Just random stupidity

While walking home today, I came across a street intersection with a button to press. Now, normally I see these around that usually read "to cross 101 street, press button". Usually for a busy intersection that normally wouldn't stop on a regular basis to let pedestrians, that aren't there, cross. Helps with the flow of traffic and all since we are all busy people. Well, I came to this one street that had a button, but as I reached to press it, I actually read the sign.

"Press button for audible signal only"

This obviously means that regardless of if I push this button or not, the light is going to change and I am going to get the walk signal to cross the street. I then thought "who would need this then? why was it installed?". The answer is probably the blind. I remember seeing a game of baseball in a documentary about a blind camp for kids where they would stand up at the plate and the pitcher (counsellor who could see...cause having a blind pitcher for blind batters is just toooo Caligulian for even that ancient dead sick ruler) would always pitch slow to them. They would then swing and if they hit the ball the first base person would ring a bell and the player would then run towards that bell. Each base had a different bell sound so that if there were two runners running, they could follow the bell that they recognized as the respective base they wanted. So, I figure that if a person was waiting for a light to change that couldn't see, they would need some auditor clues as to when to walk. Some intersections, like this one, had advance greens where the cars going foward were stopped but the ones that were turning were allowed. In this case, simply listening for the cars stopping and hearing who was driving really wouldnt be of use to the blind person. Ingenius, isnt it?

Then, of course, I got to thinking. The sign is printed, there is no braille on it to tell a blind person what it is for, and since they can't see to read it, how are they to know? As well, there are no sounds or anything coming from the sign itself to attract a blind person by sound to let them know that it is there. So, basically, what we have is a button, hooked up to a light switch, which would have cost the city tax payers some money (cause, let's face it, their appearance and maintenance is not free, nothing is), and it is for helping the blind cross a street, but the blind can not see it to use it? That makes about as much sense as funding an entire organization for helping people with debt and credit problems, but they put it in the basement of a building that is condemned and don't advertise that the organization exists or tell anyone about it, but still suck tax dollars.

Ahhh, yes, yet another wonderful thing brought to you by the gov't that really has more money than brains.