You can't have your cake and eat it too
I hate traffic. Like poison.
Here in Ontario there are traffic laws that say how people may and may not drive. There are also people who think that they’re “allowed” to ignore these rules. They should know better. This isn’t a question of convenience, but rather one of personal safety. Of course, that’s a given--I shouldn’t have to appeal to people’s common sense in that regard. But there are situations that the people who made these traffic laws didn’t anticipate at all.
Years ago I knew a man in Toronto whose car had a turbo engine. On one occasion the turbo kicked in so violently that he was thrown back in his seat. And while he’d normally have control over his turbo, he didn’t this time. The turbo had caught him totally off-guard.
Now, I’m not a car person at all. I could recognize a 1970s Pontiac Trans-Am or a VW Beetle, but that’s about it. Other than that, to me a car is a car is a car. I’m a musician, not a mechanic. How the heck am I supposed to know whether a car has turbo? Why should drivers assume that I should know that?
Here’s a good example. This afternoon I was on my way home, when I was waiting to cross the street. There were two cars waiting to turn left. The light changed, and the cars didn’t move. It quickly dawned on me that they were waiting for me to cross the street first.
Why in blazes should drivers wait like that? Since they want to drive cars, that means they want to go faster than me. If they want to go faster, that says to me that they’re so impatient that they don’t want to walk or ride a bike or take the bus. If that’s the case, shouldn’t they make that turn right off the bat, as soon as the light changes, whether I’m standing there or not? As long as they’re waiting for me, they’re wasting time for both themselves and me. You can’t have your cake and eat it too. I’m patient enough to wait until the cars drive away. That’s the only way I can be absolutely sure that the intersection will be free enough of traffic that I can safely cross the street. Who are these drivers to think I shouldn’t be that patient?
As I said at the outset, this is a question of safety. I believe it’s far better to err on the side of caution. In the Toronto region, in January alone, fourteen people were killed jaywalking. As a Toronto police officer said about this: “Human error is the real cause of the collisions we’ve had.”
I for one would rather not engage in such “human error”. That’s the reason I’m still alive instead of being among those who are dead as a result of accidents that could have been avoided.
Here in Ontario there are traffic laws that say how people may and may not drive. There are also people who think that they’re “allowed” to ignore these rules. They should know better. This isn’t a question of convenience, but rather one of personal safety. Of course, that’s a given--I shouldn’t have to appeal to people’s common sense in that regard. But there are situations that the people who made these traffic laws didn’t anticipate at all.
Years ago I knew a man in Toronto whose car had a turbo engine. On one occasion the turbo kicked in so violently that he was thrown back in his seat. And while he’d normally have control over his turbo, he didn’t this time. The turbo had caught him totally off-guard.
Now, I’m not a car person at all. I could recognize a 1970s Pontiac Trans-Am or a VW Beetle, but that’s about it. Other than that, to me a car is a car is a car. I’m a musician, not a mechanic. How the heck am I supposed to know whether a car has turbo? Why should drivers assume that I should know that?
Here’s a good example. This afternoon I was on my way home, when I was waiting to cross the street. There were two cars waiting to turn left. The light changed, and the cars didn’t move. It quickly dawned on me that they were waiting for me to cross the street first.
Why in blazes should drivers wait like that? Since they want to drive cars, that means they want to go faster than me. If they want to go faster, that says to me that they’re so impatient that they don’t want to walk or ride a bike or take the bus. If that’s the case, shouldn’t they make that turn right off the bat, as soon as the light changes, whether I’m standing there or not? As long as they’re waiting for me, they’re wasting time for both themselves and me. You can’t have your cake and eat it too. I’m patient enough to wait until the cars drive away. That’s the only way I can be absolutely sure that the intersection will be free enough of traffic that I can safely cross the street. Who are these drivers to think I shouldn’t be that patient?
As I said at the outset, this is a question of safety. I believe it’s far better to err on the side of caution. In the Toronto region, in January alone, fourteen people were killed jaywalking. As a Toronto police officer said about this: “Human error is the real cause of the collisions we’ve had.”
I for one would rather not engage in such “human error”. That’s the reason I’m still alive instead of being among those who are dead as a result of accidents that could have been avoided.
posted by Jamie at 9:48 PM
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