A point was made in class that the driving on the mainland was a lot more difficult than driving on Oahu. More specifically, it was the class consensus which agreed that certain cities posed more of a challenge from a transit perspective than did others. I just wanted to inject something which only hit me after class. I used to live in California and, although I attended school in Westwood, frequented L.A. with my family a few times a month. I remember a lot of noise, smog, and traffic jams. However, I didn't find the drivers to be significantly more unruly than those in Hawaii; in fact, and I know I'm in the minority here, I'm beginning to think that Hawaii drivers are even worse because there are too many overprotective, over considerate drivers who disrupt the normal flow of traffic.This made me think of something...is it really possible to be overly considerate on the road? I think not. I feel that if more people on the Mainland were more concerned about being just as considerate, there wouldn't be so many senseless deaths every year. Also, I don't think that overprotective is an accurate word in terms of describing the driving of islanders. " Overprotective" sounds like we're a bunch of neurotic drivers only looking out for the well being of our vehicles. I think that a more appropriate word would be cautious or defensive, implying that we wish to promote safety on the road for everyone, rather than for selfish reasons alone.
My attitude while driving has gotten really bad within the last two years. It seems as though everyone else's on the road has changed too. Maybe its a trend Hawaii is going through. That article from the newspaper about the Aloha in driving has disappeared was really accurate. When ever I'm driving (which is a lot because I live in Mililani and come into town 7 days a week, sometimes twice a day) there are always other drivers on the road that don't seem to have any regard for the other drivers on the road, the over-confident driver phenomenon. Almost no one lets a person in a lane when they have their signal on, its easier to cut in front of someone that isn't paying attention than to wait until some person lets you in.You know something, I have to say that I agree with her 100% on that. Actually, here's a real life scenario from just the other day...I was in the car in somewhat congested traffic and with my driving companion (I won't say any names...) and had to get into the next lane in order to get off on an exit coming up. I was doing the slow up slow down ordeal, trying to move in when people were most distracted. After about 1 minute of this, my friend yells at me and says "Why don't you just put on your stinking blinker?" Well I tried to explain to them that it really makes no difference but they didn't seem to understand my philosophy...Anyway, I still have to say that I completely agree and empathize with her regarding all the uncompassionate drivers on the road.
In traffic psychology we observe and attempt to modify our locomotive behaviors. It is through the study of actions such as tailgating that allows us to begin to self-analyze our thoughts, feelings, and perceptions in traffic. by looking at tailgating as an illegal act, a morally wrong action and a crime punishable by spiritual repercussions, it broadens our scope of understanding. By looking at tailgating through different eyes and viewing them as paradigms we are able to better analyze behavior.Wow, this a pretty deep look into the aspect of tailgating rather than just the usual, "it's bad, but I can't help it when someone gets me mad." Ms. Aki's opinion is that tailgating is so much more than just the act itself. It is driven by unhealthy feelings of anger and hostility that is life threatening not only to yourself, but to the person that you're tailgating as well. She says that in order to realize the danger in tailgating, you must look at the issue through "different eyes", meaning that you must look at the issue in a critical way, analyzing everything. Once you see the moral wrongs of tailgating, you will be able to change your bad habits, and more importantly, fix the very issue that is causing you to act so angrily.
"Lead foot," that's what happens as soon as there is an opening in traffic or a clear road ahead of me. The foot has to go down! The rush of swatting past other cars, griping the turns, having the loose items in the car fly and hit the other side. It doesn't help that I have a laser detector in my car. It is like a passport to speed. It doesn't help that I also drive a sports car. The car that I have was meant to be driven fast, it says so in my car magazines, "corvettes are meant to be driven at 70+ m.p.h." It is funny that I actually feel that it is my purpose, my destiny to drive very quickly.Since I've gotten you're attention, I'll share my own story with you...Okay picture this, spring break, California, just me and my girlfriends. We decided to drive to Vegas on the infamous I-5; we all split the driving shift in 3 parts, each driving about 2 hours. I had the last driving shift and we could see Vegas in the hazy distance. We had planned to ride the famous Buffalo Bill roller coaster, which was just outside of Vegas. Okay so here's the scenario, we've all been driving for about 5-6 hours and we're exhausted. My 2 girlfriends are fast asleep and snoring beside me (thanks for keeping me company guys...) and I just want to get there as fast as possible. The old lead foot kicks in and I find myself maxing the car out at 110 miles an hour. Well, I was doing fine by myself for about 15 minutes till I noticed an oh so familiar blue light in my rearview mirror. I think stupidity hit me at that moment because I had to wake my friend up and ask her if I should pull over to the side of the road. Anyway, to make a long story short, I got a speeding ticket for 105 miles an hour! I appealed it like you wouldn't believe, but ended up having to pay $550. Well, it not only made a dent in my scarce account, but it taught me a valuable lesson as well. It's not worth it! What's the big deal in saving some time compared to money or even one's life? Nothing! As for Mr. Yucoco, I don't think that he's encountered anything serious enough to make him realize the dangers of speeding. Although it's a sad outlook, for most speeders, they don't feel the need to make a change in their driving behavior until something terrible happens to them.
It makes me very angry when I am driving home after school "in traffic" and people who have no common sense cross the intersection even though the lane on the other side is full and they end up blocking the intersection. When the light turns green for us they are in the middle of the intersection preventing us from passing. I wish it were legal to just get out of my car go over to the cars blocking the intersection and demolish it. I'm sure they know that it is illegal and it just slows everyone down but they still do it anyway. The most I could is sit in my car and mumble to myself how stupid these people are.Obviously, the annoyance is very real, you're dealing with idiots who in their selfish ways, are blocking off the intersection for everyone. Not only is it illegal (ever read the signs that say "Do not block the Intersection"?), but it creates traffic, and triggers emotions of anger. Once again, I have to say I agree with you and feel your anger on the subject. I have never committed such a heinous driving faux pas, and if I feel that I might not make it through the intersection, I make it a point to wait at the beginning of the intersection until it's clear. This is my statement for those of you that are guilty of this, "Be patient and wait your turn!!"
When I am in a car, I do a lot more than just drive...I would change radio stations ; it's not my fault. The radio stations in Hawaii sucks! What's with all those 10-minute ads every two songs? Ignorant DJ babbling redundant, stupid comments all the time...just want to wack them and tell them to shut up! You're are NOT funny, all right? You're NOT cool...might think you are...just because they let you--of all idiots in the world--on the airways. Oh...and play something decent for once! Okay, I finally got that out of my system.Is it irrelevant to the actual process of driving? Actually no, I find that blasting the radio when a good song comes on to be a very good mind release, especially late at night when you're driving alone or when you're stuck in traffic. So when there are no good songs on any station, FM and AM, this poses a major problem for me. Alas, the invention of car stereos equipped with CD players have been an absolute life-saver, but I still think that the radio stations here suck! This may sound like a stupid and minor problem, but in relation to traffic psychology, I think that it's important to have a pleasurable outlet, especially while you're driving in stressful conditions.
When one is a high school student, they often think that they are invincible, that nothing could ever hurt or harm them, that they are untouchable. But unfortunately reality hits many of these youths hard smack in the face, costing them injury or even death.To this I say, these are wise words coming from a college student who's been there before...so listen! I think that what Mr. Muranaka is trying to say is that kids will be kids; but maybe if you teach them at an early age the importance of safe driving, maybe some thoughts might stick in their hard-headed young brains. You think? I think that traffic psychology should be taught in schools along with mandatory drivers education. I should talk, my training in drivers education was my Mom taking me to the parking lot at KCC, where she would fall asleep in the passengers seat while I circled the lot a couple of hundred times. Surprisingly, I turned out to be a pretty decent driver except for a few minor incidents (see above). The sooner we implement these courses into our high school curriculum, the more we can resolve issues of road rage before they start.
The driving personality makeover should not only be thought of as an individual effort to improve one's driving habits and attitudes, but it should be seen as a reform program aimed at all drivers and pedestrians. In other words, it should be a team effort among the entire traffic community. You ask, "why should everybody do it? I'm a good driver already." Yeah, sure pal, and you were born on the planet of Krypton. Nobody is perfect.I think what he is trying to say is that no matter how good a driver you claim to be, if you actually took a step back and witnessed yourself through the eyes of a critical passenger, you would most definitely find some faults with your driving. Therefore, we must all work together and make a pact with our fellow neighbors that we will participate in driving personality makeovers to ensure a safer community for us all. I personally could benefit from a driving makeover although I'm a fairly sane driver most of the time. See, the thing is for everyone to be able to say proudly that "I am a consistently safe driver and am 100% proud of my driving skills!" Got that?
Wow, there is some serious traffic today. This sucks. Wait! I can't think like this. This is the way it is, there is nothing I can do about it. Just be patient. Hmm. Hmm.....I could squeeze by everybody and drive along the curb. No, I'll be patient and wait my turn. The light has turned green three times and I have moved three feet. When I settle down I'm going to live somewhere where there is no such thing as traffic. Yes. Pure freedom. Okay. Think peace, think patience, separate from the external environment. I am the only one who will choose how I will feel.This is really a good way of thinking...if you could only catch yourself every time a bad thought creeped into your head, you would be so much healthier mentally, instead of contaminating yourself with such stressful thoughts all the time. The only thing I think when I'm stuck in traffic is how much gas I'm wasting, I probably shouldn't have my A.C. on if I'm going to be stuck in traffic for another hour, and I wish I could at least sing out loud, but being that everyone on the road is crammed up against one another, people would see me and laugh. I also have to admit that I have a tendency for blaming other people that have nothing to do with the flow of traffic. See, my boyfriend Randy used to live in Kahaluu (I live in Kaimuki) and I would frequent his house fairly often. If there's no traffic it takes 30 minutes, but in traffic it can take up to 1 hour. I would be on the road having to deal with idiots on the road in traffic, and by the time I would get to his house, I would be so cranky and I'd pretty much blame him for the traffic that I had just endured. I know, I know, it's not his fault...I realized this each and every time I did it. Thank God, he lives in town now, that's all I have to say...
For me, interpreting tailgating behavior as forcing their will over other drivers seems accurate according to the self-witnessing reports. It is often the case that we make the assumption that we tailgate for "revenge" reasons. Maybe the car in the front is going too slow, or the car in the front just cut you off. Most of the time, the car that is being tailgated does get intimidated. And wa-lah! -- mission accomplished. Seriously though, tailgating does not help me any at all. It just lets me vent out my anger. And to top it all off, it never really makes me feel 100% better after I have done it.The topic of tailgating is always a hot one because most people will admit that they do it to others, but hate having it done to themselves. Well, at least I'm one of them...I find that if I'm in a rush and there's no way of getting past the guy that's going 40 miles an hour in the fast lane, I tend to tailgate them, willing them to go just a little faster. I don't know, it's like if I offend them enough by riding on their bumper, and try hard enough at E.S.P, they might possibly do what I want them to. Silly I know, but I can't help it! Like Ms. Okazaki says, I should analyze my feelings before and after tailgating someone and see if it actually helps me feel better in the slightest way. I'm pretty sure that I wouldn't feel any better, only adding to my stress.
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