The real problem is not with the cops doing their jobs and enforcing the law. The real problem is that the laws are so dysfunctional to begin with. For decades,

The real problem is not with the cops doing their jobs and enforcing the law. The real problem is that the laws are so dysfunctional to begin with. For decades, stupid laws were patched up by a police system that simply chose not to enforce them widely. This is of course as ugly a "hack" as you can possibly get. People lose respect for the laws, and it gives the police immense discretionary power that they can wield on the basis of their subjective whims. But the system chugged along like a 20 year old computer valiantly running Windows 95... until one day, a cop shows up who decides that his job is to enforce the law, and that's when the sheets come off and people realize just how stupid the laws really are. If you find yourself shaking your head when reading the article, and are looking for someone to blame, don't blame the cops. Don't blame the police commissioner. They are simply doing their jobs, and that's a good thing. Blame your lawmakers for writing into law, or not repealing, absolutely idiotic laws. This problem does indeed need to be fixed, and we need to fix it by actually changing the law so that it makes sense. 1) The speed limit should be set at a level that people are actually expected to follow. If you don't mind people driving 70mph on the freeways, change the speed limit to 70. 2) Traffic fines are not meant to be a revenue source for the government. They are meant to be a form of punitive punishment and deterrent. A $400 fine is overly punitive for an unemployed person, but it's also too lenient for a millionaire. If the goal is for the fine to be punitive, it needs to be indexed to the person's income. 3) People shouldn't have to leave their jobs and go to court, and sit around for hours, just to have 5 minutes in front of a judge to ask for a payment plan. This sort of thing should be completely automated and doable online. Judge appearances should be reserved for special cases, not for rubber stamping. The sooner the police start enforcing the laws strictly, the sooner people will realize how broken the laws are, and the sooner we can get to making real fixes like described above.