This was inspired by a post I saw the other day.

In my city, there’s a fast food restaurant where people regularly use the drive through, park in a nearby neighborhood to eat, and when they’re done just toss their trash out the window.

What’s to be done about this in an ideal world? My initial thought is that “police” should stake it out and hand out littering tickets to those doing this.

Of course, these police would be unarmed, properly trained in deescalation, and maybe not even part of a greater police department (supposing such department even exists).

But I’m worried that this is just a super lib response, and wondering what your thoughts are. I’m a bit troubled by handing out these fines - these are potentially hundreds of dollars to people who can’t afford it. And an alternative sentence of community service to clean up trash, while there seems to be a sense of proportionate justice to it, is of course forced labor and would be unconstitutional under the 13th amendment but for that exception that people on this website love to quote and dunk on. Moreover, this is a deterrence-based approach which opens its own can of worms.

  • Zuzak [fae/faer, she/her]
    ·
    2 years ago

    Wouldn't it be easier to pay people to pick up litter than to pay people to watch everyone to make sure people don't litter?

    • Catherine_Steward [she/her]
      ·
      2 years ago

      Yup. Complete brainworms to even think in these terms at all. Full on lib "revenge is justice" brain. Start thinking about how to solve problems rather than how to hurt people you don't like

    • ssjmarx [he/him]
      ·
      edit-2
      2 years ago

      Even in our current world it would probably be easier and cheaper. Fire cops, hire more garbage people - there's a liberal science based solution.