Taffic Ticket with No Standing Quartzsite Court System

 The court system in Quartzsite sure presented me with a terrible birthday present. Seems I own more than 800 dollars for missing a court date.

This spring I had allowed my vehicle registration to expire and was stopped by an officer. He told me my address was wrong on my driver's license and I told him no, motor vehicles had the correct address. Sadly I apparently signed a notice for a court appearance. I call motor vehicles and brought my registration up to date. I asked about the address and yes they had the correct address. So I thought all was OK. Wrong, it seems one organization doesn't talk to another organization so even though motor vehicles was satisfied apparently the Quartzsite court was not. 

No notification by the court until I picked up my mail last week, a notification from ADOT that I was delinguent in paying a fine. I call the number provided by ADOT and got the case number, the amount of the fine and the Quartzsite court number.

In talking to a Quartzsite court employee it seems I have no choice but to pay this fine. Although I can hire a lawyer I'm not allowed to handle it myself, Pro se:

"Litigants or parties representing themselves in court without the assistance of an attorney are known as pro se litigants. “Pro se” is Latin for “in one's own behalf.” The right to appear pro se in a civil case in federal court is defined by statute 28 U.S.C. § 1654." 

So much for the year of law school I had decades ago. 

I haven't given up so I'll likely go to the Quartzsite courthouse once a week and pay them 10 dollars towards their "pound of fresh." I'll be sure they know that I'm paying under protest and not as an acknowledgement of my being in the wrong.

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Update, I paid the ticket as my license was up for renewal. 

Michigan State University - When Did It Go So Wrong?

Originally written Oct 4, 2019 but not published to blog until June 17, 2024.

IMO, another sign of a declining country.

I've long recommended a college education in a field sought after by businesses, usually technical in nature. Once the graduate has worked a few years, go for an advanced degree, usually paid for by your employer. I realize that not all high school graduates want to go to college/ are cut out for college so learn a trade which will usually provide a good living.

Earlier this month a student from Michigan State University (MSU) called for a donation. I graduated from MSU way back in 1966. I asked about the current cost of tuition. When I attended MSU we were on term hours and 180 term hours were required to graduate. MSU went to semester hours long ago so now 120 semester credits are required to graduate. When I went to MSU tuition was $112.00 a term for 12 or more credits or about $1,344.00 for four years. Now tuition is $371.00 per semester hour for the first two years and $406.25 per semester hour for the final two years. This would be nearly $47,000.oo in tuition compared to $1,344.00 in my day.

Inflation, lets check it out. I had a job offer several months before I graduated from MSU, $7,500.00 per year or roughly 5.58 time as much as my tuition for four years. I haven't checked what 2010 grads are making to start out in my field but I'm sure it's not 5.58 times $47,000 tuition. BTW, back in the day (6/1966) $7,500/ year was a good starting salary.

I'm still a promoter of achieving a solid and salable college degree, however, the Return on Investment has sure gone to he##. What happen? I had great teachers in high school and in college, technical degree not a liberal arts degree. I was able to get good paying jobs throughout my career. Back in the day, and IMO, there was a far greater bang for the buck for college tuition. Fold in books, fees and housing and the many students graduating with a not in demand degrees, OMG!