City could take aim at idling vehicles. Katherine Driessen, Chron.com
Houston City Council could get a look this month at an ordinance that would restrict the amount of time drivers of large vehicles could spend idling ‑ allowing the engine to run while parked.
The city's Quality of Life committee discussed the proposal Thursday, largely offering support for the plan.
I'm not sure what the "Quality of Life Committee" is actually charged to do but, if it's a paying position, I would like to nominate it's members for whatever genius award is available. Talk about your cushy jobs. Of course, if it's a volunteer position then what we're witnessing is what happens when you get a group of low-functioning idiots in a room.
I mean, I could understand a proposal like this coming from a group of paid committee members. There you've been, blowing off meetings while taking that money and improving YOUR quality of life at the golf course and spa when all of the sudden. "Oh shit! We have to come up with something for Council to consider banning!"
There you are driving into the QoL meeting with City Council trying to figure out what you're going to say, drawing a blank, stopping off for a burger and a quick cocktail when you see it. Some poor trucker stopping a food truck to grab a sandwich and he leaves his engine idling because.....well, you don't just shut off a big diesel like that. It actually allows the engine to run MORE efficiently if it's allowed to idle.
But, you don't know that. You're driving around in your Audi A8 (with the V8 of course) cursing Houston's traffic, wondering why more people don't just ride the bus, or why the City won't spend Billions so they can ride the train, thus freeing up your commute downtown to provide your expert opinion on what's ruining (your) quality of life in Houston. You see that truck idling there and you think "Environment! Smog! Noise Pollution!" and you realize that you've so hit the quality of life trifecta you might be able to skip the next five committee meetings all together.
So you walk into the QoL meeting and you lay out your grand plan. The other QoL committee members seethe with jealousy and rage because they weren't smart enough to think of that and, unless they can think of something flashy to add, they will be attending those meetings that you're skipping.
Then all eyes turn to City Council, that august body of elected officials who got their jobs because A) They've been around long enough that everyone knows their name or B) because they discovered which trough to hang head in, and they say "Hey, that might be a good idea."
You.Are.Made.
Of course, you own stock in a trucking company so you want to make sure that your name is kept out of the media. But since these QoL committee meetings never draw the curiosity of local reporters that shouldn't be too hard. Now that you've done the dirty work you can get David Crossley or some other self-styled activist to bring it up and take the glory. After all, you've got golf to play.
Good job.
The second scenario is that there are people in Houston who have nothing better to do with their time than sit around and think up ways to impose their will on other people's lives by offering suggestions to Houston's Lowest Common Denominator.
That's just too sad to even consider.
