Cashing in on the Green Arrow

I get to have a staring contest with this little gem every day.

The left-turn arrow doesn’t really care who you are.  Or how long you've been there.  Or how long everyone across the intersection has been waiting.   You show up 10 seconds before the lights change, and viola, you win.  Pardon you as you go on your merry way.   

It ain’t fair.  Wait.  Unless it’s me who gets to turn left.  Then it’s a different story.  Point for being the first out of the gate.  

There’s a story of a bunch of people who show up to work at different times during the day, yet all get paid the same amount (whaat?).  Understandably, the ones who worked the longest are peeved, and they complain.  As I was reading, I wanted, and expected, some retribution for the slackers, or correction of a miscalculation.  However the employer  simply says “It’s my money; am I not free to use it how I wish?”  Touché.  But really?  Seriously?  Yes. 

The green light was engineered the same way.  Whether a car has been waiting there for 2 minutes or just 10 seconds (maybe even shorter, it seems), the green arrow lights up just for them.  You can even swing it that you can roll up to the turn lane and cash in on everyone else’s time (they’ve been waiting) and you still get the dignified passage.  Nope, not fair, but I suppose fairness isn’t the goal of the green arrow.