Speaking of suspicious ...

An out-of-state relative forwarded a long, boring story about some yo in Houston who got a $200 ticket for not slowing down while passing a parked (flashing lights on) ambulance.

Those emails commonly smell of being fake, so I tracked down the reference to Senate Bill 193 (SB193) and found that there is a new law on that issue. Along with many others, SB193 is conveniently explained on the TexasMotorists.org web site (they're affiliated with the National Motorists Association (NMA)); the specific page is New Laws and Announcements - NMA Texas.

Although TexasMotorists.org is a decent web site with good, factual information, I'm a suspicious guy. I wondered about the National Motorists Association, so I used one of the web tools to find who owns the domain name, and found it registered to James Baxter of Waunakee, Wisconsin. The web site lists him as President, and someone else as a Communications Director, but few other details.

The home page of the NMA goes so far as to taunt MADD (Mothers Against Drunk Driving) to prove that their figures are correct (the exact quote is: "NHTSA and MADD proclaimed that 17,970 people were killed by drunk drivers in 2002. We say prove it!"); this will not win the NMA any friends, except amongst those who willfully drive drunk. For all I know, the NMA is a guy working out of his basement, and his Communications Director is a drinkin' buddy who lives down the street (hey, I could be wrong).