{"items": [{"author": "Peter", "source_link": "https://plus.google.com/103618186481362054522", "anchor": "gp-1360968443486", "service": "gp", "text": "I'd like to see someone shovel some piece of sidewalk regularly, document it, then sue for squatters' rights. \u00a0If they even got as far as forcing the property owner to show up in court and pay a lawyer to get the suit dismissed, that would generate enough publicity to get property owners to take their responsibility to clear sidewalks seriously.", "timestamp": 1360968443}, {"author": "b", "source_link": "https://plus.google.com/109680641548243670506", "anchor": "gp-1360972899529", "service": "gp", "text": "I worry that fraud-proofing the app would be too difficult. How hard would it be to code up a 'fake camera' interface that persuades the app that it's the smartphone's real camera, but gives it images out of a file, making it possible to send doctored pictures or pictures taken at a time substantially earlier than upload time? This would allow one to photograph somebody's sidewalk right after it snows, come back after they've shoveled and photograph it again, and then, after the deadline passes, feed both photos to the camera app (the second at an appropriate delay), and claim credit. On a sunny day, you could probably prove the fraud by shadow position, but even then the overhead for adjudicating that would be substantial.", "timestamp": 1360972899}, {"author": "b", "source_link": "https://plus.google.com/109680641548243670506", "anchor": "gp-1360973444073", "service": "gp", "text": "We could of course overcome the problem I describe by selling every would-be privateer-shoveler an inexpensive black-box device designed to be difficult to covertly tamper with, incorporating a camera and enough antennas and sensors to know when a location was open for privateer-shoveling and to upload the needed information to the city.", "timestamp": 1360973444}, {"author": "Sarah", "source_link": "https://www.facebook.com/jefftk/posts/480980591966955?comment_id=481039095294438", "anchor": "fb-481039095294438", "service": "fb", "text": "yes! I am so tired of climbing over massive snowpiles, and anyone in a wheelchair is totally out of luck.", "timestamp": "1360974099"}, {"author": "David German", "source_link": "https://plus.google.com/111229345142780712481", "anchor": "gp-1360979100561", "service": "gp", "text": "All of these suggestions are completely impractical. \u00a0Here's the obvious solution: X hours after the end of the snowstorm, it becomes legal for all passersby to paint graffiti on any house that has not cleared its sidewalk. \u00a0The next week, there will be online voting to determine which houses will be declared culturally significant landmarks. \u00a0The exterior appearance of winning houses may not be altered for 10 years. \u00a0In addition to several at-large slots, there will be category winners in \"most offensive\", \"most garish\", and \"most thorough\".\n
\n
\n#voteforme", "timestamp": 1360979100}, {"author": "Todd", "source_link": "https://plus.google.com/112947709146257842066", "anchor": "gp-1361162339650", "service": "gp", "text": "Fines for not shoveling? Seriously? What if you're out of town, or disabled, or just old, or any number of other things? Do homeowners actually own the sidewalks in front of their homes to begin with?", "timestamp": 1361162339}, {"author": "Jeff Kaufman", "source_link": "https://plus.google.com/103013777355236494008", "anchor": "gp-1361162615604", "service": "gp", "text": "@Todd\n\u00a0\"What if you're out of town, or disabled, or just old, or any number of other things?\"\n
\n
\nIt's your responsibility to clear the walk in front of your property. \u00a0If you can't you should arrange for someone else to do it.", "timestamp": 1361162615}, {"author": "Todd", "source_link": "https://plus.google.com/112947709146257842066", "anchor": "gp-1361203743648", "service": "gp", "text": "First of all, I'm skeptical of the notion that property owners should be responsible for clearing the walk in front of their property of snow. If they own the sidewalk (I assume they don't), then it's theirs to do as they please with. If they don't, they're being asked to take care of someone else's property (the city's, presumably) just because they're close by. We don't expect them to do this with the street, so why should we with the sidewalk?\n
\n
\nBut even if we just assume property owners ought to be responsible, this still seems like an obviously broken system. I'm normally the last person to advocate an increased role for government, but this seems like a pretty obvious case where it would be beneficial. Relying on individuals has the exact problem that you've witnessed. Some will be ignorant of the law, some will ignore it, some will think it not worth their time and money to arrange something if they are otherwise incapable of clearing the walk.\n
\n
\nIf, on the other hand, the local government just clears the sidewalk, you don't have to worry about the ridiculous cat-herding problem involved in parceling the responsibility out to property owners.\n
\n
\nThen there's the question of enforcing the fine, assuming it could be expected to do its job. What sense is there in having the city spend resources to investigate and levy the fine, when it could just spend the resources to directly clear the sidewalks?\n
\n
\nThe city already does a capable job of clearing the streets. If the sidewalks are important enough to fine people for not clearing, they're important enough for the city to take advantage of its existing snow-clearing infrastructure and clear them directly. If the sidewalks \naren't\n worth clearing, then there's no sense fining people for not bothering.", "timestamp": 1361203743}, {"author": "Jeff Kaufman", "source_link": "https://plus.google.com/103013777355236494008", "anchor": "gp-1361208830799", "service": "gp", "text": "@Todd\n\u00a0I've been trying to think of anything else that works this way, where instead of taxing and spending the government parcels out the responsibility. \u00a0I haven't been able to come up with anything.", "timestamp": 1361208830}, {"author": "Peter", "source_link": "https://plus.google.com/103618186481362054522", "anchor": "gp-1361210200695", "service": "gp", "text": "Actually, there are towns which require the homeowners to maintain the sidewalk itself, i.e. the concrete.", "timestamp": 1361210200}, {"author": "Todd", "source_link": "https://plus.google.com/112947709146257842066", "anchor": "gp-1361212350385", "service": "gp", "text": "@Peter\n\u00a0\"Actually, there are towns which require the homeowners to maintain the sidewalk itself, i.e. the concrete.\"\n
\n
\nSurely this is doomed to the same problems...", "timestamp": 1361212350}]}