Some things are better left unchanged

It was Seattle, the summer of 1992, and my first experience in the Pacific Northwest. I didn’t think there were too many places outside my home state of Colorado where I’d like to reside until I spent that summer working as an intern in the sports department of a Seattle newspaper.

One of the biggest stories at the time had to do with the future of the Seattle Mariners. The M’s were for sale, the Nintendo Corp. wanted to buy the team, and that raised concern from baseball enthusiasts around the country about what Japanese-based ownership would do to the American pastime.

Funny to think that baseball’s brain trust now sees fit to start almost each regular season in Japan, a decision that had absolutely nothing to do with Nintendo. Oh, and all that flap over Spider-Man ads on the bases? Next time you watch the M’s play at Safeco, look for the electronic backstop advertisements for Nintendo’s Game Boy Advance SP. Now there’s a nifty little video game.

The sale of the Mariners went through, Seattle kept the team, and not only were Seattle summers supposedly saved, but baseball fans throughout the Northwest could continue to enjoy the M’s, which up to 1995 didn’t mean squat. But new ownership obviously wasn’t good enough, because just a few years later, the Mariners’ owners were asking the taxpayers for a new stadium to replace the dilapidated Kingdome.

It’s now been nearly five years since Safeco Field opened for business and, at the start of this week, only three teams in all of Major League Baseball have performed worse than the Mariners.

Apparently, $517 million in taxpayer dollars doesn’t get what it used to.

I’ll take the Kingdome, Griffey Jr., the Unit and A-Rod in a minute over what’s on that field now. I’d rather hang out with exciting company in a single-wide trailer than a bunch of bores in a palatial estate.

And speaking of taxpayer dollars . . .

I know most of us are low on money these days, but based on the following facts from the Spokane Police Department, and the fact I’m losing confidence in my 1989 Accord, a tax increase for the Spokane Transit Authority might be in order.

Third-degree driving with a suspended license is the most common citation handed out by the Spokane Police Department, police records show. Because the crime is only a misdemeanor in Washington, no matter how many times bad drivers receive those citations, judges only hold them in jail for brief periods of time.

And not all of those violators are habitual criminals. The majority are “average Joes and Janes,” according to local defense attorney John Clark.

“We’re already taking out too many average people in an attempt to catch the chronic offenders,” Clark said. “We’ve made it harder for them to pay fines because now they only have one month to pay them.”

A decade ago, motorists had up until the time of renewal of their driver’s license to pay driving fines. In the meantime, they could continue to drive and not have it affect the status of their license. But the law changed in the early 1990s. Now, driving fines typically must be paid in full within 30 days unless a judge grants an exception. If they aren’t paid within 30 days, the licenses are suspended.

So, here’s my theory. If bus service for those who can’t afford to pay their current fines is reduced, rest assured, many will get back behind the wheel and drive to work, the store or wherever it is they need to go. The reduction of bus service will put even more uninsured motorists on the streets than exist now. As a result, insurance companies won’t hesitate to raise rates for those traveling the roads legally after fender benders with non-licensed drivers.

“I’ve never represented a doctor or lawyer for third-degree driving with a suspended license,” Clark said.

Finally . . .

If this isn’t a ringing endorsement for fluoride in the water, then I don’t know what is. Upon opening my mouth for my dentist recently, he responded: “Wow, you have beautiful teeth, Kevin.”

It wasn’t the first time this happened. When I saw him for the first time nearly six years ago, he immediately asked: “Where are you from?”

“Caawlaaraado,” I said with half his hand in my mouth.

“Denver?”

“Uhhhh huuhh.”

“I thought so; these aren’t your typical Spokane teeth. They have integrity.”

Now, if the rest of me could catch up with my mouth.