Rick Stiebel/Columnist
The old anti-establishment hippie in me frequently resists any move by governments that restricts freedom of choice.
ThereB次元官网网址檚 one rumour being floated by B.C.B次元官网网址檚 Attorney General that deserves traction though, is the push for mandating proper tires, especially in the wake of the monsoon-like snowstorm that recently ravaged the region.
ThatB次元官网网址檚 something I can get behind, like the push many of us had to proffer recently to that vehicle spraying clouds of slush while its summer tires whined hopelessly in an east-west direction on a street where the rest of us were heading north or south.
Unlike the roads in the Capital Region following any dump of more than a couple of inches, itB次元官网网址檚 clear that Mr. Eby is not demanding that you race out to buy suitable tires. What DaveB次元官网网址檚 driving at is that if you venture onto the roads when theyB次元官网网址檙e covered in snow, you must have the correct kind of shoes on your ride to ensure you donB次元官网网址檛 strangle the efforts of those of us with sensible footwear on their vehicles.
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Driving when thereB次元官网网址檚 snow and or ice is challenging enough, even for those who grew up in climates where itB次元官网网址檚 not unusual to wake up with eight inches of partly cloudy covering your car and driveway. ThatB次元官网网址檚 why, whether you live in Montreal or Winnipeg, or Sidney or Sooke, the first thing you hear on the radio during a storm is our police forces pleading with folks to stay at home unless there are no other options. And that should include just driving a few blocks to get your Starbucks fix. If your caffeine addiction is so strong that you canB次元官网网址檛 get through a day without one, you should be able to handle grabbing your beverage on foot. Freedom of choice should not be extended to people whose idiotic behaviour negatively impacts the masses.
As I plod through this plea for common sense, however, IB次元官网网址檓 painfully aware that the chance of it making a difference to the majority of the me-first movement is leaner than some of the models on a runway in Paris. We should at least give it serious consideration, and let the flakes fall where they may.
One argument against the concept is that storms like the one we shovelled our way out of a couple of weeks ago are so rare that any call for a change in legislation is a tread too far. Perhaps the perilous state of our climate should reinforce the notion that weB次元官网网址檙e probably going to get white-whacked again before the showers of April arrive. That should underline the need to embrace effort to reduce the mayhem on our roads that unfolds every damn time it snows. Inflicting a hefty fine on drivers who get caught spinning their wheels without the slightest regard for the rest of us is a pretty good place to start. We shouldnB次元官网网址檛 have to form a new layer of bureaucracy to add that tweak to the Motor Vehicle Act. Maybe attach some community service to the fine so violators can chew on the consequences of their actions.
Rick Stiebel is a semi-retired local journalist.
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