SFist: Litterbugs

bluecanary

Thu, 14 Aug 2008 15:19:08 -0800

Ugh, I know it's off topic, but Rincon got me started. Someone in my office just told me "of course" they're voting Yes on 8. Fuck. I need to go be a legal aid lawyer or something else with some integrity. And no, the parents bringing their kids to my neighborhood encourage their kids to litter. All of them, of course, except the one I chewed out last year at full voice on the sidewalk.

what

Thu, 14 Aug 2008 14:44:06 -0800

Litter rate down, murder rate up. Preventing people from littering really pisses them off?

RinconHillSF

Thu, 14 Aug 2008 14:34:51 -0800

I just received a panhandling email from Newsom for Governor ... sorry, bro, I've got to save up my spare change to help Obama win and to try to make sure Prop. 8 loses (the prop. aimed at taking away the right to marry from same-sex couples). Anyway... back to litter... don't parents smack the piss out of their kids when they litter so that they don't even consider mucking things up when they get older? We need a new Woodsy the Owl, with a taser or something, taking it up a notch in the urban areas like San Francisco. One second, you're dropping the wrapper on the bus floor ... the next, grandma reaches over the seat and tazes your ass, saying "Give a hoot, mother trucker! Don't pollute!" :)

travin

Thu, 14 Aug 2008 13:56:23 -0800

Despite that, fortunately S.F. is on a slower path to Idiocracy than most of the rest of the country(world). But our leaders are fuckable and have nice hair, so whatever.

bluecanary

Thu, 14 Aug 2008 13:41:02 -0800

It's not called pandering anymore? What is it called now? Let me know, I want to be up with the times. ;-) What pisses me off is when someone starts talking about how much they love Newsom, but when I ask them to name something positive he's done, they draw a freaking blank. You love him and you don't know what he does??? They must be blinded by his hair products.

RobInSF

Thu, 14 Aug 2008 12:22:25 -0800

92.3% of what comes out of Newsom's mouth is complete bullshit. They used to call it pandering, but we're all politically correct these days. 63.9% of the people of San Francisco are so self centered and unaware that they would vote for him AGAIN even if he kicked their grandmother AND dog in the nose. I smell bullshit when 100.2% of statistics are entirely inaccurate.

bluecanary

Thu, 14 Aug 2008 11:54:02 -0800

We live down the street from an elementary school, and for weeks, I used to seek little kids chucking junk food wrappers on the sidwalk, homework assignments (with their names on them), etc., and their parents f**king encouraged it. I gathered all that shit up for about a week and then mailed it to the school's principal, telling her, in polite terms -- shocking for me, I know-- that her students needed lessons in civic manners. A few days later she marched a crowd of the kids identified on the homework papers down to my apartment to apologize. Some were crying. It was fucking hilarious. Actually, the crying part was kind of sad. But I was pretty impressed that the principal went to such lengths to drive that lesson home. It didn't make a dent in the garbage on my sidewalk, unfortunately. Newsome needs to cut back on street cleaning in some areas, when I lived in SOMA we got street cleaning every other day and serously, there was nothing over in that BFE land to clean.

travin

Thu, 14 Aug 2008 10:58:35 -0800

It's pretty curious that this report comes out just in time for NewScum to announce he's going to make cutbacks in street cleaning. It always amazes me watching people on the street just openly, casually tossing something out of their hand like it's their living room or something. The best fun is watching those that try to do it slyly, like when the turn a corner, or as they get on a bus, even navigating around a public garbage can, they consciously plot to use the moment of movement or visual obstruction to mask that dastardly deed. It's often done with a loose grip of dangling arm and a stone-faced expression quickly looking the opposite direction. As if this bit of theater doesn't get noticed and should passerby see it they've prepared plausible deniability. They've got the whole defense part all worked up. People of all ages, cultures and socioeconomic class participate in these acts of premeditated provincialism. Now if only these jackasses, and there's many many of you out there, could channel those superpowers to good use we wouldn't have such litter problems. Oh, but a cup or gum wrapper is nothing to get all worked up about, is it?

bluecanary

Thu, 14 Aug 2008 10:54:23 -0800

@orangedrink: You mean this part? "If I'm outside a bar and there's already 30 cigarette butts in the gutter and no nearby garbage can, that's where mine go too."

OrangeDrink

Thu, 14 Aug 2008 10:46:51 -0800

Shit. I always forget that. On a related (to the post) note, has anyone ever actually received a ticket for littering? They're like the sasquatch.

withak

Thu, 14 Aug 2008 10:39:18 -0800

I don't know what you are all arguing about; it's a proven fact that smokers are inconsiderate jerks.

mpantone

Thu, 14 Aug 2008 10:34:33 -0800

"You are selfishly littering. How Nickel-And-Dime. Think next time. Don't be so self centered. Cleanliness, as you should know by now, is hard to come by. May the fleas of a thousand camels invade your armpits."

OrangeDrink

Thu, 14 Aug 2008 10:21:37 -0800

Hooray for the lightning rod of scorn that is smoking! I'm glad you were able to overlook the part about throwing away cigarette butts, bluecanary. I would hate to see you lose your generalization. You're usually much more even headed in your comments, so I guess a giant cigarette murdered your family and salted the earth of your farm?

bluecanary

Thu, 14 Aug 2008 10:11:24 -0800

Further proof for my smokers = inconsiderate assholes file.

bluecanary

Thu, 14 Aug 2008 10:09:40 -0800

No, by all means throw your cigarette butts on the grounds so they're washed down the storm drains. The sea and wildlife LOVE it when cigarette butts wind up in their bellies. Jesus Christ.

SFist_Jonathan

Thu, 14 Aug 2008 09:58:36 -0800

The San Francisco Civil Grand Jury report on Litter and Graffiti of 2001 makes an interesting recommendation, proposing "A reward system wherein citizens who report litter law violations be awarded a designated part of the monetary penalty imposed on the violator(s)." I haven't been able to find out if this was ever put in place! But the City and County of San Francisco Police Code, Article 1, Section 37 outlines the following penalties for litter: (a) Any person who shall violate any of the provisions of Sections 33, 34, 35 or 36 of this Article shall be guilty of an infraction and, upon conviction thereof, shall be punished for the first offense by a fine of not less than $80 nor more than $100; and for a second offense by a fine of not less than $150 nor more than $200; and for each additional offense by a fine of not less than $300 nor more than $500. (b) Any person who shall violate any of the provisions of Section 35(a) of this Article shall be guilty of an infraction and, upon conviction thereof, shall be punished for the first offense by a fine of not less than $80 nor more than $100; for a second offense by a fine of not less than $150 nor more than $200; and for each additional offense by a fine of not less than $300 nor more than $500. (c) Alternatively, any person who violates any of the provisions of Sections 33, 34, or 35(a) of this Article shall be subject to an administrative penalty not to exceed $1,000 for each violation. Administrative penalties authorized by this section shall be assessed, enforced and collected in accordance with Section 39-1 of this Code. I called 311 to see if I could get my share of the dough. Alas, the 311 representative I spoke to informed me that there's no enforcement mechanism for citizen reports of littering. However, he assured me that City will act quickly if a citizen reports dumping (something like a computer or refrigerator).

OrangeDrink

Thu, 14 Aug 2008 09:57:26 -0800

I ususally put them out and toss 'em in a garbage can while walking. If I'm outside a bar and there's already 30 cigarette butts in the gutter and no nearby garbage can, that's where mine go too. Yes, Rincon, I'm a terrible person.

appetite

Thu, 14 Aug 2008 09:53:06 -0800

How about.. um... I don't know... more garbage cans and recycling bins on the sidewalks? I guess a simple solution like that wouldn't meet either of the 2 goals of any SF legislation: 1) Get Gavin Newsom in the press. 2) Provide a source for more backdoor revenue via fees and fines.

hudu

Thu, 14 Aug 2008 09:52:43 -0800

Use the ashtray in your car?

ejcsanfran

Thu, 14 Aug 2008 09:42:12 -0800

Oh, and I should point out - my question about cigarette butt disposal is legitimate curiosity. I'm not defending the tossing of lighted butts from the car...

ejcsanfran

Thu, 14 Aug 2008 09:33:12 -0800

I've always found this behavior odd... People seem to think that if they carefully place something on the ground, as opposed to throwing it, it's not littering... Very peculiar. And I probably shouldn't open a whole can of worms by asking, but what should one do with cigarette butts when done smoking? Public ashtrays don't exist (except outside bars); even garbage cans are few and far between - and wouldn't tossing a lit cigarette in have the potential to start a fire? I tend to be fine with folks stomping out butts in the gutter - though as a sometime-smoker, I'm probably biased...

bluecanary

Thu, 14 Aug 2008 09:22:56 -0800

And I agree, don't blur out the license plate. These idiots don't deserve any kind of anonymity.

bluecanary

Thu, 14 Aug 2008 09:22:28 -0800

A friend of mine was out for a run when he spotted a guy throw his lit cigarette out the window of his car. Supposedly the friend grabbed the butt, threw it back into the douchebag, er, driver's window and yelled "here, you dropped this," then ran off. I don't know if the story is true or mere puffery (no pun intended), but I found it hilarious nonetheless. And I prefer to think and hope it's true.

aj

Thu, 14 Aug 2008 09:16:35 -0800

Why did you blur out the license plate? Dude needs to get reported and ticketed.