I want to start this piece by simply saying that I don’t think police officers actually know why they’re there. I rarely see a police officer doing what he should be doing. He’s always either on the phone, smoking, chatting up some girl on the street or is half asleep. On those days, I’m usually following the law to the dot, but he’s too busy to notice (not that I’m doing it for him, but still). Just on the day when I decide to make that illegal u-turn does he decide to understand his job description and starts whistling at me and yelling because I’m not listening to him. Well Sorry, Mr. Officer. I have no respect for you. At all.
Then comes the new radar system. One day, driving 120 Km/hr in an 80 zone was totally ok. The next day, it wasn’t. Was that a joke? I am by no means saying that it’s ok to speed, but deciding to move the country from one extreme to the other overnight is just not okay. To make things worse, you don’t know that you got a ticket till a month later. That is to say that if you drive to work at the same speed every day, and that speed gets you a ticket, you now have 30 of them. I guess that’s a good way to maximize the government’s income.
What exactly are taxi drivers on? On those days when I don’t have a car, I can tolerate them because I actually need them. Even then though, a taxi driver who is going in the opposite direction and has 6 passengers in a 4-passenger car and is STILL honking at me drives me nuts. Then on the days when I’m driving, I REALLY want to strangle them. They honk whether there is a reason or not, they fluster me. Then they speed, almost rear-end me because they have to pass me. Seriously dude, chill out; I’m not gonna beat you to the passengers. I am no taxi driver. I just need to get to work.
At the end of the day though, do we really want things to be different? I mean aren’t these “crazy” people what makes Lebanon, the Lebanon that we so want to be in? And are we ever gonna be satisfied with the traffic laws? Do we even want them? When they enact laws, we cuss them out. When they don’t, well, we also cuss them out.
I like what I read very much. The thoughts are rich, and the subject is meaningful and worth writing a word or two about. The style is intriguing indeed as well :)
ReplyDeleteI just hope the traffic laws in Lebanon can be made to make life easier on the roads. Not that I expect to have those laws being implemented and respected as effectively as in United Arab Emirates where you rarely see an accident, but I hope to see practical improvements logistically, rather than feel the "heroic obsessions about traffic laws" of the people in charge :D Hehe
Cheers, to a drivable Lebanon :)
welcome to Lebanon!! LOL. I can understand and feel each word Dear writer!! i guess everyone do! especially about the taxi-drivers-thing!! hahaha they make me SO nervous!! yala waiting the next article!! hope it will be on the truck and bus drivers!! jounieh- trabloossss!! :P
ReplyDeleteYou forgot one more thing police officers do while watching people violate the traffic laws. They eat "shawarma"! For God's sake! Does it have to be shawarma!? This pisses me off, because I love shawarma and i can't eat it now due to my diet! Seriously speaking now, I think you can even bribe some police officers with a shawarma sandwich! And when they start eating it, they forget the whole world. They become oblivious to everything and everyone around them.
ReplyDeleteOther than that, I couldn't agree more. However, I'd rather people cuss about enacting laws. They'll soon learn to respect them, and then, perhaps we (the Lebanese) will have a chance of one day, one far away day, becoming a civilized country.
Fady, thank you so much for your comment :) Amen to laws that make people's lives easier!
ReplyDeleteRoy, thanks for subscribing to my blog :) the next article is on the way!
Yara, thanks for reminding me of that little detail ;) bribes are a whole different story. I'll make sure to cover them soon! I want me some Shawarma now! ;) and I agree 100% with your last point.