The human mind and what goes on in it....(or drop like a stone)....

even flow?even flow? Posts: 8,066
edited March 2007 in A Moving Train
Yesterday I was on the highway as were the rest of the population of Toronto. I and I assume the most of the other drivers seen thick black smoke up ahead from somewhere on the highway. Getting closer I noticed it was an 18-wheeler with the cab in a roaring inferno. This was in the express lanes and most of the traffic started merging early to get into the collectors. The closer I got, I could see that the truck had gotten to the shoulder but man was it on fire. No fire crew had arrived and I got a close up look at the action. So close that I could feel the heat through the window as I was about two lanes away from the truck as I passed by. So here is where the human mind comes into thinking or lack of. Nobody pulled over to not pass the truck. As a matter of fact the traffic was crawling along as we went by the truck. This thing could have exploded at any second and nobody seemed to care. I was thinking about this as I approached and especially when I was right beside it feeling the heat. BOOM! And I along with plenty of others could have been killed or scared for life.

Do we as humans just take that risk of driving on by because we are in a rush or late for an appointment? Why would nobody pull off and stay away?

I also wondered if I would have heard the explosion or just been killed if the rig exploded when I went by. But I am a bit of a sick individual when it comes to death.
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Comments

  • know1know1 Posts: 6,794
    Did you call for the fire department, police or ambulance?
    The only people we should try to get even with...
    ...are those who've helped us.

    Right 'round the corner could be bigger than ourselves.
  • soulsingingsoulsinging Posts: 13,202
    was it an oil rig? cos cars dont really explode. those american movies can be pretty misleading im sorry to inform you. so yeah, what good does stopping do? traffic backs up and then fire dept couldnt even get to the blaze. you keep moving cautiously and get on by.
  • even flow?even flow? Posts: 8,066
    know1 wrote:
    Did you call for the fire department, police or ambulance?


    No. Somebody else who owns a cell phone can take that up for an unlucky soul like me who dosen't own one.



    Soulman: The fact that we the drivers would not know what the rig was carrying should factor into it. It wasn't a gas truck but there could have been explosive stuff in the rig.
    You've changed your place in this world!
  • RockinInCanadaRockinInCanada Posts: 2,016
    was it an oil rig? cos cars dont really explode. those american movies can be pretty misleading im sorry to inform you. so yeah, what good does stopping do? traffic backs up and then fire dept couldnt even get to the blaze. you keep moving cautiously and get on by.

    Last summer I was heading east on a twinned highway going to Edmonton and in the west bound section I seen a pick-up truck on fire and there were vehicles parked some distance behind (I believe checking if anyone was hurt and that). As I was passing by on the other lane BOOM! damn truck exploded scared the hell out of me and I was in the other lane......could not believe how loud the explosion was.....
  • macgyver06macgyver06 Posts: 2,500
    people don't realize they are in glorified tin cans....

    a nice lady or dude that gets into a car and suddenly becomes invincible and thinks they can act like an asshole..

    asshole driving examples:

    1. Driving slow in the fast lane and giving dirty looks to those who have to pass you on the right as if they are the crazy ones.

    2. not understanding the right of way concept and stopping in the middle of an 80 mph road to be courteous and let others go in.

    3. U-Turns from the right lane of lanes turning left? this still puzzles me.

    4. Not understanding you are not the only one in traffic when a short light turns green and you start off going slooooooooooooooow.

    5. Never learning how to merge on to an interstate ( waiting till the last second, occasionally having to completely stop ON THE HIGHWAY! )

    arrest these people. the wrong ones are getting tickets.
  • JeanwahJeanwah Posts: 6,363
    even flow? wrote:
    Do we as humans just take that risk of driving on by because we are in a rush or late for an appointment? Why would nobody pull off and stay away?
    This makes me think of all those times I've pulled over for an ambulance or fire truck to get through, and most of the rest of the traffic doesn't even slow down. So the answer to your first question is No. It's amazing how people only can think of the little things when there is something much bigger going on that needs their attention.
  • RockinInCanadaRockinInCanada Posts: 2,016
    Jeanwah wrote:
    This makes me think of all those times I've pulled over for an ambulance or fire truck to get through, and most of the rest of the traffic doesn't even slow down. So the answer to your first question is No. It's amazing how people only can think of the little things when there is something much bigger going on that needs their attention.

    More along the line of thinking only about themselves...rathen than little things....what you have said above is a big pet peeve to me....very inconsiderate......
  • CollinCollin Posts: 4,931
    Jeanwah wrote:
    This makes me think of all those times I've pulled over for an ambulance or fire truck to get through, and most of the rest of the traffic doesn't even slow down. So the answer to your first question is No. It's amazing how people only can think of the little things when there is something much bigger going on that needs their attention.

    Actually when I was in the States I saw every driver pull over when there was an ambulance coming, and I also saw the exact same thing a few days later when a fire truck needed to pass. I remember thinking that it should be like that everywhere. Just yesterday I saw an idiot blocking the way for an ambulance here...
    THANK YOU, LOSTDAWG!


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  • normnorm Posts: 31,146
    Jeanwah wrote:
    This makes me think of all those times I've pulled over for an ambulance or fire truck to get through, and most of the rest of the traffic doesn't even slow down. So the answer to your first question is No. It's amazing how people only can think of the little things when there is something much bigger going on that needs their attention.

    There's a fire station near my house and it's at an intersection. There is a clearly marked area saying "KEEP CLEAR" so when the fire trucks have to go they are able to get out of the station and to the emergency. The number of people that sit and wait in that area is amazing. Even if in one lane somebody has stopped and kept that area clear someone in the other lane will stop in it. Sometimes I just want to get out of my car ask them WTF?!?!?! More and more people are paying less attention to their surroundings when they are in their cars and it's becoming more and more dangerous to drive. :(
  • onelongsongonelongsong Posts: 3,517
    macgyver06 wrote:
    people don't realize they are in glorified tin cans....

    a nice lady or dude that gets into a car and suddenly becomes invincible and thinks they can act like an asshole..

    asshole driving examples:

    1. Driving slow in the fast lane and giving dirty looks to those who have to pass you on the right as if they are the crazy ones.

    2. not understanding the right of way concept and stopping in the middle of an 80 mph road to be courteous and let others go in.

    3. U-Turns from the right lane of lanes turning left? this still puzzles me.

    4. Not understanding you are not the only one in traffic when a short light turns green and you start off going slooooooooooooooow.

    5. Never learning how to merge on to an interstate ( waiting till the last second, occasionally having to completely stop ON THE HIGHWAY! )

    arrest these people. the wrong ones are getting tickets.

    these are the 5 biggest causes of road rage.
  • hippiemomhippiemom Posts: 3,326
    macgyver06 wrote:
    people don't realize they are in glorified tin cans....

    a nice lady or dude that gets into a car and suddenly becomes invincible and thinks they can act like an asshole..

    asshole driving examples:

    1. Driving slow in the fast lane and giving dirty looks to those who have to pass you on the right as if they are the crazy ones.

    2. not understanding the right of way concept and stopping in the middle of an 80 mph road to be courteous and let others go in.

    3. U-Turns from the right lane of lanes turning left? this still puzzles me.

    4. Not understanding you are not the only one in traffic when a short light turns green and you start off going slooooooooooooooow.

    5. Never learning how to merge on to an interstate ( waiting till the last second, occasionally having to completely stop ON THE HIGHWAY! )

    arrest these people. the wrong ones are getting tickets.
    I'll be damned. We agree on something. These people are a menace to society.
    "Nothing in the world is more dangerous than sincere ignorance and conscientious stupidity." ~ MLK, 1963
  • I travel the DVP and the 401 a lot. The biggest thing that gets me is when the left lane is clogged, and lane(sss) to the right are practically empty. Nobody in the left makes use the empty lanes!!! Brutal. People don't pay attention to what's going on before there very eyes. All these fucking idiots think the left lane is supposed to be some magic special lane when I'm the one having to pass in the right lane because they think 100-120km/h is really fast for their little minds to take in all at once.. This is a daily phenomenon on 404 going north. I can advance 30-40 cars in the far right lane to get a head of that one fucker that is taking a huge lazy shit in their own head in the left lane. This happens 99% of the time I use this hwy. Ahead of this retarded loser guy is usually over 100 car length distance.

    I would be a cop just to bust left lane morons. Hint: If you;re in the left lane and not passing traffic (ie travelling the same speed or (shudder) slower!) you are a fucking idiot and should be euthanized...
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  • AhnimusAhnimus Posts: 10,560
    A few things.

    Cars can blow up. I think this is true if they have sufficient air in the gas tank. Spend enough time on metacafe.com and you'll see a few blow up.

    When I'm driving I'm really fixated on my destination. I have my destination in mind the whole drive and almost like I'm counting down to my arrival. If I came across an obstacle like this my first thought would be to find a way around it. If everyone else was driving passed, I'd probably just follow suit. And maybe later I'd wonder if it was such a smart move.

    That's the mind at work though, it has priorities and it can lose sight of some serious hazards. Of course all you free-will junkies could choose not to make that decision. Cause y'all are special super-powers. And for the "BLEEP" freaks could just teleport to their destination and don't need cars.

    Those people that are driving slow, or fast, or blocking traffic. They are just like everyone else. You may find yourself in a situation like that and wonder how you got there. You might find yourself cursing everyone else on the road. Those who are driving faster are assholes and those who are driving slower are idiots. The primary cause of roadrage is megalomania.
    I necessarily have the passion for writing this, and you have the passion for condemning me; both of us are equally fools, equally the toys of destiny. Your nature is to do harm, mine is to love truth, and to make it public in spite of you. - Voltaire
  • DerrickDerrick Posts: 475
    Toronto has an issue with drivers and immigrants but they aren't allowed to talk about it in the local media for PC reasons.

    Often someone will come from a foreign densely populated region where the community is made up such that they do not need a car. They will arrive in Canada and, all of a sudden, need a car. They will find someone who looks like them and pay them to take the drivers test for them in order to get their license.

    This has been previously documented in the Toronto Star and in the Markham paper....and both articles were heavily criticized for stirring racial issues, despite being heavily researched and presented in a non-degrading manner.

    As for the OP, most folks assume someone else has already called. AND for the ambulance thing...driving etiquette states that once the ambulence has passed you let back in anyone in front of you that has pulled over to maintain the same order as before.

    Unfortunately they don't teach that one in driving school anymore.
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