dave said:
Yeah Well none of its good. I disaprove of death on principle. THo
for some people I make an exeption.
Ahh well what can you do? THe new regime of lower speed limits.. safer
cars and dumber drivers is inevitably going to up the rates of
vulnerable road users killed. Can;t be helped I am afraid. And
possibly not a subject to start me on.
Dave
Well, I'LL start you on it!
Lower speed limits = good thing
'Safer' cars - safer for whom? Cars have never been 'safe'. The risks have just been controllable, up to now. As selfishness and '****ing someone over in traffic' becomes an outlet for all the petty and increasing frustrations that cars and the individualistic consumer lifestyle engender, then we're all going to pay the price for rampaging egos (and rank carelessness) with a tonne and a half (increasingly more) of metal and 70 hp at their disposal.
It's actually a satanic plot, or as good a facsimilie of one as makes no difference: a piece of technology where you are only responsible in the most perfunctory and legalistic way for the welfare of those around you (whom you will never get to know, and can, if the fancy takes you, demonise them to your heart's content). You can't hear them scream through the bodywork and stereo, and can ruin their lives in an instant.
Dumber drivers - the whole of society is autistically turning in on its individual selves, cocooned in little bubbles of technology. For many people (most dangerously, those prone to psychopathology anyway), this offers a perfect excuse to hype up and amplify the perceived danger, curl up into a little echidna-like ball, pointing the spines, denying and fearing all outside. The collective, spontaneous, HUMAN reaction to someone elses distress or danger (tsunami appeals notwithstanding - maybe this is a displaced generosity we should be giving to those around us?) is starting to atrophy, as our social sense is blunted by (bureaucratic) process, media propaganda and the possession of material objects. We can't share anyone else's joy, either, and so gulp Prozac, violate children and spouses (and strangers on bikes), anything to displace the anomie of this Russian doll nest of concrete and steel cages we've built for ourselves. 'Dumb' in the sense of the human wisdom necessary to live harmoniously with our neighbors (the 'precautionary principle' - if in doubt of damage able to be caused, don't do it)? You bet! Not dumb in the sense of reaction to stimuli. We all think we're fighter pilots: better behind the wheel than we actually are.
FUUUUCCCCKKK!!!!!! Ride a bike! Breathe some clean air! Get out of the fluorescent-light battery cage and TALK TO PEOPLE!
M "just come back from tall forests where even the BIRDS talk to you" H
