Blaster Master** did say “less crap”. I concur that there is no scenario that would lead to zero crap, but I can hypothetically envision a thread like this involving a lesser quantity of crap overall. Depending on the details, I mean. More or less what **MsWhatsit** said. I was just trying to construct a scenario on the extreme end where someone chastising him for parking there would not get as much crap for it. If the scenario isn’t extreme enough, I can make it moreso for the sake of the point, but it’s missing the point. For example, if we say the the next closest non-handicapped spot is also at the far end of the parking lot but there’s plenty of handicapped spots open, and not only is the item he’s unloading extremely heavy but it’s extremely expensive, and it’s pouring rain out and it could be irreparably damaged by water, and he’s still only in the spot only long enough to get the item out and under the awning, for all of about 30s, and immediately moves the vehicle to a regular spot at the end where he should park. Is that sufficiently extreme? I may not be able to construct a situation where he’d receive zero crap, but the point was I think it’s a subjective value judgment, and I was just trying to establish extremes to, hopefully, illustrate that there are situations where one is absolutely being an asshole for using a handicapped spot and would get even more crap than this thread is getting, and one where probably most people would be okay with it and agree that the lady harping on him was silly, and obviously his story is somewhere in the middle. Seriously, you can’t even imagine how there might possibly be an offense of a handicapped spot so minor compared to the cost an individual would have to give up not using it might seem reasonable to most people? ---
**Author:** ![Shot\_From\_Guns](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ccd318/32.png) [@Shot\_From\_Guns](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shot_From_Guns)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2011, 9:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-know-thats-handicapped-parking-spot/585328/271 "2011-06-14T21:21:44Z")
> [@Blaster\_Master](#): > > For example, if we say the the next closest non-handicapped spot is also at the far end of the parking lot but there’s plenty of handicapped spots open, and not only is the item he’s unloading extremely heavy but it’s extremely expensive, and it’s pouring rain out and it could be irreparably damaged by water, and he’s still only in the spot only long enough to get the item out and under the awning, for all of about 30s, and immediately moves the vehicle to a regular spot at the end where he should park. At that point, I’m pretty sure the answer is, “You’re fucking retarded for counting on the availability of illegal parking to be able to unload your equipment.” ---
**Author:** ![Blaster\_Master](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/cab0a1/32.png) [@Blaster\_Master](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Blaster_Master)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2011, 9:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-know-thats-handicapped-parking-spot/585328/272 "2011-06-14T21:38:21Z")
> [@Shot\_From\_Guns](#): > > At that point, I’m pretty sure the answer is, “You’re fucking retarded for counting on the availability of illegal parking to be able to unload your equipment.” I was trying to actually make a point about social norms and subjective judgment calls with balancing the needs/wants of oneself against those of others. I wasn’t even trying to justify the behavior of the individual in my example; in fact, I have said more than once that I don’t think the OP is justified in using the spot. I was hopeful that maybe I could help the OP understand why he was getting the response in this thread that he was. But it seems that there’s more interest in hating on him instead of having any kind of discussion about it, so I give up. ---
**Author:** ![Smeghead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f1d935/32.png) [@Smeghead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smeghead)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2011, 9:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-know-thats-handicapped-parking-spot/585328/273 "2011-06-14T21:42:56Z")
I think the least understandable part of the OP is the fact that he wasn’t expecting the reaction he got, despite being a member for - eh, can’t be bothered to scroll back and check - a long time now. ---
**Author:** ![Shot\_From\_Guns](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ccd318/32.png) [@Shot\_From\_Guns](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shot_From_Guns)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2011, 9:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-know-thats-handicapped-parking-spot/585328/274 "2011-06-14T21:45:57Z")
> [@Blaster\_Master](#): > > I was trying to actually make a point about social norms and subjective judgment calls with balancing the needs/wants of oneself against those of others. Yeah, I caught that right now on the re-read. Sorry, it’s the end of the day and my brain is shutting down, so I somehow blew by the actual point of your post and just responded to the hypothetical. ---
**Author:** ![MeanOldLady](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/meanoldlady/32/10737_2.png) [@MeanOldLady](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MeanOldLady)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2011, 9:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-know-thats-handicapped-parking-spot/585328/275 "2011-06-14T21:47:06Z")
> [@Blaster\_Master](#): > > More or less what **MsWhatsit** said. I was just trying to construct a scenario on the extreme end where someone chastising him for parking there would not get as much crap for it. If the scenario isn’t extreme enough, I can make it moreso for the sake of the point, but it’s missing the point. For example, if we say the the next closest non-handicapped spot is also at the far end of the parking lot but there’s plenty of handicapped spots open, and not only is the item he’s unloading extremely heavy but it’s extremely expensive, and it’s pouring rain out and it could be irreparably damaged by water, and he’s still only in the spot only long enough to get the item out and under the awning, for all of about 30s, and immediately moves the vehicle to a regular spot at the end where he should park. Is that sufficiently extreme? I got what you were saying to begin with. My statement was a criticism of people’s ability to turn their rage-o-meter up to infinity over _any_ usage of the handicapped space, no matter the duration or circumstances. The building could have been on fire, and he was rushing in to save his grandmother, and they would have been like “How do you know ten handicapped people weren’t going to rush in at that exact moment to save their grandmothers too, you selfish asshole?” There doesn’t seem to be any scenario that would not elicit this amount of outrage. But maybe I’m wrong, and have misjudged this crowd of good looking people. ---
**Author:** ![Eonwe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eonwe/32/240_2.png) [@Eonwe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eonwe)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2011, 9:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-know-thats-handicapped-parking-spot/585328/276 "2011-06-14T21:47:37Z")
Dear **Broomstick**. Thank you for showing up late to the party. What took you so long, did someone park in your handicapped spot? Sorry, but I don’t have time to re-hash arguments I’ve already had with other people; if you’re going to jump back to page fucking number one of the thread and demonstrate your total abject horror and outrage outrage about it, knock yourself out. > [@Blaster\_Master](#): > > To expand the thought experiment, I think you’d get a lot less crap if you backed up your truck into the spot to unload a 300 lbs safe, were only in it for about a minute just to get it out and on the curb and immediately moved the truck to a legal spot. I also think you’d get a lot more crap if you backed up a trailer full of pillows, and took the spot up for 2 hours while you carried them in one at a time and regularly left it unattended for long periods in a place where handicap spots are in high demand. One would think. But the responses in this thread are at zero-tolerance levels. > [@Troppus](#): > > Awesome. Yeah, a dolly might be a good idea. I’m with all the other people who said “But since you do not require the handicapped space due to an illness or physical limitation, err on the side of courtesy and walk a few more feet” Did some of us bully you into a kinder, gentler corner (yep, that there’s irony) or did you decide you’d rather not let meddling stranger ruin your day again? Well, I’ve avoided it for a while because my small car often does not have room for everything that I need to bring to a gig. But, every time I carry the keyboard I get nervous about dropping it, and nervous about hurting my back. Hearing "hand truck . . . hand truck . . . hand truck . . . " does make me think, “what the fuck am I waiting for; something to actually happen? Get a hand truck!” As satisfying a story as it might make, I can’t say it had much to do with the real substance of this thread. But, thanks, **Troppus** for being a reasonable human being in this thread. > [@Bridget\_Burke](#): > > Good. Ask any _professional_ musicians you might know where to buy one. Ok. “Hey, **Eonwe** , where do I go to buy a hand truck?” Oh, I see, haha, you were insinuating I wasn’t a professional, because you think I’m an asshole, and so irrelevant and inaccurate attempts to insult any element of my person are totally fair game. In the thread where everyone is accusing me of lacking moral control and direction. How clever you are. > [@Shot\_From\_Guns](#): > > At that point, I’m pretty sure the answer is, “You’re fucking retarded for counting on the availability of illegal parking to be able to unload your equipment.” No, you’re right. At that point I turn around and go home. Then I get on the phone and call my place of employment and say, “gee, sorry, there wasn’t any place near by to unload so I turned around and went home.” At which point my employer says, “why the fuck didn’t you just double park or pull up on the curb and do what you needed to do!? You’re fired!” > [@2gigch1](#): > > But I can guarantee that in my 22 years of experience has told me that under these circumstances, if I caught the OP on tape, and he reacted anything like he has on this thread, it’s pure gold on tv. So, go for it. Ask me your questions. Let’s see how brilliant your expose is. ---
**Author:** ![Shot\_From\_Guns](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ccd318/32.png) [@Shot\_From\_Guns](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shot_From_Guns)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2011, 9:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-know-thats-handicapped-parking-spot/585328/277 "2011-06-14T21:57:17Z")
> [@MeanOldLady](#): > > The building could have been on fire, and he was rushing in to save his grandmother, and they would have been like “How do you know ten handicapped people weren’t going to rush in at that exact moment to save their grandmothers too, you selfish asshole?” Here’s the thing, though, \*\*MOL \*\*(site note: Hi! I missed you!): \*That is \*\*never \*_the scenario in these threads._ It’s always, 100% of the time, some lazy asshole who couldn’t be bothered to walk another 50 feet. Some precious snowflake who thinks their particular “special circumstance” (read: lack of planning) means that they get to break the law and nobody else can be mad at them for it. Never once have I seen it be an \*actual \*emergency. Of course, if you can turn up any example of a time here where someone did have an actual need to park in a handicapped spot and got reamed by another poster for it, I’ll happily retract this and agree that said reamer is a moron who can’t appreciate complexity. > [@Eonwe](#): > > No, you’re right. At that point I turn around and go home. Then I get on the phone and call my place of employment and say, “gee, sorry, there wasn’t any place near by to unload so I turned around and went home.” At which point my employer says, “why the fuck didn’t you just double park or pull up on the curb and do what you needed to do!? You’re fired!” My god, your life is _soooooo haaaaaaaard_, isn’t it? ---
**Author:** ![MeanOldLady](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/meanoldlady/32/10737_2.png) [@MeanOldLady](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MeanOldLady)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2011, 10:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-know-thats-handicapped-parking-spot/585328/278 "2011-06-14T22:02:40Z")
> [@Shot\_From\_Guns](#): > > Here’s the thing, though, \*\*MOL \*\*(site note: Hi! I missed you!): \*That is \*\*never \*_the scenario in these threads._ It’s always, 100% of the time, some lazy asshole who couldn’t be bothered to walk another 50 feet. Some precious snowflake who thinks their particular “special circumstance” (read: lack of planning) means that they get to break the law and nobody else can be mad at them for it. Never once have I seen it be an \*actual \*emergency. > > Of course, if you can turn up any example of a time here where someone did have an actual need to park in a handicapped spot and got reamed by another poster for it, I’ll happily retract this and agree that said reamer is a moron who can’t appreciate complexity. Heh. I might have engaged in slight hyperbole, and am pretty sure even the zero-tolerance crowd would make an allowance for a fire (maybe), but the point was pretty much anything short of a life-or-death situation results in InstaRage™. I don’t park in handicapped spaces, and I’m lazy as fuck, and also generally disapprove of people who do for their own convenience, but to use a spot where there were plentiful handicapped spaces available to unload for literally less than five minutes on the Dick Move Scale of 1-10 rates a solid “Meh.” Edit: But my other point, re: **Blaster Master** was I heard him loud and clear, but just don’t think mitigating circumstances would have mitigated the rage. ---
**Author:** ![Eonwe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eonwe/32/240_2.png) [@Eonwe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eonwe)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2011, 10:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-know-thats-handicapped-parking-spot/585328/279 "2011-06-14T22:03:31Z")
> [@curlcoat](#): > > Well, I suppose because your story keeps changing. So, ok, I am a liar? Please explain to me how my story has changed. The one “change” to my story, which happened four or five pages ago, was that I didn’t mean to argue that I was right to park in the spot. > [@](#): > > Also because at the time you parked in that spot, before you even left your car, you had no idea if that spot would be needed because you cannot see into the future. Neither can you say for sure that a meteor isn’t going to hit the Earth tomorrow and take out Topeka. But I bet you feel pretty comfortable assuming so. > [@](#): > > If the other two handicapped spots had filled up, there is no way you would have stopped what you were doing and moved to a non-handicapped spot, based on what you have said here. For some reason, you think lowering your inconvenience is more important than whether or not someone can actually shop, so I just don’t see you immediately leaving that handicapped spot when the other two filled up. You’re a tool. I’m sorry if you’ve been burned by assholes before. But here’s the thing. I have said _explicitly_ “If someone came and asked I would move.” If you want to tell me that you know me better and no I wouldn’t because I’m an ASSHOLE, waaaahh waaah!, then go ahead. I was wrong then, and you are calling me a liar. Screw you. And, clearly you can’t be bothered to read the thread; this took place by a music building on a college campus. No one was there to go shopping. Once again, making up details that have nothing to do with the OP to prove what a jerk I am. Or does me pointing that out mean that I’m changing my story or back-pedaling? ---
**Author:** ![Eonwe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eonwe/32/240_2.png) [@Eonwe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eonwe)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2011, 10:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-know-thats-handicapped-parking-spot/585328/280 "2011-06-14T22:04:33Z")
> [@Shot\_From\_Guns](#): > > My god, your life is _soooooo haaaaaaaard_, isn’t it? Why do you say that? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-know-thats-handicapped-parking-spot/585328.md?page=13) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-know-thats-handicapped-parking-spot/585328.md?page=15)