Governments are weird. Maybe “weird” isn’t the right word. The more accurate word may be “opportunistic.” When it comes to speech they don’t like, they move into this mode. If they think they can silence it, they will try to. And they’ll do this while still pretending the speech they’re trying to control is nothing more than their own.
Dig if you will, my brothers: vanity plates. Government speech or personal speech? Those who view this rationally likely believe that the message on a vanity license plate is the expression of the plate’s purchaser. That it’s delivered by a state-issued plate doesn’t matter. We don’t actually believe the government is trying to send a message with their IMGOD or COPSLIE or LOVETOFU vanity plate. (ALL ACTUAL CASES.)
Instead, we would logically infer the truncated statement on the vanity plate expresses the views of the person paying for this privilege.
But the government also believes it has some obligation to “protect” other drivers from being offended by the personal expressions of others, which is a supremely ridiculous belief to entertain, even professionally. So, the entities issuing plates tend to err on the side of absurdity (governments tend to phrase this as “caution”), rejecting any plate any government plate content moderator might view as “offensive.”
Unpopular opinion: Vanity plates are stupid and should be done away with completely. It’s government endorsed speech.
these days i woudn’t want a car that stands out or is easily recognizable. so plain plates, white, gray or silver, top-5 selling passenger car, about 4-6 years old, no bumper stickers, no tinting, no mods.
I agree with this. I ride motorcycles and drive cars and I want both to blend in as much as possible. I don’t need Karen calling the police and saying “Some jerk was driving too fast, I think his license plate said BUTTSTUFF”
It’s the same reason I keep my exhausts quiet. I don’t want every person (and cop) within a half mile radius to be alerted every time I use the throttle a little more than I’m supposed to.
I just feel that shiny status cars and special plates are not only tacky but a big red flag towards the moral bankruptcy of the owner.
How is it government endorsed speech if I pick what goes on it? My vehicle is not a public building and my plate doesn’t represent anyone but me.
That license plate is my property. I keep it. Just because it is official government stamped isn’t relevant.
Because they also pick what does not go on it. Which means that the government says “this speech we endorse, but this speech we do not.”
Also you’re required to return or destroy plates in certain states when they send you new ones (every few years, or when purchasing a new vehicle). Doesn’t sound like they’re your property when the state reserves the right to ask for them back.
Fair points there on both accounts.
I had one for a while, kinda fun. But damn they really stick it to you for the yearly renewal cost and I finally dropped it. The ones that always get me are stupid ones that just describe the car. Like “RED BUG” for a red VW beetle…
There’s a car that I see occasionally that has a vanity plate that’s basically “SPOTTY”. It’s a car with spots on it. I approve.
I remember seeing a fancy car with a license plate that said NOTAGIFT, which I felt was fair enough.
You’re right: that is unpopular.
Hey, I don’t like tofu much either, but that’s going way too far.
Oh “Love Tofu” not “Love To Fuck You”
Right that one is LOVE2FU
If you read the ACLU complaint their examples are less about political bias and more about just the arbitrary nature of the decisions. Most of their examples are “you approved this and therefore you shouldn’t have rejected a similar thing”. Like some approvers read the vague statute to say “BEERRUN” is ok, while others think “BEER4ME” is not. Which, ok, sure, maybe the MVD should send out a memo clarifying what’s ok and what isn’t, but is this actually lawsuit worthy? Are civil rights in South Dakota really doing so well that this is where the ACLU should be directing its limited funds?
And they’re not just saying “be more consistent”, they’re demanding that every rejected license plate be approved when the policy is defined to reject:
“vulgar words, terms, or abbreviations[;]” that are “offensive or disrespectful of a race, religion, color, deity, ethnic heritage, gender, sexual orientation, disability status or political affiliation[;]"
So their examples are BEER4ME, but their suit is almost certainly going to also be freeing up plates like “DIEJEWS” and “WHTPWR”.
Maybe it’s just me because I work in a very high-crime area. But I always thought of vanity plates as a bad idea simply because they tell potential thieves “There’s probably something in this car worth stealing.”
