r/MadeMeSmile • u/Tris_Memba • Jul 28 '26
Wholesome Moments Wholesome conversation
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u/Mission_Fart9750 Jul 28 '26
I had a similar "incident" once. Cop pulled me over because he thought my inspection was expired; he read the 7 (July) as a 1 (January), it was April. He realized his mistake when he walked up, said "my bad, i misread it. Have a nice day."
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u/_sabnic_ Jul 28 '26
Me too, cops pulled me over because I supposedly ran a red light, but in reality it was a blinking yellow, which, considering our laws, you can pass together with 'Yield' sign, when you're going right on an intersection. He was pretty adamant on me running red, when he jumped into his car, left his buddy at my door, actually went back to the intersection to check. Then he came back, gave me back my licence and registration and profusely apologized, stating that I was actually right and to have a good day, lol. Even waved at my daughter in the backseat.
My 4yo, everytime we pass that intersection, is like "Oh mommy, this is where the nice policemen pulled you over, right"
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u/purpleoctopustrolley Jul 29 '26
Kids never forget. Accidentally blew through a stop sign 3 years ago. Kids bring it up once a week.
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u/aivarin Jul 29 '26
So true. My husband forgot to belt our daughter in when she was four, remembered as soon as he turned the engine on and quickly did so. She's eight now and will still periodically say "remember when you forgot to plug me in?" Like he drove two hundred MPH with her ricocheting around in the back seat 😅
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u/Specialist_Strike463 Jul 31 '26
Omg I’m dying! This is what my grandsons and I call it.. “Nonna are you plugged in”? are YOU? 🤣
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u/dixie-pixie-vixie Jul 29 '26
Same here. Geez.. You don't remember the nice things I do, but you remember the 'naughty' things.
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u/psycospaz Jul 29 '26
My mom went through a stop sign with all 4 of us kids in the back but only got a verbal warning because we refused to stop fighting just because mom got pulled over. Cop felt sorry for her.
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u/Same-Suggestion-1936 Jul 28 '26
Only good interaction I ever had with a cop, I was delivering food, had the car topper on, he walks up and says, "I know you're working, I don't need to see your license or anything, you were just going a little fast so I wanted to just stop you and tell you to slow down." I say something like "oh sorry man I didn't know I was speeding" and he says something like "you're good, just watch the speed and have a nice day" and walks away
That's what policing should be
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u/Omophorus Jul 28 '26
I actually had the opposite right after COVID.
I accidentally let my inspection lapse by like 6 months due to the pandemic.
Got pulled over by a cop on foot. I was honest, apologetic, and polite. So was he (well, not apologetic, lol).
Left with a warning and immediately scheduled an inspection.
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u/ElmoCamino Jul 28 '26
I had a cop pull me over for "not wearing a seatbelt", when he got to my window he saw the air freshener hanging on the coat hook behind my head, tapped and it goes "I thought this was your seatbelt. Oh well, just give me your license and insurance and I'll run them real quick... " I handed them to him and then asked why he was running them if I didn't do anything wrong and then he got real butt hurt.
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u/FireDefender Jul 29 '26
I believe that running your license and registration is part of their protocol for every traffic stop, even if the reason they stopped you ended up being nothing. This is to check if you have any active warrants for your arrest. Anyone with an active warrant would also do the exact thing you did (because they don't want the officer to check), and the officer might just been having a bad day (or week) when you asked.
Don't quote me on this though, it might be different per state and I don't even live in the US. I'd look it up yourself if you're curious!
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u/hate_picking_names Jul 28 '26
Do your tags say month # and year? In Wisconsin we have one permanent sticker that says the month abbreviation (ex. JUL) and a separate sticker that gets replaced every year with the year (ex 26).
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u/Mission_Fart9750 Jul 28 '26
Not plate stickers for registration. We have a separate windshield sticker for yearly state inspections (Virginia), they also have month and year on them.
He was initially to my left, just slightly ahead, stopped at a light; from that angle through his side mirror, i can see how he mistook a 7 for a 1. He realized it the moment he walked up and got a clearer look.
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u/nickyler Jul 29 '26
I had a cop in Atlanta pull me over in the HOV lane. He walked to the window, saw my wife sleeping in the passenger seat and just left. No license, registration, or anything.
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Jul 28 '26
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u/GalFisk Jul 29 '26
This should be the bare minimum for every police officer. Anyone given more power than a regular citizen should also be held to a proportionally higher standard.
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u/DiopticTurtle Jul 30 '26
It's really the bare minimum for the thanks that they constantly demand from us, in my opinion
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u/ace-destrier Jul 28 '26 edited Jul 28 '26
Realizes he made a mistake, acknowledges he made a mistake, *tells the cyclist he was doing everything else right, and apologizes. That is the standard
Not like that dummy who accused a woman of having her cellphone in her hand while driving. Her right hand, specifically. Except she has a limb difference and doesn’t have a right hand. But that dumdum didn’t back down. She went to her court date, he didn’t show up.
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u/Pasta4ever13 Jul 28 '26
No fucking way. Is there footage?
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u/Sithlordandsavior Jul 28 '26
CBS segment with the body cam footage
Her name is Katie Thomas and the video she posted after the incident is hilarious.
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u/Original-Strain Jul 28 '26
Lol when he makes her swear to god and she raises the same limb. I died
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u/MrLovelife Jul 28 '26
The fact that the cop couldn't recognize how great of a joke that is and does the whole "your other hand, you only have 1 hand" makes me so mad. Shows that he was just pissed about being corrected/challenged.
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u/8lock8lock8aby Jul 28 '26
So dumb right. Like it wasn't even her challenging him, she was just stating a fact & he took her not having that hand as a fucking challenge. Of course he didn't go to court, he knows he would've looked so stupid.
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u/Obsidian-Dive Jul 28 '26
She said in an update video the case was thrown out before she got to court for “lack of evidence” lol. Would’ve been funny had it gone to court tho.
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u/Pasta4ever13 Jul 29 '26
"Ok, ma'am, place your hand on the bible and repeat after me"
"Oh shit, nvm"
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u/howlongwillthislast_ Jul 29 '26
He doesn't just look stupid. He's a fucking coward
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u/Dazzling-Track-4838 Jul 29 '26
He should be suspended and be required to take and pass an integrity course. If he can’t admit his mistake over that, how can you trust him to (1) accurately be able to assess a situation, and (2) refrain from holding firm to a lie that compromises the trust the tax payers put in the police to be trustworthy (honest) and upstanding, acting in the best interest of the tax payers. This is an officer who may kill an innocent person (fyi everyone is innocent until proven guilty) and lie about the entire thing, yet an innocent person would be dead, family flattened, a community roiled, a nation fueled with more unrest and tension over the lack of justice. 🤦🏻♀️
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u/Time-did-Reverse Jul 29 '26
What’s crazy about that is he had the opportunity to be in on a great video where he can look good. Everyone makes mistakes or mistakes what they saw for something else - all he had to do was apologize and say obviously he didn’t see what he thought, could have even done the “right hand to god” joke and had internet points. He would have looked like a reasonable person,
Instead he had a ridiculous ego and now is a laughing stock,
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u/Consequence6 Jul 28 '26
I've seen this video a dozen times now, and I just can't understand how the officer didn't laugh when she did that. That's such the perfect opportunity to be like "Ya know what, you got me, my bad, have a good day."
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u/lituus Jul 28 '26
Because he knew he was just lying about the reason in the first place, but most people don't have bulletproof evidence it was a lie, he just happened upon the one person that did, and god forbid he gets caught in a lie
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u/Acceptable-Zombie71 Jul 28 '26
Absolutely!! She gave him the chance to get out of the situation in a funny way, he had made a mistake in the appreciation of the events, a reasonable mistake, why not apologize with THAT evidence and see the funny of things?! Why the inconceivable pride of not being wrong? With THAT evidence??!!! Sigh...
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u/sezit Jul 29 '26
Authoritarians can't laugh at themselves. The only humor they have is humiliation "humor".
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u/Echolyonn Jul 28 '26
I saw a response to this that was like "That was the most genuine 'hand to god' ever considering she showed the hand that is currently WITH GOD."
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u/SSquared82 Jul 28 '26
👮🏽♂️ “Hand to God?”
👩🏽 *“Hand to God”
*(raises limb)👮🏽♂️ “Other hand to God”
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u/ILoveRustyKnives Jul 29 '26
I might be in love with this woman... Not for the right reasons, mind you
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u/FerusGrim Jul 28 '26
"Limb difference." Someone said that elsewhere in the thread, but I thought it was a typo or something. That's a good, inclusive catch-all term. I'd just never heard of it, before. Nice.
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u/pm_me_shit_memes Jul 28 '26
Yes, it vent viral when it happened last month.
It was really fucking funny.
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u/cheapdrinks Jul 28 '26
I mean it would have been funny if the cop did the same as the cop in this video and was like oh shit my bad, please go on your way. Was just sad and frustrating when he was a total dick, doubled down, refused to admit fault and ticketed her anyway forcing her to jump through a bunch of hoops to get it cleared.
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u/allthingskerri Jul 28 '26
Hee laughing in his face still makes me chuckle. I'm so glad she took it to court for all this attention on the issue. I wish the cop had bothered to show up however
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u/hibikikun Jul 28 '26
It was dropped the morning of her appearance. They called her to tell her the officer requested it. Probably went too viral.
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u/aetryx Jul 29 '26
>the officer requested it
I bet the other cops at his precinct were also laughing and giving him tons of shit for it.
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u/--Sovereign-- Jul 28 '26
I mean, no one is surprised that the douchebag cop didn't show and will face absolutely no consequences
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u/Feisty_Fee_3841 Jul 28 '26 edited Jul 28 '26
Yes. She took me out when she said hand to god while raising her right arm that had no hand. I so wish the ticket didn’t get dropped before her court date though cause I would have loved to see the look on the judges face.
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u/WSilvermane Jul 28 '26
Lady literally raised her arm with the missing hand and everything on camera.
Guy was fucking STUPID. Lol
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u/AT-ATsAsshole Jul 28 '26
Oh god look up the beer she had made with her on the label! She got her 15 minutes for sure.
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u/YaBoiiSloth Jul 28 '26
Dude when he tells her to use her other hand to swear I lost it lmao
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u/Thimble_of_Quasar Jul 28 '26
It feel like a skit. It feels like some silly TikTok skit that people would see and accuse you of making a strawman that doesn't exist within the police force because it's too absurd, no one would do this! -_-
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u/Exldk Jul 28 '26 edited Jul 28 '26
It's just stubbornness taken to the next level.
My friend claimed, after looking at online weather broadcast, that the weather was nice and sunny. Except when I looked out the window the sky was obviously gray and it was quite chilly because of it.
So when we went outside to chill(not a pun) he was in shorts, despite seeing very clearly that it was chilly outside. He kept finding excuses to go indoors and he was visibly shaking, but he adamantly refused to switch into long sleeves and proper pants.
I can't even say that all logic goes out the window because they are blatantly aware that they are in the wrong, their primal instinct just doesn't let them admit that they were wrong.
One can go a long distance (literally) before admitting that they were wrong. I've seen marathon runners who fucked up their ankle or whatnot before their first mile and they still insisted on completing the marathon, fucking their leg up for the rest of their life in the process.
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u/PolarBailey_ Jul 28 '26
not to mention this isn't a case where she lost her hand in some injury, she never had one.
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u/LuckyNegotiation7167 Jul 28 '26
How can he just get away with just not showing up? The precinct should not just let this shit just slide on by. We go to jail when we dont show up. Bro should be fired
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u/CaptainoftheVessel Jul 28 '26
The actual reason is because he’s not the defendant. I agree with you that cops should be held to a higher standard but by not showing up to court he’s basically throwing in the towel.
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u/hogsucker Jul 29 '26
He also got to waste her time by making her go to court. He should have to pay for her lost wages, parking fees and any other expenses she incurred.
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u/Tall_Sherbet6766 Jul 28 '26
Limb difference?
Never heard this phrase before
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u/AT-ATsAsshole Jul 28 '26
I don’t know for sure but I think it’s the pc term for being born with extra or missing limb pieces. She was born without the hand, vs being like an amputee or anything.
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u/Lilacandnavy Jul 28 '26
Limb difference is applicable to anyone who has a limb difference, regardless of how it occurred.
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u/DryDonutHole Jul 28 '26
I knew I couldn't be alone. I mean, you could just say she was missing her right hand. There's no malice in that...limb difference sounds way too sterile. and strange.
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u/Kaylascreations Jul 28 '26
There are plenty of people who technically have a hand, but it’s deformed or somehow not the same as a “normal” hand. Some people missing hands have the wrist and some don’t. Limb difference is a great blanket term that covers many different situations.
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u/Bryanmcfury Jul 28 '26
The fact that he didn't show up means even he knew how stupid he was being and was just too embarrassed to show his face in court
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u/radicldreamer Jul 28 '26
Holy shit, this guy needs to train the rest of the nation and maybe we wouldn't need songs like "Fuck the police".
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u/Jertimmer Jul 28 '26
This goes for a lot of wholesome content I see on this site.
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u/Backwardspellcaster Jul 28 '26
We live in a world in which the richest and most powerful, and even the churches (if you're in the US) tell us that Empathy is a sin.
A lot of kindness seems to be intentionally murdered, so content like this really does make me smile
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u/primum Jul 28 '26
More people seem to be waking up, we just got to make it to sunrise.
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u/booksblanketsandT Jul 28 '26 edited Jul 28 '26
There’s a monologue in Lord of the Rings that I have held tight to in recent years:
Frodo: I can't do this, Sam.
Sam: I know. It's all wrong. By rights we shouldn't even be here. But we are. It's like in the great stories, Mr. Frodo. The ones that really mattered. Full of darkness, and danger, they were. And sometimes you didn't want to know the end, because how could the end be happy? How could the world go back to the way it was when so much bad had happened? But in the end, it's only a passing thing, this shadow. Even darkness must pass. A new day will come. And when the sun shines, it'll shine out the clearer. Those were the stories that stayed with you. That meant something. Even if you were too small to understand why. But I think, Mr. Frodo, I do understand. I know now. Folk in those stories had lots of chances of turning back only they didn't. They kept going. Because they were holding on to something.
Frodo: What are we holding on to, Sam?
Sam: That there's some good in this world, Mr. Frodo...and it's worth fighting for.
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u/primum Jul 28 '26
It does feel like we are living through The Scouring of the Shire. Hopefully the Battle of Bywater goes in our favor.
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u/artbystorms Jul 28 '26
Capitalism doesn't reward kindness. It rewards ruthlessness and selfishness.
Hell the entire basis of the 'science' of modern Economics is that people are inherently selfish and will always do what is best for themselves over others.
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u/Jertimmer Jul 28 '26
Successful CEOs share a psychological profile with psychopaths.
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u/Rolandscythe Jul 28 '26
The worst part is you're not even exaggerating. The likes of Musk and the GOP constantly make it seem like helping others in any fashion is some sort of horrible burden and an egregious slight upon their person.
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u/gijimayu Jul 28 '26
The cop is happy to be wrong because that means everyone is following the law.
Its sweet.
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u/Electric-Sheepskin Jul 28 '26
I know I'll get downvoted for this, but I think it's more normal than people think. Interactions like this happen every single day, but they don't get posted on social media for us to see, and when they do, the algorithms funnel us to the other type of video because it keeps us engaged longer.
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u/HyenaThen572 Jul 28 '26
This is the kind of thing I see the most and hear about the least.
People say a bad apple spoils the bunch, which is true. But I think a lot of people forget how many bunches of apples there are in this situation.
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u/4b4cus Jul 28 '26
I was about to say something similar. Isn't police supposed to be friendly to begin with?
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u/Eat--The--Rich-- Jul 28 '26
In a first world country. I've gotten hit by a car on my bike before, on video, and the cops treated me like I was the criminal and wouldn't do anything about it.
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u/MjrLeeStoned Jul 28 '26
How would you know it isn't?
Reddit isn't reality.
People don't post stuff that doesn't rile you up.
This could be the statistical norm and you'd never know living on the internet.
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u/No_Minute2664 Jul 28 '26
We only ever see an infinitely small number of police interactions and the vast majority of them are uneventful.
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u/sweetnamebro Jul 28 '26
It literally IS the norm, people usually only post the bad shit.
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u/Reading_Rainboner Jul 28 '26
This is just an example of a good interaction not like this is never fucking happening anywhere else. You need the good examples too.
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u/justwolt Jul 28 '26
Is it the norm. It just turns out officers being nice doesn't get much traction on reddit and actually isn't post worthy.
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u/OrcasareDolphins Jul 28 '26
This is 90% of police encounters. You just see the shitty 10%. And I’m sill a police reformist.
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u/HopelessRespawner Jul 28 '26
I feel lucky, as a trending towards lighter brown person, that almost every interaction I've had with police has been similar.
It made it really hard to take in the ACAB mentality that picked up with Floyd, but the amount of videos and other evidence is damning. I just wish cops and their supporters/families could understand that we don't want to dislike/fear them.
Like, I want them to feel safe, and the people they serve to feel safe. They shouldn't need military weapons, and shouldn't have to respond to mental health crisis and other specialized calls, etc.
They should know the law, and be teaching, not just punishing or fucking killing people. I hate this timeline.
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u/Dankgeebus Jul 28 '26
Admitting fault is something everyone should do.
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u/Wheeljack7799 Jul 28 '26
Owning and admitting your mistakes is actually an overlooked lifehack. More often than not, people will respect you more for it - unless you did something beyond stupid of course.
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u/Canadian_Border_Czar Jul 29 '26
Honestly it doesnt just get you respect, it helps you respect yourself. So many people go about life with poor ethics and just turn into grumpy losers when nobody wants to be around them. If Im wrong, I own it and dont have to worry about maintaining a lie forever.
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u/giney_lips Jul 28 '26
Most people have no issue admitting fault. However, most cops admitting fault seems to fall into the same category as asking them to knit you a sweater made out jello.
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u/Diclonius666 Jul 29 '26
see how easy it is to admit you made a mistake. very simple and everyone moves on. cool guy.
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u/100BottlesOfMilk Jul 29 '26
What's funny is that the cop was actually initially correct. In the US, the bike can't go faster than 20mph on throttle, which that bike is clearly doing. Whether or not he's doing anything wrong is a separate question, but the bike certainly isn't legal
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u/Obama_pinky Jul 28 '26
The fact a normal proper interaction is considered material for wholesome videos nowdays is very depressing, thats how the world seems to be
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u/That_Jicama2024 Jul 28 '26
That's how it appears. I think it's just confirmation bias. Bad interactions get far more views. They're posting for views. So they don't post the nice/normal stuff as much. It happens though.
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u/Normal-Cow-9784 Jul 28 '26
Have you ever dealt with the police? Every interaction I've had was bad and I was the victim most of the time (minus one traffic stop). I got my car stolen and they treated me like I was the problem. Cops are assholes in general.
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u/Particular-Turn7361 Jul 28 '26
Every interaction ive ever had with the police they were neither good or bad - just completely useless. Wondered why the hell my taxes were paying for them to chit chat with me/the other party involved and then just…do nothing. Thanks for stopping by i guess
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u/imonlyamonk Jul 28 '26
Got pulled over twice somewhat recently... once for speeding through a work zone (no workers present) and once for failing to signal when changing lanes.
Both seemed pretty BS reasons to pull me over, but the cops were really friendly both times. I think they were out looking for drunk drivers and that was the excuse to pull people over. I work in datacenter IT and work really weird hours so driving home at 3AM is pretty normal.
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u/ArgusTheCat Jul 28 '26
Got pulled over by several cops once that were clearly looking for drunk drivers. They just happened to stop me outside my own apartment, and thought I was evading them by pulling into the parking lot. I told them I was going home to do a board game night, and in what was clearly a test to see how inebriated I was, one of them grilled me on the mechanics of Twilight Imperium, which was honestly pretty funny.
Then his buddy gave me a ticket for evading police pursuit and told me if I'd been any more aggressive he could have me arrested for resisting arrest. The other cop looked genuinely baffled by it, but didn't say anything until the dumbass left, and then just took the ticket back from me and told me that wasn't a real thing.
Just a genuinely weird experience. And, like, part of it is really funny, you know? Not exactly a mistake - they did pull me over on purpose - but it's cool to check for drunks on a Saturday night, I get it. And yet, now I'm never going to be comfortable seeing police lights again.
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u/daBriguy Jul 28 '26 edited Jul 29 '26
Get off the internet for a bit. I don’t say this condescendingly. You’ll find interactions like this all over. The internet does a great job of highlighting the worst of humanity and not the best job at highlighting the best. This isn’t a rare occurrence. You just don’t see people posting bodycam or GoPro footage of good, friendly interactions between people or between regular people and cops.
Edit: it’s kind of saddening to see so many try the damndest to convince me that the world is worse than it is. You guys are not a positive bunch.
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u/Medical_Document_807 Jul 28 '26
Damn, I wish I had this experience with cops. I’ve only ever interacted with them when I needed help and they would make me feel like the problem. NYPD problems…
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u/ronbonjonson Jul 28 '26
Only if you view it through Reddit. Out in the real world, people across the board still get along far more than they don't. It's just kinda boring to watch so it doesn't get recorded/posted all the time.
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u/Killeriley Jul 28 '26
Ohhh... pedals! Lol
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Jul 28 '26 edited Jul 28 '26
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u/georgekeele Jul 28 '26
Same where I am. That's an electric motorbike, not an e-bike.
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u/BetterEveryLeapYear Jul 28 '26
It's 750 watts. If anyone here is a cyclist they'd know that's insane power, it results in a faster speed than the world's best cyclist could hold on the world's fastest Tour de France stage (average 31.6 mph / 50.9 kmph). By a lot.
This is for sure a motorbike in all but name lol. But if that's legal it's legal.
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u/Endangered-Wolf Jul 28 '26
Came here for this. 750 Watts is insane. I guess the driver is confident that the brakes can handle -750 Watts.
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u/kozufox Jul 29 '26
Legally, it isn't allowed to result in that speed, though. Also, no way the bike in this video was compliant with the 750w limit, either.
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u/El_Spaxolotl Jul 29 '26
over here you need a registration and a driver license if you have an e-bike (self-propelled) or if your pedal electric bike (Pedelec) could go faster than 25km/h (~15mph)
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u/Slaan Jul 28 '26
Yea the legislation seems really fishy. The exact same situation being treated differently based on having pedals or not... that's just stupid lol. And I know it's not about the speed but the license but the same argument goes there.
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u/jimmy_three_shoes Jul 28 '26
The problem is a lot of these bikes can go speeds that should absolutely require a registration.
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u/Slaan Jul 28 '26
I don't disagree. My point is that the legislation is shit because it isn't based on the reason why a registration might be needed (speed of vehicle) but rather some technical definition.
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u/Eckish Jul 28 '26
This isn't exactly a disagreement, but I think the legislation just hasn't caught up. Law enforcement is just interpreting the current laws against these relatively new vehicle types.
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u/AdWide5106 Jul 28 '26
I believe Illinois just made it that if you can go over 28mph you need a registration and drivers license.
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u/lmpervious Jul 28 '26
That was the first solution that came to mind. Even if they don't need to pedal at all, if they're still going the speed an experienced cyclist could be going, then it shouldn't be a problem. Enforcement is always going to be challenging, but having an easy threshold at 30 mph before they start to care probably makes it easier.
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u/Honey-Badger Jul 28 '26
Yeah many places that bike is illegal without regestraiton and in the places where they're currently legal they'll likely become illegal soon.
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u/hikerbiker6397 Jul 28 '26
NYC is having an existential crisis. They are working on regulations for these bikes but it's a trial and error sort of situation.
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u/H1Supreme Jul 28 '26
The biker was using a fully self-propelled mode with the throttle and not pedalling at all.
This is a motorcycle.
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u/Kunibertolomeus Jul 28 '26
I dont get it.
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u/cfranek Jul 28 '26
There is probably a rule about completely motorized vs motorized but capable of being self propelled that affects licencing.
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u/-nyctanassa- Jul 28 '26
most of these ebikes with pedals are not really capable of being self propelled. They're way too heavy for the pedals to be useful. Not that I have a problem with them, I just wish people would stop deluding themselves and understand what they're riding is a moped and should approach them as such. Injuries on these vehicles at relatively high speeds are not similar to injuries on human-powered bicycles. And because of the speed/mass/momentum, riders should absolutely wear helmets.
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u/Wrx_me Jul 28 '26
Yeah it's really more like electrically assisted pedaling. My parents have some that max at like 20mph, but there's no gears, you just choose how much electrical assist it gives you, from 0 to full electric
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u/stacecom Jul 28 '26
My bike is an electronic assist. I need to pedal for it to do anything, and it's not enough juice on it's own to move me. It just helps me with hills, or if I want to move faster than I'm in the mood to pedal.
But I'm still riding a bike and that's what I enjoy. I wouldn't enjoy a self-propelled one for leisure riding. Maybe if I were commuting I might change my mind.
EDIT: I should add, I can ride it with no assist whatsoever as well.
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u/-nyctanassa- Jul 28 '26
This is the type of ebike I love. I live in Indiana, and the Pacers bikeshare ebikes in Indy work this way. I'd love to have a bike like that down in Bloomington to deal with the hills!
I've also seen electronic pedal-assist cargo bikes that also have a little throttle on the handle for a tiny assist when walking the bike. That is ingenious!
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u/Mr-Blah Jul 28 '26
The laws need changing. If it has a throttle and can modulate accelerator without pedal input being proportional to electrical output : moped. Licence, insurance the works.
If the pedals are what drives the e assist: e bike.
The hybridization of it leads to this and hooligans being a nuisance for internet clout.
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u/Thallis Jul 28 '26
The laws need changing. If it has a throttle and can modulate accelerator without pedal input being proportional to electrical output : moped. Licence, insurance the works.
Throttles are useful for the most annoying part of bike commuting: getting started after being stopped. My bike's throttle tops out at 20 mph and most major brands do the same. Needing a license and insurance for something like that would be absolutely ridiculous considering regular bikes routinely hit that speed. Ebikes are a powerful tool in combating climate change and we need to be resistant to legislation that discourages adoption.
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u/feralkitten Jul 28 '26
My wife and i test drove a pair this past weekend. They were in the 40-60 pound range. Noticeably heavier than our normal bikes.
The petals were the "throttle" so the faster i petalled the more assist i got. The model we drove went up to 28 miles an hour, but 21-22 felt like a sweet spot of "fast" but also "i don't want to go to the hospital today".
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u/nitid_name Jul 28 '26
Class 1 is what you probably want. It assists up to 20mph, anything past that takes sweat. They're allowed basically everywhere bikes are allowed.
Class 2 is throttled but limited to 20mph, and is often prohibited from trails and anything non-street in bike friendly areas. Class 3 has pedal assist up to 28mph and has to have a speedometer, but they are (or should be, depending on local laws) for street use only.
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u/Poly_and_RA Jul 28 '26
Yepp. It's a silly rule. It essentially says an electric moped magically counts as a bike and you don't need registration or insurance or any of that stuff if you just put pedals on it.
But the cops aren't the ones making the rules, they just enforce it, so with the pedals it's all right by the law. (even though the law is stupid)
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u/chimpfunkz Jul 28 '26
It's super silly. There are tons of ebike companies that are selling essentially mopeds, slapping pedals on them that would literally never be able to be used to actuall move the bike, and calling them "bikes" despite never being able to use the pedals to move it.
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u/Tired-Nectarine-384 Jul 28 '26
If it doesn't have pedals it is simply an electric vehicle. The line has become blurred but many people ride these like they are a bicycle but they are doing 20-40 MPH like a vehicle instead of a bike and sometimes endangering others lives. If you are truly riding a bike it is pretty tough to get up over 20 MPH so different rules apply.
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u/Helocase Jul 28 '26
Some places if it has pedals its not an "e-bike" and does not need registration. Its considered a bicycle even though its battery powered as well.
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u/PilotC150 Jul 28 '26
With pedals it IS an e-bike. Without pedals it's a motorcycle.
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u/GeneralMakaveli Jul 28 '26
I'm honestly shocked by how many incorrect answers you're getting.
E-bikes and e-motos (electric motorcycles) are two different legal categories.
An e-bike must have functional pedals and meet your state's e-bike classification requirements. If it falls within one of those classes, it generally doesn't need to be registered or insured and can be ridden anywhere state law allows.
An e-moto, on the other hand, is treated like a motorcycle or moped in many places. That means it typically requires registration, insurance, and sometimes a motorcycle endorsement.
That's why the pedals were a big deal. If the officer initially thought it was an electric motorcycle but then noticed it had pedals, it could change how the vehicle is legally classified.
As a general rule, Class 1 and 2 e-bikes are limited to 20 mph, while Class 3 e-bikes are limited to 28 mph with pedal assist. E-motos can usually go much faster than that.
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u/Spinal_Soup Jul 28 '26
If it doesn't have pedals then its an electric vehicle that requires registration, license plates, and insurance. If it has pedals and under a certain size motor then its just an e bike that follows the same rules as bicycles.
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u/Johnny-Martini007 Jul 28 '26
When I got pulled over while riding my mountain bike it didn't go over as well. I was frisked and given a sobriety check and asked what am I doing. Sir I was just riding my bike. I already know I was pulled over for riding my bike while brown. Same reason I was detained while eating inside a jack in the box and in line ordering at a Mexican restaurant with my mom! "I fit a description" in other words "racially profiled"
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u/Inevitable-Level-687 Jul 28 '26
Yeah I was watching this thinking "it went well because he's white."
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u/DubbehD Jul 28 '26
The kicker is you weren't pedaling at all and just using the throttle, pedals were just to hold your feet
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u/TleilaxTheTerrible Jul 28 '26
Yeah, if you've got pedals but are still using the throttle (check his right hand at the beginning), I'm pretty sure you're still in the wrong.
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u/Illumidark Jul 29 '26
If the rules there are anything like the ones where I live the functionality is different. Ebikes have pedals and are.limited to a max speed the electric motor will help with (32km/hr here) as well as in other ways, while those without pedals are more like an electric Vespa and have much different limitations and requirements.
The pedals are a visual clue to what clas of vehicle jt is, rather then something he needs to be using to follow the law.
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u/Pretty-Yam-2854 Jul 29 '26
In California you can have a class 2 that’s 750w and use throttle only. Class 3s you have to pedal but that go up to 28mph.
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u/tokeswithmydog Jul 28 '26
Cool but the cop really gunna park there to deal with the guy? Guy pulled on to a less busy street for the cop and cop blocks both lanes??
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u/Mr-Blah Jul 28 '26
Everyone hates those fucking escooters that have pedals only for show. The are a plague.
That's why the cop jumped at it.
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u/jenniebennie Jul 28 '26
Wow a cop who can accept that they made a mistake and not let their toxic masculinity and power trip prevent them from admitting it. More cops like this, less cops gun happy.
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u/herkalurk Jul 28 '26
You mean a cop who's actually doing the job for overall goal of public safety and enforcing the laws as written.
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u/godothasmewaiting Jul 28 '26
Agree. More cops like this. And not like the one in Florida, maybe, where he pulled over a woman for using a phone in her right hand while driving. Plot twist - she had no right hand and yet he wouldn’t drop it and she had to go to court.
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u/ricebowl1992 Jul 28 '26
They didn’t actually end up going to court. The cop ended up requesting to dismiss the ticket.
His ego wouldn’t allow him to admit that he made a mistake in the moment, but it also wanted to save him from the embarrassment of explaining to a judge how the woman with no right hand had a phone in her right hand.
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u/Specialist-Neck-7810 Jul 28 '26
See. SEE YOU FUCKERS… this is how easy it could be. No ego, personable and admits wrong.
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u/mrjane7 Jul 28 '26
Everyone makes mistakes. Owning them is vital for a healthy society. I wish more cops owned up to their mistakes like this. Promote this man!
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u/Eat--The--Rich-- Jul 28 '26
Gotta know your laws nowadays, some of those ebikes are legally motorcycles
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u/Ultimatum-Man Jul 28 '26
This is the opposite of a video I saw a month ago where a lady gets pulled over for texting with a phone in her right hand. She holds up her arm and it ends with a stump. Instead of doing what this guy did and apologize, the cop kept pushing that she was in the wrong.
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Jul 28 '26
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/PolarBailey_ Jul 28 '26
case was thrown out the second the judge saw her stump. it ended as fast as it SHOULD'VE ended with the cop if he didn't have a snowflake ego.
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u/HouzoVicarious Jul 28 '26
What have we become when we have to celebrate the bare minimum of civil human interaction?
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u/vasta2 Jul 28 '26
Whats this? a cop admitting he is wrong? this dude won't last long in the gang
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u/Status_Concert_4320 Jul 28 '26
Wish the cop who pulled me over for “failure to stop at a stop sign” reacted when I told him it was a yield. He then paused for a half second and said “oh then failure to yield.” Then he issued me a warning for failure to yield. There were no cars that I needed to yield to, hence why I was safely able to proceed.
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u/FatFaceFaster Jul 29 '26
This guy is cool… helmet… lights… obeying the rules. By all means put this guy on the road.
But honestly struggle to understand the difference between a electric “bicycle” that can drive 50mph on city streets and a motorcycle.
I don’t care about the license plates and shit. I care about the safety aspect of these lunatics, most of them 15 years old, being allowed on the streets with no helmet many of them on modified scooters flying up and down the road going 60km/h…. No lights… not the first concept of the rules of the road.
Just “I’m a kid and I’m on a scooter so you’d better watch out for me!”
It’s an epidemic in my area.
They need to be limited to 30kmh, helmets, lights and imo they need to complete a training course or something so even at 15yo they have the first understanding of the rules.
They have the privileges of pedestrians with the speed of motor vehicles and the common sense and survival instinct of teenagers. Its a terrible combo.
But yes this guy seems chill.
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u/Mutherfalker95 Jul 29 '26
I will respect a person times a thousand if they admit they made a mistake and apologize for it rather than digging in and getting combative.
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u/theArtOfProgramming Jul 28 '26
This shows you everything wrong with ebike regulation
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u/Sipikay Jul 28 '26
Gotta support cops being good guys. That's what we all wish to see all the time, after all!
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u/wolffurrybydefault Jul 28 '26
This is how it should have went with the woman who was accused of using her phone in her right hand when she hand none hand.
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u/originalnutta Jul 28 '26
The world would be a much better place if people took accountability and admitted they make mistakes.
We all do it. We just need to admit when it happens instead of doubling down.
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u/derkaflerka Jul 28 '26 edited Jul 28 '26
See? They ARE capable of not being pieces of shit. It’s fucked up that this is the exception and not the rule
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u/Challe_XVI_Gurra Jul 28 '26
I am so happy there are captions telling me what the cop is doing, i never would have know otherwise
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u/klaw14 Jul 29 '26
I can't wait to live in a world where people can admit their mistakes and aren't showered in praise for it / no one bats an eye because that's just what everyone does / it's how everyone should be anyway.
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u/Gooftus Jul 28 '26
Now compare this to the cop who accused a one armed lady of texting a driving with her non existent hand, seeing that it was physically impossible, and going through with it anyway
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u/FriendshipNo1440 Jul 28 '26
Remebers me of a case in the USA where a wheelchair bound man was apparently kicking down the door of a woman's camper. They went so far as to push him out of his wheelchair when he appeared at the police station because of that charge.
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u/Hawkwise83 Jul 28 '26
See other cops? See how easy it is to be chill and admit you made a mistake and how there was no issue?
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