His crate saved him....

All I have to say is THANK GOODNESS for Wesley's crate. Wesley often rides in the car with me for short trips. Picking kids up, dropping kids off etc.

Just yesterday I was in my Tahoe, going to pick up my son from my mother-in-law. Wesley rides in his crate, in the front seat, with it buckled in. The only reason I allow it in front is because my truck has the seat sensors that leaves the passenger air bag off if there's someone/thing too light in it.

So anyway, Wesley was in front and my 15 month old daughter was strapped in her seat in back. We were at a stop light with two vehichles in front of us. The light turned green and we all proceeded to go. Got to about 40mph and the person in front just stopped dead cold in the middle of the lane. The next car slammed his brakes, and I SLAMMED mine, as to not completely demolish the two cars in front of me. It was obvious to me at that point that the person in the middle of us had done something to piss off the person in front, which was why he did it. As I was laying on my horn, I abruptly passed the two on the shoulder of the road and the middle got behind me, and the person that was in front now was behind us. I was FURIOUS!!!!!! :x Wesley had been tossed in his crate and my daughter of course had her head fly forward. At that point I knew that at the next stoplight I got to, I was going to get out of my truck and rip the guy a new one.... (in passing I had seen that it was a man maybe in his 40's with his wife, who had an evil looking face).

So now I finally get the red I had been praying for and the guy that had stopped abruptly was behind me. I parked my truck at the light and got out and approached his window. (About 15 other vehicles at the light as well). And while I was approaching, realized he had children in his vehicle too. 2005 Honda Accord maybe. So he rolled down his window and I proceeded to yell at him for what he did and that we have children in the car too and how DARE he possibly cause I three car pile up. And he said, "I knew what I was doing." And I said, "Obviously you didn't because I almost slammed into the both of you!" And he said, "Well he was blocking the road." And I said, "I don't give a d*mn what transpired with you and him before that but you cannot stop in the middle of the ******* road! I should just back into your freaking car right now!" Just lots of foulness by me at that point. Anyway, I got my point across and he obviously felt like an a** I hope.

URGH! It was just awful! All I could think of was thank God this wasn't one of those times where I had Wesley on my lap. Which I haven't done in weeks but will surely never do again. You never know what in the heck is going on in people's heads. I'm just so glad I had him not only in his crate, but had it seatbelted in! Thankfully he was fine and my baby was fine, but PLEASE use this as a reminder about how important it is to have safety in your vehicles with kids and pups. I don't care how much your dogs whine, you need to make sure they are safe first. You wouldn't put your baby on your lap because they whine in the car would you? Nope. And trust me, I know the pain of a whining puppy in the car. Wesley did it all the time too. But I just kept pushing the crate and having his toys and blankets in there and now he knows that when he's in his car crate, that we're going somewhere.

Thanks for listening! I'm glad I don't have to regret any second of that experience!

I certainly understand your anger and I too am glad Wesley and your child are ok.

Just be careful though, this day and age to approach another driver in anger could get you shot! Here anyway!

Nean

I dont know how many times I have wanted to do that, but I was always worried they would have a gun!

There was one time I had a gal in a mini van cross 2 lanes of traffic to make a right, right in front of me. We all honked at her as we had to slam on our breaks to keep from hitting her, her response was to flip all of us off. Well she, her husband and their 2 kids were walking in front of us. I politely said to her, "Do you realize the lesson you just taught your children not to mention the possiblity of killing them, when you almost caused a 5 car pile up, and then proceeded to flip all of us off?"... her mouth was hanging open as I said "Have a pleasant dinner" and went in to meet my sister.

What happened to those days of us sharing the road... Now you feel like its everyman for themselves. I go out of my way to be a courteous driver now. Maybe its just to many people on the road. I dont know. I just say a prayer that when I leave the house in the morning that I make it back safely home to my babies.

Well, I live in an upper middle class area and it was right near home. As well as it was an older couple in a newer Honda Accord, so no fear here with that. As well as the fact I saw they had kids too. Now had it been any other sort of driver or vehicle (which I will not speak of as to not come across bad) then I would've just left it was it was. But that was the first time I've ever gotten out and done such a thing and never had it been so needed and so well deserved. Man did it feel good.

I'm always a courteous driver on the road as well. I let everyone in, etc. And I've had my issues where people have ticked me off on the road too, and also thought mentally how I'd just love to slam my brakes, but it sure takes and IDIOT to actually do that, especially with their own children in the back seat! He deserved every bit that came to him, as well as the humiliation of the other drivers at the light watching him get yelled at by a little 25 year old female in a truck. What a riot.

Well if he had managed to cause an accident hopefully with all the witnesses to his erratic driving the officers would have been able to do him for wreckless endangerment, as well as a child endangerment charges for each kid in the car. We are coming up with a lot of that when people do stupid things when they have their kids in the car with them. ...Bout time is all I have to say.

Thank God everyone is alright! I have a strap that goes on the LATCH thing in my back seat that attaches to Brady's harness. He likes it, and it makes him safe because you never know. He'll usually just fall asleep. Crazy people on the road. Just goes to show you it can happen anywhere at anytime. And that guys didn't know what he was doing. He probably didn't even notice that you were behind him and/or your distance to him. I always try to look before I break to see how close someone is behind me. Well, I'm glad you, your daughter and you little pup are okay.

Oh Wesley's Mom.....Please, please don't approach a car like that again. People are just plain crazy. About 2 years ago here, two WOMEN, had this same type of altercation, both professionals on their way home from work. One was a Bank VP. One got out of her car at a red light, and walked up to the widow of the other, and the one in the car shot her in the face!. One is dead and the other in prison. Affluence, children in the car, etc. doesn't matter with road rage. The one that was the shooter said she feared for her life. Anyway, you just never know what people will do. Glad you are all o.k.

Totally agree, Shay.
I realize it was a scarey incident but you may want to call 9-1-1 next time to report an agressive driver. Thankfully all ended well.


Nancy
Teddy and sweet, lttle Katydid.

I too agree Shay... money, class, car..... so what.... some of the "best" can be some of the craziest!!!!!

Nean

Wow, I think this is a piece of culture shock, really...I'm just bowled over by what you did, but also the very matter of fact way you mention that you were pretty certain they didn't have a gun! That seems totally foreign to me- we have had shootings aplenty (this is Belfast, after all ) but I doubt that many- if any- were inspired by road rage.. :yikes :yikes And it's still not part of our general culture to carry guns in the car along with the defroster and wipers.

..and thank goodness you DID have Wesley in the crate.

Lisa,

Welcome to America!!! In many states of the US, concealed carry is legal! and many people carry!! I'm not a gun owner, or a gun lover by any means, however, it's part of our rights as Americans and therefore I support the right. I just always try to keep in mind when I get angry and want to get in their faces that they very well may be carrying and they very well may be crazy.. no matter what part of town I'm in.

Nean

Oh boy ya'll...That is so true. When this happened here in Birmingham, both of these women lived in affluent areas of town. One was driving a Lexus and the other a Beamer. It was really a sad story. It happened about 6:00 in the evening, in the winter, so it was already dark. The woman that was killed was cut off by the shooter at her exit off the interstate. The woman that was killed managed to get off behind the shooter at her exit and got out of her car at the light. She walked up to her window and that's when she was shot in the face. The shooter was really pitiful on the news at trail. She said she thought she was going to be shot, and I really believe she thought that. People are just nuts. These woman both were in their early 40's and both had a husband and children at home. These were not kids, but mature woman with professional jobs. Neither woman would be classified as what we call in the South " A Gun Toting Redneck". You can never be too safe in the good ole USA. There are a lot of people who carry guns in their cars. Every time my husband starts to go off while driving, I have to remind him that they may have a gun.

Are we married to the same guy??

Nean

Aren't they all the same when it comes to that? :roll: Must be the testosterone. I get mad too, but as a woman, I think of the consequences.

Haha! My husband is definitely a crazy guy in the car when someone p*sses him off. I'm always the one cooling him down because he can be such a hot head.

With all the factors that played into my situation... ie older people in 40's, kids in back, nice car, 15 cars around, and getting lipped off to by a small 25 year old woman, not much else was going to happen there. Looked obvious that his wife was peeved at him too. I'm sure he got another earful. People that purposely slam their brakes like that, don't deserve to care for children.... I can only imagine what he's like at home...

I had never thought of the idea that the person in the other car may have a gun! I have much more road rage than my boyfriend. I'm always honking at people for annoying me (that's what the horn is there for right?) and my boyfriend has probably never used the horn. One day I was totally shocked when I got flicked off. The guy was driving like an ass and I honked at him and he stuck his hand out the window and gave me the finger. He continued to drive like a nut. Where are the cops when these things happen? And I didn't know that it was okay to carry and concealed weapon. I thought that if you had it in your car, it needed to be in the trunk locked up. Maybe it's okay in other states, but not here in Illinois. I'm not sure about that. I don't follow stuff like that. I suppose I should. I admit I sometimes do my breaks kinda like that, but I make sure the person isn't all that close and I only tap it for a second, and I only do it if the person is tailgating me.

Taken from Wikipedia.... we are the only two states that don't allow a legal concealed weapon.

As of 2006, two states (Wisconsin and Illinois) and the nation's capital have no provision for legal concealed-carry privileges. There are currently movements in each of these states to pass concealed-carry laws.

From Gunlawguide.com....

While in a vehicle, however, all firearms must be unloaded and cased even if one possesses a state identification card. State law prohibits the open or concealed carry of firearms in public settings.

My Wesley said:

...
With all the factors that played into my situation... ie older people in 40's, kids in back, nice car, 15 cars around, and getting lipped off to by a small 25 year old woman, not much else was going to happen there. Looked obvious that his wife was peeved at him too. I'm sure he got another earful. People that purposely slam their brakes like that, don't deserve to care for children.... I can only imagine what he's like at home...

Click to expand...

I'm so glad no one got hurt, and wesley was in his crate--that was a wise choice to put him there. I know you must've been scared to death when you had to slam your brakes on suddenly. That is a frightening heartpounding feeling.

Where i live, you could be in serious trouble if a cop had seen you leave your car in the street and approach another driver, and there is a possibility they would call Childrens Services because you left a child alone in your car under such circumstances. The police here ( southern CA) would consider that to be wreckless behavior. The guy could've rammed you or your car with his car. You just never know what somebody is going to do.

However, i understand that you would not have done it if you hadn't judged it to be safe, and apparently nothing like that happens where you are, so it was reasonable to guess that it wouldn't be dangerous.

Around here, people from all walks of life have deliberately hurt other people with their cars, and police have seen all kinds of people use their cars and driving to express their anger at other drivers, including people wiht kids in the car with them, and elderly people. Leaving a child in a car alone in traffic, even if the traffic was stopped for a light, would be seriously frowned on, and walking up to another driver in anger would be seen as a dangerous provocation, asking for trouble.

As you imply, it's a matter of context. If this is something that never happens where you are, then it has a different meaning. Where it does and has happened, it has become a part of the culture and it affects how people think.

I get really mad sometimes in driving, and i have many times chosen not to honk at someone who did something very maddening (endangering, or hostile, or oblivious to others) because i know that anyone who would behave like that in the first place is already dangerous or has a dangerous attitude, and people shoot each other around here occasionally on the road. And the person has already used their car in a potentially dangerous harmful way so that's a red flag right there. One must seriously consider that if they are provoked, they could use their car, impulsively, to crash into me. It happens.

Earlier this year, near Newport Beach CA, a very affluent place, there were some people walking through the parking lot of a large shopping center, having just come from eating at a restaurant, they were chatting and walking, when someone came driving fast through the parking lot, in a new BMW. One of the men walking raised up his hand and yelled at the guy to slow down. the guy turned around and ran the pedestrian down, throwing him about 500 feet, criticaly injuring him. His defense was that someone had thrown a soda can at his car and he was afraid for his safety, he claimed self defense. He hit a parked Mercedes before he managed to hit the pedestrian, the point being, this was an upscale area and both perp and victim were well off.

click
http://www.ocregister.com/ocregister/news/atoz/article_963729.php

A few years ago, in my neighborhood, which is a low crime trendy beach area, a 70 year old man in his car was blocking the way of a younger man in a car, on a narrow side street, so the man behind couldn't pass. The younger man had his son with him. The man honked his horn and yelled for the old man to let him get by or to move forward so traffic could proceed.

Then, the younger driver passed the old guy and they yelled insults at each other. Then the older guy followed the younger guy in his car for a couple of blocks, they turned onto my street, then they got to a corner where i walk zack every night, and they both stopped. The younger guy, a large powerfully built furniture mover, got out of his car and the older guy then ran him down with his car, and the victim was pinned under the car and was drug a block, a couple of witnesses were chasing after the guy screaming at him to stop, but he cursed at them. he ran over the guy twice, back and forth. He was a retired actor. His neighbors described him as a really nice guy, he had no record of any trouble. He pled self defense but his overall behavior led to a second degree murder conviction and 16 years in prison, the maximum.

When things like that happen right on your street, you remember them. There was a little shrine of candles and pictures where the car finally stopped, just down the hill. such sad feeling to see it.

One time i was getting gas at a gas station in Ladera Heights. then i noticed two cars on the opposite side of the gas pumps from me and the two drivers were angry at each other, i don't know how it started, they were glaring at each other with hate in their eyes and one of them got out of his car and started walking toward the other guy, that guy was white, the other guy was black. I was kind of in between them, but separated by gas pumps and closer to the white guy. I saw a girl about 11 in the back seat of the white guy's car, she looked terrified and near tears. without thinking, i started saying to the guy, "be cool man, you don't want this, you dont' need this, be cool..." and at first he was oblivious to me, he was so focused on that other guy, who was just as focused on him, it was so intense, but i kept saying it, in a really soft voice, "...just be cool, you don't want this..." and then he heard me, and he looked at me, and then he looked at his daughter, and then he got back in the car and drove off, burning rubber in an expression of his anger.

I guess some places, it's part of the culture.

here's a list i just found that somebody made of road rage incidents in different places in the US. The incident Shay reported is among them.

http://www.monicazech.com/archives/2006/07/stop_the_rage_i.php

That's crazy. It's hard to believe how crazy some people are. I was very fortunate in my situation. Even in the first part that I didn't end up hitting him. I should've left it at that, but I think I let my hot-headedness get to me. Thankfully things turned out fine when I approached him as well. He wasn't mad at me for it. You could tell he was obviously still mad with what the other driver did to him. In any event, I know I shouldn't have done it but I did, and since it turned out well, I'm glad I did. And now after reading these stories, I'm 100% sure I'm not doing it again! Crazy people in this world. URGH!

Wesleys mom, I am so glad to hear you say you will not allow others to make you react. I know from experience it is hard. My pet peeve is folks who are in a traffic jam because of a closed lane, but instead of politely making their way over to the open lane, they speed up the closed lane all the way to the closure and then try to make their way in line ahead of all others who have waited their turn. I have had to really watch myself and not react... well.. I do all I can to not let them in front of me.. but other than that, I don't react. It's just not safe... and you are correct... people are just nuts!

By the way, I don't have a picture to show right now, but our new Quincy (12 weeks old) looks like he could be Wesley's twin!!!! or close to it!!!

Nean