Don't kill me car person.

As I was walking up 5^th Street by the library in downtown with BusTard a car tried to kill us.

“Watch well you're going pal!!” yelled BusTard with his fist in the air.

When I first stopped being part of the problem of congestion by getting rid of my car I often used to get annoyed at BusTard's aggressiveness towards drivers.

“Can't you say it nicer?” me raised by nuns on a sheltered hill.

But the last three or four years of walking and having to hesitate in crossing the street, because some asshole thinks it's perfectly fine to do a rolling stop to a person I'm beginning to get a little annoyed.

The Missing Persons of the infamous Walking in LA song

(MORE AFTER THE TRANSFER)

We often hear of pedestrians getting hit. Most of the time the story goes: Person A was driving and then out of no where a pedestrian Person B just popped up? We don't know what happened? Usually the pedestrian can't give their side of the story, because they are unconscious. It's usually an older person or a little kid, all of us in the middle have the ability to run and have learned to look out for car drivers, because they will kill you and think it's your fault. And so will everyone else.

Fifth street in downtown on the way towards Pershing Square if you're coming from the library it's uphill. I once saw an elderly woman with her walker get mad-dogged by a young woman in a car. It was horrible. Fifth is on a hill, the elderly woman was obviously physically disabled, but this did not stop the selfish car owner from staring at the woman as if this elderly woman was walking slow on purpose. The elderly woman was walking as fast as she could. In fact when she got to the other side she had to rest for a few minutes.

BusTard and I usually make a point to walk our elderly pedestrian citizens across the street. Sometimes we do it covertly, by just walking near them and looking at the revving cars, sometimes we ask. I think in general it's insane that we have to do this so an asshole won't kill a person, just so they can get to the mall before it closes.

In LA car drivers feel they can do whatever they want, because their car is bigger than you.

Watching and being cautious shouldn't be a one way action. Pedestrians have to watch for cars and bicycles and cyclists and drivers should watch out for pedestrians. Not watch out for us so you can cut us off with your vehicle, but to watch out because we have rights too.

The right to cross the street without wondering if you're going to kill us.

People who own cars have to get you can't rolling stop up to people like you do a stop sign.

Cars are 2000 pounds, if something happens to your brakes or your car malfunctions and your 2000 pound vehicle rolls up and hits a person you're going to be more than late, you're going to kill (or maim) someone. And we (pedestrians) don't know if you're going to stop.

Maybe you're crazy.

Maybe you are talking on your phone.

At eight miles per hour (BusTard's dad retired head of accident investigation in a state that's not California) you can KILL SOMEONE. Try standing in front of a car that isn't stopping.

How does it feel?

And another thing, car drivers stop the nasty looks when pedestrians look into your eyes.

We do that to make sure you see us, because if we judge wrong a we (pedestrian) get to die or be impaired for the rest of our life. It's not just the inconvenience of calling the insurance company.

Human beings don't have bumpers.

Share the road. Don't be an asshole.

by Browne Molyneux.

Comments

[Bert Green]

ALWAYS make eye contact with drivers when you cross the street, it makes them realize you are human. Otherwise you are simply meat.

[BusTard]

For the record, I have not raised my fist in the air since last I saw Motörhead—which was round 1988, and was sorely disappointed.

But that silliness aside, Bert's advice is that which L.A. would do well to imbibe. I have that very attitude, owing to my pop being a former Accident Investigator Chief for too many years as well as my understanding that a light bulb ain't a brick wall despite the citations handed out to folk for daring to challenge the latter even as others die while observing not the traffic but said bulbs.

On another note, I have to enquire why everyone ignores Terry Bozzio when dredging up that olde chestnut of a song fronted by the arousingly plastic-clad Dale, splendid as she usta be way back then. I understand that Terry did some wonderful percussive stuff way back when Frank was alive.

Then again, I imagine my lot in life remains but to glare at motorists what dare to get that half-second between traffic lights at the wrong moment in life: when I happen to be walking about.

[browne]

The reason people bring up Dale is because:

1. Dale was the lead singer.
2. Dale was the lead singer.
3. Dale was the lead singer.

Now I could show a picture of the drummer, but if I'm going to bring up a cliched song, what's the point of being all vague about picking the cliched song. I might as well be completely cliched about the whole matter and pick the lead singer. The face of the band, which is what I did. And she had cool hair.

In the future if people talk about The Bus Bench they will put pictures of me up and not you. Do you know why, because I as Dale have cool hair.