More traffic perceptions and misconceptions

Seems like traffic related articles interest the public, so here we go again.

Flashing your high beams will cause the traffic light to change from red to green:  Nope.

Some of the traffic signals at major intersections have what is called the “Opticom” system. There is a sensor mounted on near the traffic signal, high above the street.  The system is activated by emergency vehicles that are equipped with a signal light, usually positioned in the grille area or center of the light bar of the approaching emergency vehicle. 


Have you ever been at a red light that just changed to green, then immediately changed back to red before you even started forward?  Did you notice the emergency vehicle then cross in front of you, coming from your left or right with emergency lights on?  That’s the Opticom system at work.

The light that is required is a special bulb that emits a coded signal that changes the lights, not your high beams.

The traffic light system here usually has sensors buried under the asphalt, so when the vehicle approaches the intersection, it alerts the system that a vehicle is waiting.  If you don’t pass or stop on the sensor, you may not get the green light.  Look for the cut-outs in the pavement.

If you live in a cul-de-sac, you can park diagonally to the curb, not with your right wheels against the curb.  Nope.

Nevada statutes require the vehicles RIGHT wheels to be no more than 12 or 18 inches away from the curb, depending upon the jurisdiction. (County is 12”, City is 18”)

When parked perpendicularly to the curb, your vehicle is now jutting out into the cul-de-sac.  Large service vehicles, such as the garbage truck, cannot negotiate the turn with your vehicle blocking the travel path.  Sometimes they will not service your cul-de-sac if they cannot make a smooth turn.

If an emergency vehicle is behind me with its emergency lights on, I don’t have to pull over because I didn’t do anything wrong:  Nope.

ANY emergency vehicle with its emergency lights on has the right of way and you are REQUIRED to move to the right side of the roadway or shoulder, as soon as safely possible, and allow the vehicle to pass.

Not moving to the right will get you a costly moving violation citation, about $800.00 or more and 6 points on your license. 

And pulling over doesn’t mean that you find a convenient place that you like, as you  continue to drive while the emergency vehicle is behind you, trying to get you to pull over.  Some think if they are close to home, they can try and drive a little further to get into their driveway.  I’m sure the nice officer won’t mind citing you in front of your neighbors.

If there is a police vehicle or emergency vehicle on the side of the road, I need to get closer to see what’s going on:  Nope.

Nevada law requires that when there is an emergency vehicle (police, fire, ambulance, tow trucks, etc) on the side of the road, you are required to reduce your speed lower than the posted limit and move to the left, if possible.  No rubbernecking.  Check out the Youtube video; (here)

Several other jurisdictions conduct enforcement activities, watching other vehicles as they pass emergency vehicles that are conducting stops and then either warn or cite those drivers.

In the state of Ohio, over 12,000 cites have been issued to drivers since this law has taken effect, and the average cost per ticket is approximately $750.00 and a heavy point violation also, I’m sure.

Really, common sense should always be a factor in operating your motor vehicle. Getting a citation for a moving or parking violation or getting involved in an accident with a parked emergency vehicle can be easily avoided by using common sense.

PAY ATTENTION TO YOUR DRIVING AND THE ROADWAY.

Metro headquarters…Essential or not?

The new LVMPD “headquarters” is now open for business.   Employees are slowly moving in.   At the cost of over $1,000,000.00 per month rent.  Brand new furniture for everyone.  Three times the cost of what it was costing Metro to rent the previous buildings that it replaces. Technically it isn't even a "headquarters" because the specific things necessary for it to be classified as one were not added to the buildings because they would have cost too much. Like the appropriate security measures that  were originally asked for. Since it was way over the initial cost, they had to cut out those very things to save money.

It still remains unnamed.  Three guesses and the first two don’t count as to what it does get named?  Doug Gillespie LVMPD headquarters?  The rumor is he wanted to get the building in place to show the previous sheriff he could do what the other guy couldn't. And as for naming something this monumental, so huge in LVMPD's history, how about honoring one of the officers who dedicated their lives to the cause? Or even allowing the employees and former employees to pick a name?

Sheriff Gillespie describes it as “not a fancy building, but it’s a nice, practical building”.  

How practical is it?  No freight elevators in the buildings.  The furniture and equipment will have to be lugged up the passenger elevators or the stairs, increasing the cost of moving, I’m sure. Certainly increasing the length of time it will take to move in.

No reasonable roof access for maintenance to the roof mounted equipment, such as air conditioning units and communication devices.

Flooring not suitable for easy cleaning, mostly carpet.

Not enough power to the buildings, therefore not enough power for individual offices (department e-mails were sent out forbidding anyone to bring personal appliances, such as coffee makers, fans, heaters, fridges, etc).  There's barely enough power to run the necessary computer equipment. 

Keep your eye out for possible necessary upgrades in the future, which will then increase the cost of the buildings yet again. But I doubt that anyone will ever hear about that if LVMPD brass can help it.

And every LVMPD substation is supposedly built as “essential” buildings, meaning they can withstand more of what Mother Nature can dish out, such as seismic occurrences, except for some reason, the LVMPD “headquarters" was not built to these standards. 

The building is supposed to “improve efficiency and internal communication”, but I’ll bet the e-mail is still the internal communication of choice, whether you are sending it next door or to another building on the other side of the city. And to tell the truth, communications won't be much improved by having the units closer together, because the main issue keeping the units from talking to each other in a more timely manner was THEIR BOSSES.

Speaking of "efficiency", taking over 40 police officers off the street to provide security for the buildings 24/7 doesn’t ring "efficiency" to me.  Why not hire private security at half the cost?  If it’s good enough for the military, it should be okay for the local police.

If I pushed the right buttons on the calculator, the total Metro will pay for the “headquarters” is approximately $367 million.  If that is three times what they were originally paying for rent, we would’ve saved approximately $245 million by avoiding renting the new building.  Over $8 million a year savings?  And we are cutting our officer’s pay and benefits for a third year in a row?

The county has an option to buy the buildings in 3 years;  LVMPD will have paid almost $37 million by then.  Then they can buy it at “fair market value”.  Has the county or police department ever bought a building after leasing it? And rumor has it that LVMPD actually signed a 30 year lease anyway. Who actually benefits from this overpriced, underwhelming project anyway? Doesn't look like the county, city, or LVMPD in the long run. What is it about the buildings we seem to get for our administrators lately? They all seem to be underbuilt, lacking the necessary elements to work efficiently, designed poorly, and overpriced as well as taking longer to complete, just like the Regional Justice Center. Is the same person getting the bid to build them, because the same issues always seem to come up, and the same issues continue to plague each project. If you don't believe me, wait until the next rain and go visit the newer substations; they all leak in the same places!

Sheriff Gillespie added, “It’s not going to be a money-saver.  We never said it would be”. I guess the $14 million, over and above everything else, that Metro spent for “tenant improvements” didn’t save any money.  Yet Councilman Gary Reese said it would “save money and make the department more efficient”.  So who's right? And where did Reese get his version of the story, since he had to vote to allocate money for the buildings. The "headquarters" supposedly has a computer-controlled lighting system based on the employee’s schedule.   Not sure if that was a great idea.  In 23+ years on Metro, my schedule changed like the wind.  And the last thing you wanted me to do was mess with a computer program so I could have my office lights on. 

I guess I’d have to put a service request in to the IT department to help me with the computer controlled light switch.  How much is that service call?… (read here)

Ban on cell phone usage and texting while driving.

As of October 2011, warnings will be issued to drivers caught using handheld phone devices and/or texting while operating a motor vehicle. (see Attached) You have to commit a primary offense, such as speeding, during this period to be stopped and warned of the up-coming laws.  Starting January 1^st, 2012, it will be considered a traffic violation, and you will be stopped for handheld phone usage and cited.  The 1st violation will cost you $50, the 2^nd $100, and the 3^rd $250.  Consideration was made to implement suspensions, but was not passed.  Handheld gaming devices will probably be considered under the same legislation.  Studies have shown that phone usage while operating a motor vehicle may be just as bad as driving while drunk (See attached). Consider this your 1st warning.....

Are fireworks worth the hassle?

    I went to my favorite park on July 5^th and attempted to walk my dogs, only to be met with debris from the previous night’s celebration.  The sidewalk was impassable as the discarded remains of spent bottle rockets, different sizes of cardboard cones, tubes and various other carcasses of expended fireworks littered the path.  In the grassy areas, there was an abundance of spent fireworks debris as well as other forms of picnic accoutrements. The park workers were using blowers in order to gather up as much of the trash as possible, creating mounds of litter.  Improper knowledge and disposal of expended fireworks can lead to property damage, injuries or worse.(see attached)

During the night of July 4^th, my house and surrounding area was bombarded with concussive explosions, falling debris from the sky and showers of sparks.  Thankfully, we had a decent rain the night before. I spent the next day walking around my property picking up the remnants of someone else’s anti-aircraft barrage.

In the past, the day after the 4^th always had Las Vegas skies dull with smoke residue, and thankfully, this year we had some wind and rain to help wash the smog away.

This particular year, I seemed to notice that there was an abundance of fireworks in the residential areas of town, and not all the legal type.  Huge blooms of rainbow colored sparks showered down on homes, and loud booms shook windows, setting off vehicle alarms and some residential alarms.  Animals were darting around, trying to find shelter from the noise and sparks.

I mentioned this to a friend, who advised me that the city/county was encouraging fireworks sales to bolster the economy (I’m sure this included permit fees).  I pointed out that most of the fireworks displays I observed were of the type not legal to buy or sell in Clark County, so it only benefitted the county where they were purchased, not here.  In fact, these types of fireworks are responsible for most of the fire related damages in Las Vegas.(Fox 5 Story) 

Some of the fireworks confiscated during a traffic stop follow-up had never been seen before, according to investigators, which should be a concern, since we all know that everyone reads instructions, right?

Professional Standards, Det. Timothy Nicothodes .. REALLY?!

Professional Standards – "Standards of performance that people are expected to achieve in their work, and the knowledge and skills they need to perform effectively…"

Granted, Detective Timothy Nicothodes 
of LVMPD (seen above) was off-duty. But that was the only good part of the ensuing story. Allegedly, he got intoxicated at an establishment in Montana. Allegedly he tried to get the other patrons to join him in a visit to a strip joint. Allegedly he left the bar, presumably to visit said strip joint, driving (highly intoxicated still) at speeds up to 98 mph. Allegedly he struck the vehicle of the woman he had been talking to at the bar (who, it should be noted, was not his wife, Sheriff Doug Gillespie's Chief of Staff, Kathy O'Connor, pictured above) causing a vehicle rollover. He was ejected from his vehicle because he was allegedly not wearing his seatbelt. He was then allegedly arrested for various DUI and traffic related crimes. If this is all true, not only were these transgressions direct violations of the professional standards that he represents as a detective for LVMPD, they are even more  pathetic than usual since Nicothodes happens to work in the …... wait for it....... guess what?...Professional Standards Bureau. (See Montana Article)

As a “detective”, it is an upgrade from the standard street cop and has an assignment differential pay increase of 8%.  It is a position usually tested for and only the highest scores will get the coveted position.

Maybe he should’ve tried the same tactic that Lieutenant Spinosa, a former supervisor in the Internal Affairs Bureau of LVMPD did in McCall, Idaho in June of 1999, and try to bribe the arresting officer to prevent his arrest. (See Article here)  Guess “Professional Standards” didn’t apply then either since he was off-duty.

Both these individuals were part of the section responsible for the conduct of police officers within Metro, and yet their actions certainly do not reflect the bureau they represent. Maybe someone should try raising the standards there a little higher before choosing the guys who police the police.

150 hours of Broadcasting and it is not getting easier!

“150 hours of Broadcast and it is NOT getting easier” according to Singer, although the slurring provided when delivering his quote was humorous to the on location fans. “Yes, I wish the next 24 hours were already over, but, this is really the beginning”.

Dave Robbins

VegasNewsReview.com is the brain-child of Owner/Publisher and Investigative Reporter Dave Robbins. The “We believe in Dave” Marathon was the brain-child of the now nearly brainless Rick Singer, editor of VNR.

Ella Roberts

Dirk Thomas



VegasNewsReview.com, according to Robbins “is to provide a service to the Las Vegas community by offering an independent NEWS resource uncompromised and diligent to both the community’s right to know and to know the truth”. Robbins further went on to state; “I believe in Community informed Journalism that has been sorely lacking in this community for a long time. Just the recent simple announcement that the RJ would cut all 12 of their investigative reporters demonstrates the perception of the current Media Moguls lack of concern towards providing real reporting”. “They don’t give a damn about anything that doesn’t put major dollars in their pockets. Well, I live in this community – and I do give a damn”! This is only the beginning.

Want to come to the Record Breaking “Victory Party”?

Yes, you are invited!

Come meet VNR’ s Dave Robbins, Dirk Thomas, Ella Roberts and the exhausted Rick Singer, plus all the Friends, Supporters and Staffers , on July 4^th at 8:30pm (only 30 minutes following the record breaking moment) at  Joey’s Tavern, Located at Craig Rd and I-95 in the Albertson’s Plaza.

With only 24+ hours to GO, We want to see you there!  

The Party is beginning to form and you are invited – REALLY!

VegasNewsReview.com Broadcast Marathon has long surpassed the half way mark and Rick Singer, editor of VNR, who has been broadcasting for over 130 hours, is long past his bedtime. Now the attention of the entire VegasNewsReview.com TEAM and Volunteers is focused on the finish line. Only 40+ hours to go and VNR’s Team will have broken the World’s Record for the longest LIVE, Non-stop Broadcast in the World.

The finale will be a FULL BLOWN party and the public is invited. The World’s Record will be broken on July 4^th, 2011 as of 8pm P/T (concluding 179hrs). Singer began his Broadcast at 10AM P/T on Monday June 27^th, 2011.

The location of the Party is Joey’s Tavern, whereby Singer will have a bed and beverage ready for him on location.  “I make no promises to be awake for the 4^th of July Fireworks but I do promise to be awake long enough to thank everyone and make sure that people can take pictures of me in the bed”.  “Obviously the more people who come to the finale, the more Fun we will all have – I expect the TEAM and Supporters to cover my usual consumption in as much as I expect to be passed-out within a reasonable period of time. On the other hand, they deserve the Party – this Marathon and World Record was and remains all about Dave Robbins and VegasNewsReview.com”.

Keep watching the record in the making at www.VegasNewsReview.com  Singer gets dopier and dopier!

Party begins at 8pm on July 4^th, 2011

Location: Craig Rd and I-95, Albertson’s Plaza

Singer expected to arrive at 8:30pm

Yes, YOU are Welcome and bring Friends!

World Record seeking Broadcaster is delusional! Right on time!

It is expected that World Record seeking broadcaster Rick Singer will become delusional if all goes as planned. That was the prediction when the research was done prior to his stunt. Obviously, the effects of “sleep deprivation” were discussed and the terms had to be accepted by Singer, editor of VegasNewsReview.com, prior to the attempt of breaking the World's Record for the longest single Broadcast.

“Some people may perceive this endeavor as simply crazy”, says Singer, “but what I believe is really crazy is the manner in which Clark County is being managed. If my staying awake will help wake people up to issues at hand and launch this website created by Dave Robbins – I will be more than happy to go a little crazy.”  “I believe in Dave Robbins, his integrity and the simple fact that too much has been unreported (BTW, that is a nice way of saying “covered Up”). Singer goes on to state: “But the best part is I’m not the only one. Throughout this broadcast I have talked to so many people who feel the exact same way”.

(WATCH LIVE NOW)

According to both Robbins and Singer, there is something very wrong when a City and County Government is unable to meet “average standards” in most of the key aspects of State and Local Government.  Robbins, Owner/ Publisher and Investigative Reporter  for VNR, repeatedly  states, “it is one thing to maybe have one area of Local Government not meeting a basic standard, but all three of the fundamental public bodies; Board of Education, Police, and Fire all ranking in the lower 1/3^rd Nationally AND all at the same time. Really!? ".

You can watch VRN’s Rick Singer begin and continue to go crazy on his live broadcast at www.vegasnewsreview.com

VegasNewsReview.com has been on the air for 48 non-stop Hours! Literally!!!

Rick Singer, VegasNewsReview.com editor and now bonafide crazy man, has been on the air for over 48 consecutive hours. His goal (besides staying awake) is to break the World’s Record for the longest single broadcast.  In order to meet the task Rick will have to remain broadcasting for an additional 130 hours. (total of 178hrs) Who is keeping him awake? And what is motivating him? (Besides the shock collar!)

WATCH LIVE NOW

The entire VegasNewsReview.com team and supporters are all on the job. But the biggest boost of all, according to Dave Robbins, Owner/Publisher of VNR, has been the public and our Sponsors. As soon as the RJ announced they would be cutting their investigative reporting staff, we at VNR went into high gear and supporters were there to meet us immediately. Robbins further went on to state, I could not have asked for a greater response to our endeavor.

There is something fundamentally wrong when a community the size of Las Vegas is consistently finding mishandling of funds by public agencies, has among the lowest ranked Police Departments in the Country, and a School system that is barley able to maintain National averages in scoring. Really?! All three primary functions of a municipality are so poorly run and all at the same time. This is a travesty!

Watch the World’s record for the Longest Broadcast take place LIVE on ww.VegasNewsReview.com

VegasNewsReview.com – Is Live and on the Air at a World Record Breaking pace!

VegasNewsReview.com has launched with a LIVE VIDEO CAST that can be seen at www.VegasNewsReview.com. Ignition and lift off began at 10AM P/T with Editor Rick Singer in the seat to begin his Mission of breaking the World’s Record for the longest single Live Broadcast on the internet. The theme of VNR’s Marathon, “We Believe in Dave Robbins” will highlight VegasNewsReview.com’s   new format as a hard hitting and entertaining Investigative Reporting News Source.

To Participate in this event ANYONE and EVERYONE is invited to join;

Wanna Watch? go to – www.vegasnewsreview.com

Call in : 702-727-4210

Visit Rick on location: “One Kick’s Gym” – 6360 S. Pecos Rd #10

Look for the VegasNewsReview.com TEAM at locations throughout the Valley where you can say “hi” or have a brief conversation with the sleepless on air editor, Rick Singer.

On Location around the Valley will be:

§  Dave Roberts, Owner/ Publisher Vegas News Review

§  Dirk Thomas, Editor

§  Ella Roberts, Internet Marketing Specialist  

    

WORLD RECORD ATTEMPT in Las Vegas TO BREAK LONGEST SINGLE BROADCAST

Rick and Dirk - Editors of Vegas News Review

VegasNewsReview.com Editor Rick Singer will attempt to break the World's Record of the longest single broadcast of 178 hours (7.5 days). The LIVE broadcast will be transmitted via Ustream.com (an online TV broadcast system) and on the home page of VegasNewsReview.com beginning at 10:00am PT, Monday June 27^th, 2011. This event entitled

“We Believe in Dave Robbins”

(Watch Live Now!)

is the launch of the website VegasNewsReview.com featuring Independent Investigative Reporter Dave Robbins.

Dave Robbins - Owner / Publisher
VegasNewsReview.com