Wave Maker

This business of police officers doing traffic details at construction sites is driving me crazy. At first blush, you might think it's not a bad idea. There are a lot of tools on a construction site, and tools are expensive. Having a cop there to deter theft can keep construction costs down.

There is also the lunch wagon. All that food right out on the street and only one guy to watch three sides of his truck. Fast food thieves cause havoc to all law abiding lunch crowds.

Oh, okay. I understand that real police officers are necessary for "traffic control." I've seen it first hand. If you see a line of stopped traffic near a road project, you can be sure there's a cop controlling it. I was stuck in a conga line the other day. When it finally started moving and passed the work site, there was the cop, in his bright orange vest. He was directing traffic while he was talking on his cell phone. And he must have been Italian, because he was waving his arms and hands a lot. This can be confusing to commuting drivers who are on cell phones themselves.

Now law enforcement organizations have been advocating a ban on driving with cell phones. I have a couple of theories as to why. One is that the cops on cell phones are talking to their driving spouses. The other is that drivers on cell phones are too dangerous when being directed by cops on cell phones, and the right to talk on cell phones is covered under a collective bargaining agreement.

That's not entirely fair though. Sometimes the cops aren't directing traffic while on their phones. Usually, they're just sitting in their private vehicles, on their phones or just reading a tabloid. Time-and-a-half for reading in a cozy vehicle - sometimes, late-model foreign cars that are way out of my price range.
It is for reasons like this that law enforcement organizations suggest that traffic detailing is "too dangerous to leave to civilians."

They may be right. When I see a cop directing traffic while he's talking on a cell phone, I'm afraid of losing control of my vehicle.