Hacker News Reader

Comment by hellofunk | Hacker News Reader

> Here in downtown Amsterdam we called the police because the rear window of someone's car had just been smashed outside our office, and the police's response was "Has anyone been hurt? Nope? Then we're not coming".

Amsterdam currently has a big police shortage, that's why. It's not normal, it's just a problem in Amsterdam.

https://www.dutchnews.nl/news/2018/07/amsterdam-is-not-lawle...

View on HN

What? I though they were bored stiff. Every time anything happens - even the most insignificant accident - you’ll see a flock of police offices taping out the scene, parading numerous vehicles and generally making much ado about nothing :)

Well, if you're bored, one of the ways to have fun is to gather up with some friends (other officers) or staying home because you're lazy :P

> It's not normal, it's just a problem in Amsterdam.

Right, the two times we needed police in Limburg (Echt and Maastricht, few years apart) it didn't happen either. It had to be life-threatening and the people didn't literally shout "we'll kill you" so the police wasn't gonna bother.

Meanwhile on TV they're cycling through parks to fine people some 99 euros for not having a well-behaved dog on a leash (could have used discretion there), or fining some poor dude 370 euros for standing literally 2 minutes on a disabled spot to pick someone up.

Poor dude? You don't park in a disabled spot unless you have a right to be there. That should be common sense.

Standing is not partking.

I think his point is that there are much bigger problems that they should be tackling especially since a disabled person can easily give a good old honk to tell the person to move if they came around and actually needed the spot.

It was wrong and s/he was caught, but that fine is just ridiculous. Sure, someone who stood there for 2 hours in a busy spot where disabled people were indeed turned away, then they definitely chose to risk that fine. But when someone was standing with the car (not even parked) for 2 minutes, I might (as police(wo)man) decide to give a warning instead. That fine is disproportionate. Most people on HN probably earn enough to sustain it easily, but for many people, that's an entire month's worth of food that just went down the drain. Sure, it's a good deterrent, but is it fair and just? Should we just give exorbitant fines on every petty crime just as a deterrent? That's not the kind of country I want to live in.

The problem with discretion is how do you recognize or punish repeat offenders? How do you know the dog is well behaved? How should they know?

And standing still for two minutes is parking. And someone who is actually disabled cannot park there, and cannot see (and request) for the person to leave.

not just Amsterdam. I had a car accident on Route 128 in Massachusetts during rush hour. I called the state police - they asked if anyone was hurt and when I told them no they said 'just exchange information with the other driver'. The opportunity here is for fraud prevention. Maybe that's what will eventually drive our desire for ubiquitous surveillance.

Why would you need police for an accident? Your insurance companies negotiate liability based on your statements. It's a civil matter, unless want to request criminal charges for reckless driving?

Depends if there's damage to the road and/or disruption of traffic I would imagine.

In Germany, a police report is generally recommended in case somebody decides to change their statement. I don't know why you wouldn't call the police. They're also there to settle disputes, or at least establish a protocol for a potential court process.

And if you drive for a company, protocol dictates that you call the police even in the most minor accidents for insurance reasons.

Most rental companies in Europe require a police report for any kind of accident, their insurance won't pay without one.

> Amsterdam currently has a big police shortage, that's why. It's not normal, it's just a problem in Amsterdam.

Or maybe Amsterdam has an excess of crime.

Reply on news.ycombinator.com