Here is a video of a woman who goes absolutely ballistic at someone whom she thinks cut her off. She drives up and stops in front of him and threatens the other driver and swearing at him like a sailor while having a child, presumably her own, in the front seat of her minivan.
The person in the other car gives his version of what happened.
This lady was looking down at something, maybe on her phone or something else but there was a good car and a half length of free space in front of her so I changed lanes (she was completely still, not moving at all waiting for red light to change). As I made my turn I could hear the lady’s horn blaring. I looked in my rear view and I could see she was visibly upset. She continued to tail gate me and follow me closely. She then tried to either overtake me or get on the side of me to try and run me off the road. She did this a few times. I slowly drove the speed limit and made it to a shopping center nearby. At this point the lady continued to follow me and I knew she wasn’t going to let me go so I took out my phone and started recording her.
Whatever the merits of the case, what is it with people getting so angry when driving? In traffic, it happens sometimes that drivers inadvertently cut other people off. I have done it to others sometimes too and try to give an apology signal, which is the same as the ‘thank you’ signal consisting of a flat upturned palm facing forward.
It is no use getting mad unless the other driver is trying to deliberately run you off the road as if you are in a James Bond film where this seems to happen routinely. And even then, actually chasing after that person and trying to physically confront them is stupid, especially these days where anybody might be carrying a gun and not have either the restraint or training to be trusted to use it safely.
There’s an old joke about a little old lady giving another driver the finger, and being pulled over by a cop who tells her that he saw her behavior and the religious bumper stickers on her car, and had to conclude that she was driving a stolen vehicle.
Human apes and their misperceptions can be scary.
How is “cutting off in traffic” even an issue? Is this some kind of US cultural thing?
I’ve never, ever had this problem, nor do I know of anyone who have. But then I live in Scandinavia, and we’re not insane.
…that word “ballistic”. I do not think it means what people think it means.
And I do not think the word “lady” means what the “person in the other car” thinks it means!
You mean like dictionary people?
Definition of BALLISTIC
“extremely and usually suddenly excited, upset, or angry : wild [went ballistic]”
Wow.
I feel so sorry for that kid. That’s his mom. :/
I commute almost exclusively on two wheels, either motorcycle or, more frequently, bicycle, and I see this kind of thing pretty regularly. It’s actually amplified, IMO, by the idea that 1) they are much MUCH larger than me, and 2) they think they can easily get away with it (especially on my bicycle, since I’m unlikely to be able to catch them).
I should use my GoPro more regularly, but I usually just ride with the case on top of my helmet to make drivers think they are being filmed. It does seem to make a difference, although some people really just don’t care.