Speeding - a victimless crime?

So David Blunkett is saying that police should spend less time chasing motorists and more catching drug dealers. It's interesting that motoring organisations are said to have given the news "a cautious welcome". It is illegal to break the speed limit and the police are there to enforce the law. So in effect they are welcoming the potential opportunity to break the law of the land without being caught for it - an interesting jurisprudential position for a responsible interest group to adopt. The point is that finite resources have to be allocated in the enforcement of the various criminal prohibitions. Therefore it would seem more appropriate for bodies involved in the rehabilitation of drug addicts or burglary victim support groups to "welcome" this, since they represent the beneficiaries of the proposed re-allocation of police priorities - i.e the victims of the types of crime that the police are to devote more time to preventing. In fact, this debate reveals the very different attitude held by the population towards road-traffic offences as distinct from other crimes. Many people really do not believe there is anything morally wrong with breaking the law on speeding. Imagine if instead Blunkett had said the police were going to crack down hard on speeding - "the Columbian cartels, the major east-end crime families and the inhabitants of Feltham young offenders institution gave the news a cautious welcome"....... doesn't sound quite right does it. What we are left with is the RAC, BMF and the Institute of Advanced Motorists being akin to criminal interest groups. So speed limits should either be changed to levels which have the support of the population or more resources should be devoted to convincing people that it really is morally wrong to speed, backed up with evidence that the speed limits are set as they are for sound reasons - witness the change in attitude towards getting in the motor after 6 or 8 pints - 40 years ago a bit of a laugh, these days an irresponsible and criminally stupid act. If this does not take place, enforcement of speed limits is looking increasingly like an unreasonable encroachment on the freedom of drivers for the main purpose of raising revenue for the state.