How to really avoid an accident

The other day I was coming home from work, doing 55MPH on the frontage
road. I saw a car coming down the side street that connects to the
frontage road, but knowing he has a stop sign I did nothing more than
"prepare" for him to be an idiot.

Good thing, as idiots are plentiful.

Idiot doesn't bother to stop, and obviously never looked to his left
to see me ( can't miss me driving with my brights on at dusk... ). He
pulls out right in front of me. There is no way for me to stop. The
question is whether I am going to t-bone him, drive off the road and
**** up my car, or figure out how to wake him up. He obviously still
does not see me, as he is VERY SLOWLY moving out of my way.

So, in the spirit of sharing the pain, I decide to drive at him head
on. I figure if I have to suffer, he should as well. The interesting
thing is that now he sees me. In fact, he is now scared ****less, as
he finds his accelerator and hits it so hard he drives off the road.

I calmly move back into my lane, and honk once as I drive by the
darwin-waiting-to-happen fool.

So, the next time someone pulls out in front of you, make sure to
drive AT THEM, as it wakes them up much faster.

DTJ wrote:

....
> So, in the spirit of sharing the pain, I decide to drive at him head
> on. I figure if I have to suffer, he should as well. The interesting
> thing is that now he sees me. In fact, he is now scared ****less, as
> he finds his accelerator and hits it so hard he drives off the road.
>
> I calmly move back into my lane, and honk once as I drive by the
> darwin-waiting-to-happen fool.
>
> So, the next time someone pulls out in front of you, make sure to
> drive AT THEM, as it wakes them up much faster.

That would have been pleasant -- my 1980 Datsun was totaled under similar
circumstances. I honked, I tried to evade, but the bitch just kept
accelerating and hit me square in the passenger door and knocked me into the
next lane.

--
Cheers,
Bev
-------------------------------------------------------------------
"We need to cut more slack for the stupid; after all, somebody has
to populate the lower part of the bell curve." -- Dennis (evil)

In article >,
The Real Bev > wrote:

> DTJ wrote:
>
> ...
> > So, in the spirit of sharing the pain, I decide to drive at him head
> > on. I figure if I have to suffer, he should as well. The interesting
> > thing is that now he sees me. In fact, he is now scared ****less, as
> > he finds his accelerator and hits it so hard he drives off the road.
> >
> > I calmly move back into my lane, and honk once as I drive by the
> > darwin-waiting-to-happen fool.
> >
> > So, the next time someone pulls out in front of you, make sure to
> > drive AT THEM, as it wakes them up much faster.
>
> That would have been pleasant -- my 1980 Datsun was totaled under similar
> circumstances. I honked, I tried to evade, but the bitch just kept
> accelerating and hit me square in the passenger door and knocked me into the
> next lane.

ya know , I had a similar experience with my 42 y.o. Karmann Ghia cabrio.
but my motorcycle training saved the day. I did have to hit the air-horns
and change lanes but we survived.
get air horns and drive with the lights on. be seen.
and have good luck. or else.
>
g adds.
MONEY , what a concept

"DTJ" > wrote in message
...
> The other day I was coming home from work, doing 55MPH on the frontage
> road. I saw a car coming down the side street that connects to the
> frontage road, but knowing he has a stop sign I did nothing more than
> "prepare" for him to be an idiot.
>
> Good thing, as idiots are plentiful.
>
> Idiot doesn't bother to stop, and obviously never looked to his left
> to see me ( can't miss me driving with my brights on at dusk... ). He
> pulls out right in front of me. There is no way for me to stop. The
> question is whether I am going to t-bone him, drive off the road and
> **** up my car, or figure out how to wake him up. He obviously still
> does not see me, as he is VERY SLOWLY moving out of my way.
>
> So, in the spirit of sharing the pain, I decide to drive at him head
> on. I figure if I have to suffer, he should as well. The interesting
> thing is that now he sees me. In fact, he is now scared ****less, as
> he finds his accelerator and hits it so hard he drives off the road.
>
> I calmly move back into my lane, and honk once as I drive by the
> darwin-waiting-to-happen fool.
>
> So, the next time someone pulls out in front of you, make sure to
> drive AT THEM, as it wakes them up much faster.

Um, no. Not only is that an at fault collision on YOUR part (or the part of
anyone else that chooses to drive right at them) if a collision occurs, it's
also an opportunity to be charged with vehicular assault since the intent
was there to actually hit them.

In your situation above, the fact that you caused someone to drive off the
road should, at the minimum, be considered as reckless driving.

At the very least, honking the horn and applying the brakes--before the
anticipated point of collision and not afterwards--is a perfectly viable
option. That way, even if a collision does occur, the slowing down and
braking action shows some sort of intent to avoid the collision, again,
IMHO.

On Fri, 3 Jun 2005 22:27:05 -0700, "Daniel W. Rouse Jr."
> wrote:

>> The other day I was coming home from work, doing 55MPH on the frontage
>> road. I saw a car coming down the side street that connects to the
>> frontage road, but knowing he has a stop sign I did nothing more than
>> "prepare" for him to be an idiot.
>>
>> Good thing, as idiots are plentiful.
>>
>> Idiot doesn't bother to stop, and obviously never looked to his left
>> to see me ( can't miss me driving with my brights on at dusk... ). He
>> pulls out right in front of me. There is no way for me to stop. The
>> question is whether I am going to t-bone him, drive off the road and
>> **** up my car, or figure out how to wake him up. He obviously still
>> does not see me, as he is VERY SLOWLY moving out of my way.
>>
>> So, in the spirit of sharing the pain, I decide to drive at him head
>> on. I figure if I have to suffer, he should as well. The interesting
>> thing is that now he sees me. In fact, he is now scared ****less, as
>> he finds his accelerator and hits it so hard he drives off the road.
>>
>> I calmly move back into my lane, and honk once as I drive by the
>> darwin-waiting-to-happen fool.
>>
>> So, the next time someone pulls out in front of you, make sure to
>> drive AT THEM, as it wakes them up much faster.
>
>Um, no. Not only is that an at fault collision on YOUR part (or the part of
>anyone else that chooses to drive right at them) if a collision occurs, it's
>also an opportunity to be charged with vehicular assault since the intent
>was there to actually hit them.

You miss the point. If you actually read what I did, you will see
that my actions caused an accident to be avoided that otherwise would
not have been.

>In your situation above, the fact that you caused someone to drive off the
>road should, at the minimum, be considered as reckless driving.

No, his was reckless driving, my driving saved me and my vehicle. I
am not the one who recklessly drove out in front of someone doing
55MPH.

>At the very least, honking the horn and applying the brakes--before the
>anticipated point of collision and not afterwards--is a perfectly viable
>option. That way, even if a collision does occur, the slowing down and
>braking action shows some sort of intent to avoid the collision, again,
>IMHO.

IMO you could be charged with failure to avoid an accident. In my
case, I avoided one. How? By forcing the other driver to wake up.

On Sun, 05 Jun 2005 17:45:50 -0500, DTJ > wrote:

>On Fri, 3 Jun 2005 22:27:05 -0700, "Daniel W. Rouse Jr."
> wrote:
>
>>> The other day I was coming home from work, doing 55MPH on the frontage
>>> road. I saw a car coming down the side street that connects to the
>>> frontage road, but knowing he has a stop sign I did nothing more than
>>> "prepare" for him to be an idiot.
>>>
>>> Good thing, as idiots are plentiful.
>>>
>>> Idiot doesn't bother to stop, and obviously never looked to his left
>>> to see me ( can't miss me driving with my brights on at dusk... ). He
>>> pulls out right in front of me. There is no way for me to stop. The
>>> question is whether I am going to t-bone him, drive off the road and
>>> **** up my car, or figure out how to wake him up. He obviously still
>>> does not see me, as he is VERY SLOWLY moving out of my way.
>>>
>>> So, in the spirit of sharing the pain, I decide to drive at him head
>>> on. I figure if I have to suffer, he should as well. The interesting
>>> thing is that now he sees me. In fact, he is now scared ****less, as
>>> he finds his accelerator and hits it so hard he drives off the road.
>>>
>>> I calmly move back into my lane, and honk once as I drive by the
>>> darwin-waiting-to-happen fool.
>>>
>>> So, the next time someone pulls out in front of you, make sure to
>>> drive AT THEM, as it wakes them up much faster.
>>
>>Um, no. Not only is that an at fault collision on YOUR part (or the part of
>>anyone else that chooses to drive right at them) if a collision occurs, it's
>>also an opportunity to be charged with vehicular assault since the intent
>>was there to actually hit them.
>
>You miss the point. If you actually read what I did, you will see
>that my actions caused an accident to be avoided that otherwise would
>not have been.
>

If you had braked and laid on the horn, an accident could have been
avoided and the other car would not have been put at any FURTHER risk
by you driving him off the road.

I hope you were careful to note that there were no pedestrians on the
side of the road and that he could safely maneuver off of it.

Had you tried to avoid it by braking, if there had been an accident
anyway, it would have been less serious.

Both you AND the idiot who pulled out in front of you shouldn't be
behind the wheel.

You're the reason everyone else's insurance rates are so high and we
have sub-moronic speed limits.

>>In your situation above, the fact that you caused someone to drive off the
>>road should, at the minimum, be considered as reckless driving.
>
>No, his was reckless driving, my driving saved me and my vehicle. I
>am not the one who recklessly drove out in front of someone doing
>55MPH.
>
>>At the very least, honking the horn and applying the brakes--before the
>>anticipated point of collision and not afterwards--is a perfectly viable
>>option. That way, even if a collision does occur, the slowing down and
>>braking action shows some sort of intent to avoid the collision, again,
>>IMHO.
>
>IMO you could be charged with failure to avoid an accident. In my
>case, I avoided one. How? By forcing the other driver to wake up.

L Sternn wrote:

>
> If you had braked and laid on the horn, an accident could have been
> avoided and the other car would not have been put at any FURTHER risk
> by you driving him off the road.
>


I'm pretty sure he braked--it is an instinctive reaction.

What he refused to do was swerve into oncoming traffic or
into the ditch. He did the right thing. Better to T-bone the
idiot that gets into your way than put yourself in danger
by driving off the road or risk a head on collision.

On Sun, 05 Jun 2005 06:22:14 GMT, 223rem > wrote:

>L Sternn wrote:
>
>>
>> If you had braked and laid on the horn, an accident could have been
>> avoided and the other car would not have been put at any FURTHER risk
>> by you driving him off the road.
>>
>
>
>I'm pretty sure he braked--it is an instinctive reaction.
>

If he braked, and used his horn before he passed, then he did
everything he could to avoid the accident.

Except of course for his initial "preparation". Something tipped him
off that this car might blow the stop sign.

He didn't say exactly what he did to "prepare", but am I to assume
that included braking or at least slowing down too?

>What he refused to do was swerve into oncoming traffic or
>into the ditch. He did the right thing. Better to T-bone the
>idiot that gets into your way than put yourself in danger
>by driving off the road or risk a head on collision.

On Sat, 04 Jun 2005 18:16:55 -0700, L Sternn > wrote:

>>>> The other day I was coming home from work, doing 55MPH on the frontage
>>>> road. I saw a car coming down the side street that connects to the
>>>> frontage road, but knowing he has a stop sign I did nothing more than
>>>> "prepare" for him to be an idiot.
>>>>
>>>> Good thing, as idiots are plentiful.
>>>>
>>>> Idiot doesn't bother to stop, and obviously never looked to his left
>>>> to see me ( can't miss me driving with my brights on at dusk... ). He
>>>> pulls out right in front of me. There is no way for me to stop. The
>>>> question is whether I am going to t-bone him, drive off the road and
>>>> **** up my car, or figure out how to wake him up. He obviously still
>>>> does not see me, as he is VERY SLOWLY moving out of my way.
>>>>
>>>> So, in the spirit of sharing the pain, I decide to drive at him head
>>>> on. I figure if I have to suffer, he should as well. The interesting
>>>> thing is that now he sees me. In fact, he is now scared ****less, as
>>>> he finds his accelerator and hits it so hard he drives off the road.
>>>>
>>>> I calmly move back into my lane, and honk once as I drive by the
>>>> darwin-waiting-to-happen fool.
>>>>
>>>> So, the next time someone pulls out in front of you, make sure to
>>>> drive AT THEM, as it wakes them up much faster.
>>>
>>>Um, no. Not only is that an at fault collision on YOUR part (or the part of
>>>anyone else that chooses to drive right at them) if a collision occurs, it's
>>>also an opportunity to be charged with vehicular assault since the intent
>>>was there to actually hit them.
>>
>>You miss the point. If you actually read what I did, you will see
>>that my actions caused an accident to be avoided that otherwise would
>>not have been.
>>
>
>If you had braked and laid on the horn, an accident could have been
>avoided and the other car would not have been put at any FURTHER risk
>by you driving him off the road.

Sorry, you are not even close to knowing **** about this. Try reading
for comprehension. The fact is that hitting the brakes was NOT GOING
TO AVOID ANYTHING. The only reason an accident did not happen is that
fear for his life caused the idiot to MOVE OUT OF THE WAY.

>I hope you were careful to note that there were no pedestrians on the
>side of the road and that he could safely maneuver off of it.

Nope. I don't need to note anything, as I am always aware of
everything when I drive.

>Had you tried to avoid it by braking, if there had been an accident
>anyway, it would have been less serious.

Less serious than no accident? See, as explained in plain English
above, braking was not, could not, avoid the accident. The asshole
was moving too slow. There was no way to stop. At the point of
impact I would have been doing more than 30 to 40 MPH IME. However,
due to what I'll admit was an incredibly intelligent decision on my
part, asshole hit his gas pedal and got the **** out of the way.

>Both you AND the idiot who pulled out in front of you shouldn't be
>behind the wheel.

50% right is an F.

>You're the reason everyone else's insurance rates are so high and we
>have sub-moronic speed limits.

Yeah, there you go. Someone uses their brain to avoid an accident an
you think it was wrong. Next time how about if we all act like you
and just slam into the other driver?

>>>In your situation above, the fact that you caused someone to drive off the
>>>road should, at the minimum, be considered as reckless driving.
>>
>>No, his was reckless driving, my driving saved me and my vehicle. I
>>am not the one who recklessly drove out in front of someone doing
>>55MPH.
>>
>>>At the very least, honking the horn and applying the brakes--before the
>>>anticipated point of collision and not afterwards--is a perfectly viable
>>>option. That way, even if a collision does occur, the slowing down and
>>>braking action shows some sort of intent to avoid the collision, again,
>>>IMHO.
>>
>>IMO you could be charged with failure to avoid an accident. In my
>>case, I avoided one. How? By forcing the other driver to wake up.

On Tue, 07 Jun 2005 19:40:34 -0500, DTJ > wrote:

>On Sat, 04 Jun 2005 18:16:55 -0700, L Sternn > wrote:
>

>>
>>If you had braked and laid on the horn, an accident could have been
>>avoided and the other car would not have been put at any FURTHER risk
>>by you driving him off the road.
>
>Sorry, you are not even close to knowing **** about this. Try reading
>for comprehension.

I suggest you do the same.


>The fact is that hitting the brakes was NOT GOING
>TO AVOID ANYTHING. The only reason an accident did not happen is that
>fear for his life caused the idiot to MOVE OUT OF THE WAY.
>
>>I hope you were careful to note that there were no pedestrians on the
>>side of the road and that he could safely maneuver off of it.
>
>Nope. I don't need to note anything, as I am always aware of
>everything when I drive.
>
>>Had you tried to avoid it by braking, if there had been an accident
>>anyway, it would have been less serious.
>
>Less serious than no accident? See, as explained in plain English
>above, braking was not, could not, avoid the accident.

Try reading for comprehension.

If you didn't hit him by not braking, you wouldn't have hit him by
braking.


>The asshole
>was moving too slow. There was no way to stop.

Except that you anticipated the potential danger he presented


>At the point of
>impact I would have been doing more than 30 to 40 MPH IME.

Then either your reaction time or your brakes must suck.

>However,
>due to what I'll admit was an incredibly intelligent decision on my
>part, asshole hit his gas pedal and got the **** out of the way.
>

Which he would have done if you had "prepared" for his wrong behavior.

>>Both you AND the idiot who pulled out in front of you shouldn't be
>>behind the wheel.
>
>50% right is an F.

A grade you're probably very familiar with.

100% right is an A - a grade I'm very familiar with.

>
>>You're the reason everyone else's insurance rates are so high and we
>>have sub-moronic speed limits.
>
>Yeah, there you go. Someone uses their brain to avoid an accident an
>you think it was wrong.

You were lucky. An accident was avoided despite your refusal to drive
safely.


> Next time how about if we all act like you
>and just slam into the other driver?

That's not what I would have done.

Next time, how about not pushing your luck and doing everything in you
power to avoid the accident?

You won't always be this lucky.

>
>>>>In your situation above, the fact that you caused someone to drive off the
>>>>road should, at the minimum, be considered as reckless driving.
>>>
>>>No, his was reckless driving, my driving saved me and my vehicle. I
>>>am not the one who recklessly drove out in front of someone doing
>>>55MPH.
>>>
>>>>At the very least, honking the horn and applying the brakes--before the
>>>>anticipated point of collision and not afterwards--is a perfectly viable
>>>>option. That way, even if a collision does occur, the slowing down and
>>>>braking action shows some sort of intent to avoid the collision, again,
>>>>IMHO.
>>>
>>>IMO you could be charged with failure to avoid an accident. In my
>>>case, I avoided one. How? By forcing the other driver to wake up.