so because i'm a tree hugging hippie commie, i bought a scooter a couple weeks ago - to try and cut all ties with exxon mobil and their ilk. i really, REALLY like it. it's a blue honda metropolitan (i know, could i be any more metro?!). it gets, no lying, 100+ mpg. and it's really zippy to ride around on. i'm thinking of calling it "peppy" (i hope someone, maybe casey, gets the curb reference). but, of course, anytime i try to advance the cause of reason and sensibility let alone care for the environment or good stewardship, the "man" has to put his boot on my neck in a way that defies all logic.
i bought the scooter in tennessee, cause i just like trafficking vehicles across state lines. but i tried to do the right thing and take it in to the courthouse to pay tax on it and get it registered and all that legal stuff. let me preface what follows by saying the people who work there seem to hate life and their jobs a lot. people that work in fast food have more joy. anyway, i ask them what i need to do and show them my forms. this one lady (who just loathes me) gets on the phone with someone for a while. she returns and tells me it's illegal for me to ride it on the road; it can only be used for offroad purposes. um, it's a scooter. it's having enough trouble navigating a course that isn't circling the arch de triomphe. but it's certainly not IN ANY WAY for offroading. but the reason she gave me is the kicker: the minimum engine size they'll register is 50cc ~ "peppy" is, wait for it, 49cc. UNACCEPTABLE.
so i guess this place will be my selma or something. i'm not taking it back. i'm going to flagrantly break the law on a regular basis. i answer to a God that loves creation and hates violence, and i'm going to ride this vehicle that barely pollutes and doesn't cause wars. i know that doesn't make sense to most people around the planet, but i'm about changing their minds. in the meantime i'll probably be setting up a legal defense fund for the inevitable court battles ahead. i know i can count on you for a cake with a saw in it when it comes to that. viva la revolution!
7 comments:
We saw you, okay passed you, on, "peppy" earlier this week. The oldest actually made me stop, pull over, and wait for you to pass so he could make sure it was you. You're very popular around these parts. (With us, not with the courthouse ladies. Actually, nobody's popular with them. My friend wrote a blog post about them and their 'tude's a while back. I'll try to find it and send it to you........but I digress)
Actually, this post kind reminds me about what you said last week in church about keeping each other in check. If someone calls you and says, "David, I hear you have a problem driving illiegal vehicles (as well as passing horse and buggies), how are you doing with that?", you brought it upon yourself.
Alyson
1. do scooters come with sidecars by any chance? if yes, can i ride in it? if no, figure out how to make that happen.
2. and i'm straining to grasp for peppy but i can't find it. don't tell me, though. i want to get it on my own. does it have anything to do with his prius?
3. see how i'm still alive? calling you. promise.
Yeah, I understand. I was looking at a scooter/motorcycle option for a while but it was SO crazy all the ins & outs you had to maneuver just to get it legal and all. Can you add a cc to your engine...Hmmm.....
Fight the power! Viva la Peppy! Viva la resistence!
In North Carolina, the 49cc scooter is exactly what you want. Here, they have the unique advantage of being the one form of motorized vehicle that is legal on city streets but which you do not have to either license or insure. Anything 50cc or bigger and it's going to cost you a lot more.
Do you wear goggles when you ride "peppy" from church to church?
yeah andrew, i think that's the whole reason they made it 49cc, because most states set the minimum at 50. but those states also have the common sense not to ban them from the roads for being 1 cc shy of the minimum. apparently not so with this section of the commonwealth. i at least haven't been arrested yet, and i've received support from my church members most of whom have agreed to at least visit me in jail. but apparently kentucky also has no mandatory helmet/goggle law. so no mark, i don't wear goggles - just BA looking oakleys. i think the lack of a helmet law might explain some of the other decisions made around here.
is there any way you can register it in tennessee? i figure the as-needed "i got it when i lived at home and just never changed it once i moved here" lie would be less expensive than your "damn the man" policy, and a comparable ethical grey area.
hey, at the very least you could pull some "gods law vs mans law" sermon out of it, right?
randall
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