Unhappy with Riverside

Dear Editor:On July 2, my wife, Donafaye, and I plus two friends of the Heilman family traveled to Riverside to attend the funeral of Winifred Heilman. She was a World War II Air Force veteran as was her surviving husband, Irvin Heilman. It was our duty and honor to support her devastated husband on this day and from now on. To watch the military ceremony was a moving experience for my wife and I. I am a WWII survivor in Germany and was lucky the U.S. Air Force and the RAF did not kill me during the raids on Dresden and Koenigsberg, the city of my birth. We had left Downey on an empty stomach when I noticed the Denny's restaurant at the intersection of Van Buren and Indiana in Riverside. My U-turn on Van Buren was fine but on my right turn onto Indiana I must have failed to stop and then proceeded my travel. I was not aware of my violation until a few days later when the city of Riverside honored my visit with a citation of some $600. I am a careful driver, a law-abiding citizen since 1971 and also a registered Republican and very well-informed about the troubles in California. After digesting the rather hefty fine, I feel compelled to tell you in brutal honesty what I think of it. 1.) No one was endangered by my failure to come to a complete stop. Only one driver out of a million might do so. To charge me $600 is nothing short of extortion. 2.) The photographic set-up reeks of entrapment. The locals, business people, city officials and police officers know about this set-up and are free from punishment. The uncivilized, illegal immigrants driving around Riverside without a driver's license and insurance also are free from punishment. They have no funds, no concern for the law and, in case of a serious accident, head for the border. So I am a chosen one to provide needed dollars. 3.) Since this set-up provides no greater safety for the citizens, it has one purpose: to generate income for the city and the operation of Riverside. A fool-proof operation for a self-serving government unable, incompetent and lacking character and ethics to manage and serve its citizens. Enough said, injustice of any kind bothers me. I suffered greatly in this incident. All I can do is write about it and warn Downey citizens who might attempt to visit Riverside. There will be snow falling in hell before I will even think about visiting Riverside again. - Dieter Oltersdorf, Downey

********** Published: August 7, 2009 - Volume 8 - Issue 16