re: Handicapped parking spots...are they abused?

About 90%.

Yes, you'll get shitbirds. The problem becomes that there are legitimate handicaps that aren't always active impairments.

What do I mean when I say that?

Take a family with a severely autistic child, with a dashing issue. The kid isn't physically incapable, but they do present a real danger to themselves and others, if you put them way the hell out in the parking area.

Now, you aren't just protecting a kid, you are also protecting the property of other people in the parking lot. Is the kid going to dash away every time? No. It just takes the once, though, and someone ends up with an unnnecessary death of a kid on their conscience.

Is it ideal? Nah. Is it a compromise I can live with? Sure. I'll begrudge them having a better parking spot, but I can intellectually justify it.