The Information Highway
Automobile highways are revealing. They fascinate. Many many cars with many many people, all of whom contribute to the character of the human race. Highways strip away class, race, gender, religion...
I claim all are equal on a highway, save perhaps for differences in make and/or model of car. The rules are the same for everybody. The consequences are the same.
I dare say to place a large group of people on a contraption that doesn't allow them to classify or exclude or snub is borderline mean.
Highways are great, because they reveal that human beings don't know what's around them, don't care, aren't interesting in letting anybody else know what their intentions are, don't understand the enviroment they're in and really believe that, I assume because they're American, they can't get hurt.
How can I conclude otherwise when so many people don't use directionals, don't turn their lights on, travel 49 MPH in the fast lane, straddle dividing lines for miles, or cross eight lanes of traffic at the last minute to pull into a toll booth that does the exact same thing as the one that was right in front of them?
And what set of variables has to line up in order for an 18 wheel trailer to end up stopped across an entire toll plaza, perpendicular to the toll booths?
Perhaps these good people are not aware that there are windows on every side of the car. Maybe they don't know that they can look through the windows from ANY direction.
In any case, I digress. Welcome to the circus...
I claim all are equal on a highway, save perhaps for differences in make and/or model of car. The rules are the same for everybody. The consequences are the same.
I dare say to place a large group of people on a contraption that doesn't allow them to classify or exclude or snub is borderline mean.
Highways are great, because they reveal that human beings don't know what's around them, don't care, aren't interesting in letting anybody else know what their intentions are, don't understand the enviroment they're in and really believe that, I assume because they're American, they can't get hurt.
How can I conclude otherwise when so many people don't use directionals, don't turn their lights on, travel 49 MPH in the fast lane, straddle dividing lines for miles, or cross eight lanes of traffic at the last minute to pull into a toll booth that does the exact same thing as the one that was right in front of them?
And what set of variables has to line up in order for an 18 wheel trailer to end up stopped across an entire toll plaza, perpendicular to the toll booths?
Perhaps these good people are not aware that there are windows on every side of the car. Maybe they don't know that they can look through the windows from ANY direction.
In any case, I digress. Welcome to the circus...
posted by Inhabitant at 22:29
1 Comments:
Right on.
I'm not sure it's an American thing, myself, the behavior you describe. I'm starting to think that it's just human not to think. Too damn much to ask.
I'm reminded of the story of Sarah the chimpanzee. In an experiment, she was given a choice between two different piles of candy behind a glass divider--one big pile, one little pile. She had to push a button to select the one she wanted, and the experimenters had rigged it so that if she pushed the button under the big pile, she would get the little pile instead.
No matter how many times she tried, she never managed to push the button under the little pile. It was one step too far in her ability to plan, and the big pile was always much too tempting.
True story.
Humans are absolutely no different.
Post a Comment
<< Home