As usual, I waited until the last minute to get my license plate. I had called the license branch at Pine Valley to see if – just by some stoke of luck – I didn’t need the whole thing. But as luck would have it – or no luck in this case – I was told I had to get the plate and not just the sticker.
I have really gotten used to the ease of using one of the kiosks to get my sticker, so I was really dreading traipsing out to the Pine Valley license branch, waiting for heaven knows how long, and then getting my plate. But I didn’t want an expired plate ticket, so I took my lunch break and started on my way.
I had to wait about 15 minutes in line. The kicker here is that when the Guv brags about how fast customers are serviced, it doesn’t count the wait in line; the “we can service you better” kicks in when you get to the nice person who politely asks you what you need. Then you take a seat and wait. And the clock starts ticking on how long it will take to call your name and provide what you need.
Fortunately, I remembered what the couple who was in front of me looked like, so I kept an eye on them. I knew when they got called, I would more than likely be next. That worked out well, and my name was called after about a 20-minute wait.
I provided my registration information and my insurance information. But just to digress here a moment – when customers are asked if they still have the same insurance all you have to do is answer “yes.” I acutally had my insurance card out to provide as evidence but wasn’t even asked for it. How do they know you aren’t lying?
Anyways, the process was pretty much complete except for getting my plate. The woman pulled out a plain, white truck plate with black lettering. Pretty nondescript and boring. I was hoping for the new Indiana plate which had the following design. But I didn’t get it. Instead I got the truck plate.
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But the worker wasn’t quite done. She then pulled out the “God” plate. She told me I could have that one instead. I already knew I was going to reject it, so I politely told her I didn’t want it. But look at how nicely colored the State has made this plate – at taxpayer expense. The “God” plate is a freebie – it is not considered a specialty plate requiring payment of a fee.
Now, I don’t care if you want the red, white, and blue God plate. Just don’t make me use my tax dollars to supply it. It is a specialty plate, and people who want it should have to pay the fee. The court case is still in the system, but I will almost bet you that the justices will be too afraid of a lightening bolt to rule against the plate.
And here is another perk of the God plate. It can be put on trucks, cars, and recreational vehicles. Not so the pretty blue Indiana plate – it can only be put on passenger cars. So not only can you get a God plate at taxpayer expense, you can put it on almost any vehicle you own. Quite an edge. So, I picked up my plain white truck plate with the classic black lettering and left.
On my way back to work, I started noticing just how many God plates are out there. And why not? The higher ups must be afraid that Indiana will fall out of favor with God. Yep, “In God We Trust” is now residing on the tail ends of vehicles that weigh thousands of pounds and are capable of wreaking havoc. What better place to hope that you can, indeed, trust in God.
