[geeks] what is the world coming to...

[Eric Dittman]

> > Correct. <rainman> I'm an excellent driver. </rainman> Sometimes,
> > however, people misinterpret whats going on. This happens a lot in the
> > car-pedestrian interaction, because pedestrians arent necessarily
> > looking the 1/4-1/2 mile down the road. Allow me to share an anecdote:
> >
> > So I'm cruising north on the 163 in san diego doing about 75 in the #1
> > lane. I pass on my right a dark blue bmw 850csi. i had actually never
> > seen one on the road before, and it was a new model. so i slowed down to
> > ogle his car. really ogle. i took my time about it. anyhow, fast forward
> > like 3 minutes, and i needed to change lanes. somehow (i didnt pay
> > attention at the time), i wind up in front of of mister blue beemer. im
> > not sure how he decided i had cut him off, but he did. (san diegans will
> > know which stretch of road im referring to, the 163-15 merge north of
> > kearny mesa, its a little, uh, "complex"). so the guy swerves into the
> > #1 lane, jams on the gas, gets in the #2 lane in front of me, and STOMPS
> > on the brake. i had no idea what was going on, and i appropriately
> > avoided into the #1 lane. the guy then moves into the #1 lane, and
> > stomps on the brake _again_. this time i swerve onto the shoulder and a
> > little into the #2 lane, and actually have the opportunity to see the
> > guy staring into his rearview mirror to INTENTIONALLY hit me -- he
> > swerved to match my avoidance tactics. i managed to avoid enough that we
> > literally -stopped- in the middle of a very busy freeway (had i not
> > stopped, i would have hit him). i cautiously accelerated after he did,
> > and he did the same thing, again. this time not as fast though.
> 
> Experiences like this are all too common in New York.  The proper
> procedure is to come up on his rear bumper very slowly, and when you're
> touching, punch it.

I think that would have compounded Alex's problem.  The guy
had, for some reason, decided that someone admiring his car
was bad, so he tried to hit Alex (in a brand new BMW, no
less, so the guy was either so rich he didn't care or had
no sense).  Tapping his bumper probably would have caused
him to follow Alex to his destination and them ram his
car after he parked.
-- 
Eric Dittman
dittman at dittman.net
Check out the DEC Enthusiasts Club at http://www.dittman.net/