Scooter driver protests police

On Saturday, March 1 at 11:55 p.m., marshalling an utterly superflous display of power, the Bloomington Police Department conducted a routine traffic stop of my small, retro-styled, 50cc motor scooter. Some may have witnessed the ludicrous sight of three police vehicles and four officers surrounding my tiny scooter. While I waited 30 minutes for the officers to desperately find any offense with which to charge me, I wondered what real crimes were taking place at midnight on a Saturday \nin Bloomington. \nFor instance, how many 3000 pound vehicles raced by in excess of the posted speed limit? Or worse, how many of these drivers were intoxicated? As more time passed, other crimes leapt to mind: How many homes and cars were being pillaged? Or even worse still, how many women were being assaulted or raped? It is difficult to conceive that my violation, driving a motorized bicycle more than 25 miles per hour, should necessitate the response or attention which it received. So, why was my scooter such a threat?\nMotor scooters do not generate revenue for the city, county and the state. However, the government wants and is currently trying to get revenue from owners of scooters and mopeds. House Bill No. 1318 is currently under review and will require motorized bicycles to be titled, registered and require a motorcycle operator’s license. \nI ride a scooter as a form of protest: I protest the Indiana Motor Vehicle Excise Tax, the 18.8 cents-per-gallon gasoline tax, vehicle registration fees, titling fees, motorcycle operator’s license fees and the cost of state-mandated auto insurance. Additionally, by driving a vehicle with a 100 mile-per-gallon fuel economy, I protest $3-per-gallon fuel prices and the unbridled profits of the \noil industry. \nRather than changing existing laws to discourage scooter ownership, levying additional taxes upon the citizenry or ticketing scooter owners who coast too quickly down a hill, perhaps the city of Bloomington should invest in scooters for the police department. Think of all the money to be saved if those four officers’ three gas-guzzling-six-cylinder-police-cruisers were transformed into three small, retro-styled, 50cc motor scooters.