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What a ride! Daily I’m subjected to verbal abuse, middle finger salute, waving of fists and general threat of attack.
My crime? My deed of shame? Why these personal attacks?
I come to a full stop at “STOP” signs.
Are we not by law obliged to do so? Have I missed a memo? Perhaps I’m in a different WhatsApp group?
Driving in and around Plumstead and Wynberg – my hood – it is now the dangerous expectation to not stop but carry on through intersections as if the road traffic signs are mere suggestions, which many do not take heed of.
One finds it extremely difficult to describe the attitude and behaviour of adults when behind a steering wheel other than to use this term.
To have total disregard for your own life and those who accompany you – not to mention the others who share the road with you – is indeed foolish, to state it mildly. Being granted a driver’s licence – legally – has never been a right: It is a privilege which is being abused and the consequences are evident in the statistics. Look around you occasionally, read the newspapers, watch the media: It will drive you insane.
Yes, pun intended.
We bemoan the lack of tolerance towards others. We all cry out for mutual respect. But respect is earned and not handed out on a silver platter just because of who you are or who you think you are. If you have no respect for a simple road traffic sign in white letters on a bold red board planted dead ahead of you and furthermore painted on the road surface you’re passing, man, do you honestly expect me to respect you? I could continue at length on this subject. But, let me stop! See what I did there? South Africans? You gotta love us.
