It is nearly impossible to find a handicap parking spot at the stores. It seems as if everyone has a placard. The trouble is that people (and there seems to be a lot of them), are using the placards when they are not needed.

I have seen perfectly healthy people using these spots — young teenage kids who appear to be in great health — while the older lady with a walker has to park away from the entrance and walk up.

I have seen contractor trucks with ladders and equipment parked in handicap spots; and I have seen people that the only thing obviously wrong with them was a weight issue. The list goes on.

It is my understanding that drivers have use of a handicap parking place only if a handicapped person is with them. So, drivers who have the placard to use, but the handicapped person is not along, should have some common courtesy in this all-about-me world and leave the spot for someone who really needs it.

I might add that there are certain rules that go with the placard. People should take the time to read the application — it states it is supposed to be used only by the person to whom it is issued. People should not drive around with it in the windshield; display it only when parking with handicapped people. It is not a trophy.

I would almost bet that the amount of tickets law enforcement could write in a week would pay the salary for additional officer just to police this activity.

Arthur Gagne, Greene