I'm The Right Of Way
Dear Avid Reader,
Why can't everyone stop being nice?
What do I mean? Well, I'll tell you. Just chill out!
Gentlemen Start Your Engines
I'm driving down the road. I come to stop sign. Across the street, at another stop sign, a second car pulls up and stops. We come to a complete rest simultaneously. We face each other. The second car wants to turn left and turns on his signal blinker. I want to go straight.
We look at each other.
He decides to act first. But he takes a defensive tact. He waves me over, giving me permission to cross the street. Ah, but there's a wrinkle in his plan. A third car is barreling down the road, poised to drive between us. The third car has no stop sign to contend with.
The second car continues to wave me over. This time angrily.
Rubbing Is Racing
Now, why is he doing this? Why is he becoming frustrated at ME. And I know what he's thinking. He thinks I'm some sort of idiot that can't follow instructions. See the real problem is that he should just go ahead and turn and quit worrying about me.
But he's still waving like a lunatic. I begin shaking my head. His anger is wasted as is his waving. What is going on in that overworked mind of his, I wonder?
One thought he may be having is that there is plenty of time for me to make it across. In which case he is forcing his driving philosophies onto me. What he should do is just go ahead and turn and let me wait. Then we would both get what we want.
But perhaps deep down he knows that there isn't enough room. So now he's going to have to wait for the third car, and then we'll have to have a few seconds of stand off before one of us goes. This will cause him to wait and then he'll become even more frustrated.
Or he could realize that there is no chance for me to cross, so he feigns intense anger in order to not look stupid. But he does. Oh boy does he.
Pole Position
Because the second car is trying to be courteous, he isn't doing what he wants to do, which is get to his destination sooner. He assumes a second time that I want to get to my destination as soon as possible just like him. So he volunteers himself as a sacrifice so that I can go while he waits. Now he's frustrated that neither of us is going. He's been thwarted on two fronts.
There is another possibility. He may not even see the third car. Here, we might let #2 off the hook because he is operating in ignorance. He got frustrated, then realizes that there is third car, and now he waits patiently. But for me there is still a sticking point.
#2 still isn't interested in helping me out. If he did, he'd check for himself to see if there are any cars coming before waving at me to come forward. But he didn't. He just wants me to move because he's going to try and wrestle the title of "kindest driver at this specific moment in time" away from me.
He isn't sacrificing, he's forcing his desires onto me. And rather than assume that there is a good reason that I am not driving across the intersection, he assumes that I am a moron that cannot see that he is letting me go. I dare to defy his graciousness on the grounds that I am too dumb or too proud to accept and that makes him furious. He has wasted a kind deed on me.
How gracious indeed.
Checkered Flag
In essence, rather than do what the #2 car wanted to do, he decided to concede to what he has been conditioned to do. He thinks he's supposed to give the right of way to the other driver, and so he does. When the plan backfires, the preconditioned area of his brain becomes angry because he didn't complete the mission, his actual self is angry because he has suppressed what he wanted to do, and he is angry with me because I caused this inner tension. Ultimately, he is disgusted with himself and all of humanity.
So when you pull up to a stop sign, and you see me across the street, don't try and tell me what to do. You just take care of you and I'll take care of me. If you want to go, then go. If you don't you'll be filled with hate at all of mankind.
See how much you can screw up if you mess with me? Consequences man, consequences.
Why can't everyone stop being nice?
What do I mean? Well, I'll tell you. Just chill out!
Gentlemen Start Your Engines
I'm driving down the road. I come to stop sign. Across the street, at another stop sign, a second car pulls up and stops. We come to a complete rest simultaneously. We face each other. The second car wants to turn left and turns on his signal blinker. I want to go straight.
We look at each other.
He decides to act first. But he takes a defensive tact. He waves me over, giving me permission to cross the street. Ah, but there's a wrinkle in his plan. A third car is barreling down the road, poised to drive between us. The third car has no stop sign to contend with.
The second car continues to wave me over. This time angrily.
Rubbing Is Racing
Now, why is he doing this? Why is he becoming frustrated at ME. And I know what he's thinking. He thinks I'm some sort of idiot that can't follow instructions. See the real problem is that he should just go ahead and turn and quit worrying about me.
But he's still waving like a lunatic. I begin shaking my head. His anger is wasted as is his waving. What is going on in that overworked mind of his, I wonder?
One thought he may be having is that there is plenty of time for me to make it across. In which case he is forcing his driving philosophies onto me. What he should do is just go ahead and turn and let me wait. Then we would both get what we want.
But perhaps deep down he knows that there isn't enough room. So now he's going to have to wait for the third car, and then we'll have to have a few seconds of stand off before one of us goes. This will cause him to wait and then he'll become even more frustrated.
Or he could realize that there is no chance for me to cross, so he feigns intense anger in order to not look stupid. But he does. Oh boy does he.
Pole Position
Because the second car is trying to be courteous, he isn't doing what he wants to do, which is get to his destination sooner. He assumes a second time that I want to get to my destination as soon as possible just like him. So he volunteers himself as a sacrifice so that I can go while he waits. Now he's frustrated that neither of us is going. He's been thwarted on two fronts.
There is another possibility. He may not even see the third car. Here, we might let #2 off the hook because he is operating in ignorance. He got frustrated, then realizes that there is third car, and now he waits patiently. But for me there is still a sticking point.
#2 still isn't interested in helping me out. If he did, he'd check for himself to see if there are any cars coming before waving at me to come forward. But he didn't. He just wants me to move because he's going to try and wrestle the title of "kindest driver at this specific moment in time" away from me.
He isn't sacrificing, he's forcing his desires onto me. And rather than assume that there is a good reason that I am not driving across the intersection, he assumes that I am a moron that cannot see that he is letting me go. I dare to defy his graciousness on the grounds that I am too dumb or too proud to accept and that makes him furious. He has wasted a kind deed on me.
How gracious indeed.
Checkered Flag
In essence, rather than do what the #2 car wanted to do, he decided to concede to what he has been conditioned to do. He thinks he's supposed to give the right of way to the other driver, and so he does. When the plan backfires, the preconditioned area of his brain becomes angry because he didn't complete the mission, his actual self is angry because he has suppressed what he wanted to do, and he is angry with me because I caused this inner tension. Ultimately, he is disgusted with himself and all of humanity.
So when you pull up to a stop sign, and you see me across the street, don't try and tell me what to do. You just take care of you and I'll take care of me. If you want to go, then go. If you don't you'll be filled with hate at all of mankind.
See how much you can screw up if you mess with me? Consequences man, consequences.
The Next Post Promises To Be Better,
James
James
posted by James at 4:44 PM
5 Comments:
There's too much courtesy in the world.
But dude, if he got there second and is turning left then you have the right of way and legally he has to wait for you to go. Maybe that's why he is so frantically waving his arms.... I'm just saying...... Off the top, yo.
I saw you coming a mile away Williams.
I wrote in the decription that we come to a stop simultaneously. In this situation, no one has a clear stake on right of way.
I'm all over it.
But if he is turning left, I'm pretty sure you have the right of way, even if you arrive simultaneously. Also the fact that you stopped at the same time would seem in real world practice to be overridden by the apperance that he arrived second. In either case I think a better analogy or hypothetical siuation would be if you arrived second clearly, were turing left, and then someone who was going straight and had the right of way waved you through. This is especially frustrating remembering the car coming from the other direction. Or I guess I should have just said "yeah."
No no. I think a better analogy is where you shut up and I hate you.
That seems to work the best.
P.S. I hate your face.
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