[at-l] Definition of "camping"

[thornel@attglobal.net (W F Thorneloe)]

There is a bit of difference between loitering and camping. At a "rest 
stop", many men who stop and rest are not there for a nap. The attendant is 
there to discourage their activity, particularly to allow the restroom 
(love that euphemism) to be used for toileting exclusively. I suspect you 
would have been left alone by the attendant had you simply napped in your 
car with doors closed and windows up. Personally, I trust a drunk driver 
more than a drowsy driver.

Sleeping in the open made you appear suspicious as well as vulnerable to 
assault. We have several stories of people with broken cars at rest stops 
who have disappeared or lost their lives - a particularly sad story of a 
female VW Bus driver in Arkansas last year comes to mind.

Some of these rules against camping are made for good reasons, such as the 
safety of the stranger in the area. The local county mounty isn't the only 
person breaking heads.

OrangeBug

At 09:47 AM 10/24/2001 -0500, Phil Heffington wrote:
>I guess my resting qualified as "camping".  I'm just the kind of guy who
>may have let the police haul me off to jail just to make a point.  I can
>see it now.  I'm before the judge and defending myself against illegal
>nap taking.