Street Violence

Hi folks,

In the last fortnight I have witnessed two examples of street violence. One in North London and the other in the West Country (UK).

The London one was amazing. It was a physical fight between two motorists. This is the startling bit - one was a woman, mid thirties, who had a baby in her car and the other was a man about forty, with a woman passenger in his car.

The woman started it, by getting out and kicking the car of the man in front of her in a queue of traffic. Then the man got out, they argued and then they started hitting each other! Eventually the man's passenger managed to drag him off the other woman. The two drivers got back into their cars and they drove on when the traffic cleared a bit.

I have never seen a man hitting a woman in public before, but anyway it looked like he was losing the fight. Good grief.

The second incident was a different kind of violence. A young man was shouting into a cellphone and threatening someone. He was using the f*** word every second word and he shouting was so loud people across the street had stopped to stare at him. I couldn't understand how the other person didn't hang up on him.

Anyway, I think that us sensitive types worry too much about how we behave when most of us wouldn't say boo to a goose. Seeing these events in 3d is a real eye opener. There are some very angry and unhappy people out there!

Cheers, M -cool

PS - Anyone else witnessed this kind of stuff?

yesterday at work, i saw something that i called "extreme emotional abuse" towards a child. a grandfather was picking out an expensive frame and his grandchilren were running wild. he kept talking about how much money he was spending, blah, blah, blah while the children were just destroying the place. here comes the kicker! all at once, he looked at my co-worker, Eddie, and said to the children, "see that man right there, he is a very mean man and if you don't behave, he's going to hit you!".......that has happened there once before and i actually got into an argument (briefly) with the mother over her telling the child that we had a spanking room and that we would take her back to it and hit her hard!

not much street violence here, but i do frequently hear cellphone conversations, in the shop, where there are very inappropriate loud phrases and words used, and that can go on for several moments. it makes one most uncomfortable to have to "listen in" while someone else is being berated....but, why don't they hang up> fear of the caller?

Dallas, Texas is where the first road rage went really public. on central expressway...except they used guns and shot one another. i remember being afraid to drive on the expressway, while in town, because the violence was so bad there. and of course they got out of cars and fought and cut and slashed and all sorts of crap.

makes me wonder about the woman getting out of her car and leaving the baby there, so she could kick another person'a car?? great mom, huh?

Pat,

Yes, you've given a good example of 'old school' parenting.

I can't understand how some parents could have been so dumb not to realise that children are - impressionable! They seemed to treat children as if they were stones that needed to be smoothed out.

In many ways your story is more chilling than mine, as children carry these fears, sometimes for life.

Yuch.

Cheers, M

This world has gone crazy! I haven't personally experienced violence on the streets, probably because I don't go out much. But the nightly news is full of it. What always depresses and angers me is the drive-by shootings that invariable take the life of an innocent child!!

I don't get that woman kicking the other car??? Metal doesn't have feelings! If she was so thoughtless as to leave her child unprotected in the car, why didn't she just walk around and punch the guy in the face?? Personally, if the guy had done something unsafe or mean, I would have avoided him like the plague simply to keep my child safe! SHEEEEEESH!!

My friend and I have been having lunch at a restaurant when someone was having an argument on their cell. When I'd had enough, I rolled myself over to his table and asked him to take it outside, arguments upset me terribly! He gave me a dirty look but ended the conversation. The people that take that sort of abuse, on the phone no less, are in victim mode!!

Hi Tomi,

What specifically happened was that the cars were in a queue coming out of the supermarket. The first car with the guy in it must have braked suddenly and the car behind nearly hit it. I just saw the woman getting out and shouting at the guy and then kicking his car.

Yes, she actually did leave the baby in the car. I heard her shout at the guy, "I've got a baby in the car!"

Maybe the baby had fallen when she braked or something.

Cheers, M

Then she should have been taking care of the baby!! Some people's priorities! I swear!

Thank goodness no one got hurt.

We live in a violent society, London's not the best place to be if you're feeling sensitive, too many people and not enough trees!
I'm sorry you were so unnerved by those situations, some people are too in-touch with their animal nature.