If I have someone tailgating me who will slam into me and cause my neck to snap in a whiplash if I stop on the yellow, I'll pay the ticket instead.  

And Yellow does not mean "STOP. Period."  

"In Oregon it is not illegal to deliberately drive through a yellow light. A yellow light means only that traffic facing the light is “warned” that a red light will soon follow. As long as your vehicle entered the intersection or passed the crosswalk or limit line before the light turned red, you haven’t broken the law."

 ORS 811.260  is the precise language.