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 Patience  and Patient:  The Chambers  Dictionary explains it respectively, as – able calmly to  

endure, not easily provoked or in a hurry.

The liberal use of the vehicle horn is one of the most common  causes of road rage. It  

is a usual sight to see and hear wordy combats over this  noise irritant. This is also likely to escalate and could end up in blows. For onlookers, it is open amusement, for those involved, an ego clash.

We have seen on numerous occasions, the amber gamblers on the road, the sudden spurt in

acceleration to beat, and blatantly disregard  the traffic lights, more often than not, the rider displaying a wolfish  triumphant smile. Time has assumed such   importance, for drivers, that in the few seconds of signal changeover, any number of foolhardy characters attempt and succeed in getting across the momentarily vacant  space. Many a time, a majority have been  stranded, due to their misjudgment, then their   looks of utter foolishness and comical grimaces evoke only contempt. That they are endangering lives, including their own, will never have crossed their minds.

 The two- wheeler riders, mounted on a variety of models, are most innovative in getting out

of a traffic jam or a vehicle gridlock. The footpaths or sidewalks are not sacrosanct, it is to be 

used as and when the roads are chock-a-block with vehicles. A familiar sight in cities, where the two wheeler count is spiraling upwards. They are the worst traffic offenders and the most aggressive. They follow the maxim, that rules are made to be broken. But their overbearing attitude, waters down to a faint meow, and they cut a ridiculous cringing sight  when hauled up for their gross violations. Patience on the part of the riders would have   spared them a fair amount of embarrassment and penal costs, not forgetting the loud curses heaped on them by the scattering  pedestrians.

Preethi and Neethi, two sisters, both in college, were speeding away on their two wheeler to the

bus station, as both  were going on a excursion. It was an hour past dawn; traffic was scanty, in

their hurry and eagerness, they cut a red light, misjudged the speed and distance of the vehicle

moving across, being driven too, at a fairly high clip. The collision occurred, resulting in

fatalities. Had they been patient?  A few seconds, the difference between life and death.

Interesting observations could be drawn from two persons conversing. Invariably, both want  

to be heard at the same time. The first few words invite interruptions, an interaction that 

could be completed in a few minutes, then continues and gets sidetracked. At times, decibel  

levels rise. Patience is again, needed. Similarly, in an interactive discussion, quite a few wait for  

a momentary pause from the speaker, to seize the opportunity for voicing of   individual views. Now it’s become a course in etiquette, The Art of Listening. How about  A Lesson in Patience? Second guessing is very common. A real dampener   whether chatting   or recounting jokes, it’s a spoiler. Is it one-upmanship?  Yes, it is. The saying works well  here – hold your tongue. As in movie theatres, where it is common to get a running commentary  on the scenes to unfold, till the spoilsport  is advised  in colourful terms  to ‘zip his lips’.

 The television talk shows are a great source of entertainment. A well conducted interview is a  

pleasure to hear and watch, the attention paid, the replies, generally not instant. The reverse is  

true in group discussions before an invited audience. Participants are drawn from different  

strata of society, proficient in their fields, including those from the political class. Here we find,  

the norm is to interrupt, impose their views, by usage of considerable lung power, and many a

time the moderator leads, by rudely cutting off the speaker in midsentence. It is then natural  

that watching leading figures and supposedly role models indulging in such crass  behaviour, the antics, and the daily, real life impatient soap operas, we witness and indulge in,  should come as no surprise. 

 Be it the railway station, bus stop, while alighting from a train, or as an aircraft taxies to a  

stop, passengers are in too much of a hurry to disembark.

The urge to be up, about and away is contagious, and like cattle, it is follow the leader.  

These are unnecessary painful add- ons in the path of a pleasant journey or trip. Do we need to  

rush, unless absolutely necessary? Despite the fast getaway, it is quite common to find,  

these dashers end up idling away their time, bellyaching all the while, their impatience and

rudeness on display. The ‘me first’ attitude.

 At home, why are parents at times, brusque with their children, why is it that the gentleness  

and the patience, not visible. There is more of short temperedness at home. There are  

innumerable write ups, being forwarded over the internet on the subject of interaction with  

children. Invariably, it is always the child’s gesture or an innocent question or remark that  

jerks the parent into reality.

 It has been said that leaders spend seventy percent of their time listening. How is it that  

 spectators are unusally quiet, while witnessing an absorbing game, like tennis, football or a  

limited overs cricket match? The tension and the silence is very palpable in crunch situations  

of the contest. Does this silence not come from within?  It indicates that it is possible to  

maintain ‘pin drop silence.‘

Is the lack or this deficiency, if we may call it that, in patience, all that bleak? Not so. We need  

to just look at our homemakers, the epitome of patience, very  hard working, efficient,  having  loads of patience, though many may disagree, their efforts are normally unacknowledged. Another sphere where, patience plays a large role, is in the kitchen. The cooks, chefs, well versed in their craft, if a mite hasty, the rebukes will never cease.  

Everything has to be just right, for which, patience plays a large role. We need to learn from them.

There is a distinct lack of self-discipline in ourselves. This needs to be inculcated at all 

levels, be it in at school, college, at work, at home, on the sports field, travelling,  

wherever one is.

 A course in Behaviourial Science is absolutely essential right through the educational  

phase, and should be made a compulsory subject in the syllabus. Organisations, could conduct  

Workshops and seminars on these aspects. Activate the visual and print media, to create  

extensive awareness. Use advertisement hoardings to get across messages, coin; new catchy

slogans. The onus lies in each individual to improve, bring about a transformation in our  

everyday lives. Life then, will definitely  change for the better. A saying goes ‘Charity

begins at  home,‘ so too does, kindness, courtesy and concern – all which come about  with a fair 

amount of patience. Just as we have  Mother’s  Day, Father’s Day, Valentine’s Day we could 

soon end up, having Patience Day.  

                                                        End 

The other concerns are the taxi violence that takes place between bus industries, or even between different taxi industries. This is sad to see how people die because of this.

Then there is the fact of the total lawless, relentless and arrogant taxi driver that do not consider the laws of the road and do just what they want and where they want to.

This is just one of the many incidents of taxi violence in South Africa. 

I was driving to work this morning and there it was in the paper headlines on the corners of every road, “Taxi-video from Bloemfontein makes world headlines” I thought wow, what on earth? Even though nothing in South Africa concerning the taxi industry or taxi’s could shock us anymore, I still wondered about this one! This taxi driver assaulted and ran a pedestrian over and got caught on a CCTV camera, and the video is been send over the world! Its headlines, in countries around the world! So here it is the hottest new video one you tube, have a look!

 http://joanofark.xomba.com/todays-most-viewed-article-taxi-road-rage-video-youtube-hit    

Image via Wikipedia

Riding on any highway or street is strictly a privilege and not a right. Which many drivers either refuses to comprehend, understand when confronted with rage of other drivers on the road. Road rage seems to e a “Trigger Reaction” concerning the state of mind of the people involve. Yes, merging into traffic creates the majority of the confrontation that takes place.

And, if you on the left side of the highways, interstates and trying to get off on the exit of the right side. Yes, you will find road blockers refusing to let you merge to that side. Sure kindness would work if people was working together. We constantly heard a tale that something was on the aggressive driver mind. When in most cases that’s a mere of the moment excuse to officer the scene official investigating te stupidity of the driver.

Who’s the bad driver? Great question, we all must answer. Is it the person in the right lane? Or the driver requesting the respect of other to let them lend in with traffic. Now, for those speeders living in the fast lane. These serious “Road Ragers” because they place many people life in danger then people really understand.

We all know we are surrounded by “Human Nature” people that triesto dictate rules instead of live by the regulations already in place for us to live accordingly. Maneuvering the highways is rough enough without fools making it worse. Respect, courtesy to one another could achieve the things we are tryin to accomplish. Which is getting to our designation.

This is the traffic there yesterday afternoon which was a Sunday,about 2:30 PM

Many time when I have been walking and attempting to cross the street in the cross walk,with the light in my favor drivers come flying up and almost run me over because they want to make a “right on red” turn.Not all intersections have walkers light,but they are basically useless anyway…..the majority of the drivers ignore them and turn anyway while they are shaking their heads at the person trying to cross the street as to say that they were in the wrong.

Specifically yesterday when I was walking I was crossing an intersection,the light was red,therefore I had the right of way and there was no cars at the light and then a car comes flying up,cutting me off from continuing my walk across the street and was litterly about 1 foot from me and turned right at the traffic light and there was another vehicle directly behind him that did the same thing.At the next intersection the same thing happened,with only one car.

I continued walking and was crossing across the opening to a parking lot and a SUV appeared to want to make a right turn into the lot,however he was kind enough to obey the Virginia traffic law that stated that pedestrians have the right of way and he stopped and I continued walking.A man driving a mini van pulls up behind him in that lane when there was no other traffic on the road and violently begins to blow his horn at him and yell at him while he is shaking his fist at him.Then he wildly steers into the left lane and goes around him where he continued to drive straight down the street.On that particular road that driver would have had to get in the left lane anyway in about another 50 feet because the right line would end.

Many other times I have been both walking and driving and I cannot believe the stress going on out there,and this is just a suburb,not the city.Drivers are blowing their horns,yelling,shaking their fist and other hand signals at other drivers and pedestrians.Everyday that I am out I see at least three fender benders a day,because of a person travelling too closely to the vehicle in front of them.

People need to calm down,don’t be in such a hurry,be less stressed out.Be kinder out there to those other people,both drivers and pedestrians trying to get somewhere too.And remember the people in the car are covered from the elements such as cold,heat,rain and snow,the pedestrians aren’t.,

Since the mid-1990s, we had a very quick solution to solve emotional problems, thanks to the performance of U.S. coach Gary Craig, who developed EFT fast lane of the above methods to increase personal energy. EFT is a technique of acupressure self-help system that balances the energy meridians of your body. The results may surprise and amaze you. You can learn EFT is 30 seconds, press and speak basic practice for ten minutes, and it’s yours for life. EFT is not only a powerful tool for managing anger, but for all types of stress. If you do not believe it, try it.

“Why have my husband mad when you run?

Not that everyone does, so it has its own reasons. Obviously, although its explosive rage is a habit, focus on something – and perhaps nothing to do with driving. Express anger in other drivers and pedestrians, through insults and cries and gestures, is almost a socially acceptable way to vent. Most likely a build up of anger that you feel safe to express – for example – the situation work … or it can stress the family … or objectives are not frustrated that the correct treatment for any reason.

But as we all know, but there are probably thinking – road rage can be physically dangerous to others and to himself, if he gets out of control. And there is no quick fix, even in the car. While driving, a person touching the EFT and speak with one hand the process several times to reduce the intensity of anger in the moment. This routine does not deflect attention from the road. You can also protect a driver stays on the road. (For people who know how to do EFT, a person who is first point of the crane karate chop with one hand against the steering wheel, instead of the fingers of one hand.)

Is everything there? “

At this point, yes. A few rounds of tapping usually calms people. But an angry person usually does not follow it. Playing all day for the level of anger is a ubiquitous self-help for mind and body. Anger is usually a health hazard. However, a permanent road Rager probably need help getting to the bottom of your to angry so often – and neutralize the cause. It is easy to get help from a shallow trainer of EFT to achieve this goal, in person or by phone or Skype. EFT Trainer smoothly and quickly lead the person to identify and relieve the memories of past situations of anger. Otherwise, these are outstanding, so the fuel is chaos in the future. A quick management, can ever care through EFT save lives – and it is your learning.

On the job-thank him. Although, it might have to be silently. When you in the car-thank him. Remember, we in danger riding on the road. When road rage seems to take over people emotions. God gives us opportunities that no friends, family or associates ever gives us.

Think about it. Who gives us chances after chances to get things right? Who inspires us , in the morning? And continue too in the night. Your God, My God, Our God, the one that accepts some might not believe he exist. When in reality many, of those that don’t seems to call upon him to assist them. God grace is better than ours could ever be.

To many times we burden you.

But, who’s better to turn too?

Who just listen?

And have us questioning ourselves.

As, the poem states above. God accepts us with undying love. When people places conditions on trying to love us.

Wikipedia estimates that there are about 254.4 million registered passenger vehicles on the road.  That does not include trailers that transport most goods, products and other utilities to the supermarkets, stores, and businesses.   But many of these vehicles are cars, trucks, ambulances, SUVs, jeeps, buses, and vans.

According to AAA, 90% of drivers see aggressive driving as a serious problem.  They mention drivers that intentionally cut in front of them.  Those that tailgate.  Many that honk their horns unnecessarily, displaying a lack of patience, or being down right rude.  Some make inappropriate gestures by showing a middle finger that drive some drivers up a wall. Others block lanes at intersections and may display inflammatory sayings on the bumpers of their vehicles that may fan flames of many.

It should be remembered that 1,500 people are killed annually because of such aggression.  There were instances when some irate drivers went so far as to fire guns, killing fellow drivers, that they have confronted on the highway. Much of this rage could be handled by a person’s attitude.  For one thing, we could give ourselves enough time when going places, so that we do not become part of the problem.  We have to try to understand more about the other driver and to see things the way he does.  Did he have a good night’s sleep?  Is he bothered by something?  Is he unhappy? Is he taking medication? Is he supposed to be driving? Is he drunk or ill?

We should avoid escalating the situation.  It is best not to make eye contact with such offenders.  That is right.  Look away and keep going if you can.  Seek help.  Dial 911, when you are able to.  Take deep breaths.  Relax.  Be sure to plan ahead.  The goal is to get to your destination safely.  To some extent, what makes the difference, is using common sense.   

Image via Wikipedia

There is now a direct causal link between bumper stickers placed on a driver’s vehicle, and their propensity to be engaged in a road rage incident. 

The American Automobile Association (AAA) found that there were 12,000 injuries and 200 fatalities due to road rage back in 1995.  By 2008, these troubling statistics had risen to 25,000 injuries and 370 fatalities but, AAA also note that many more road rage incidents simply go unreported.

A research team at Colorado State University lead by psychologist, William Szlemko performed a study focusing upon the increased number of vehicles on US roads.  Larger numbers of vehicles and drivers means less space, and as is common with many other species, competition for space leads to territoriality and enhanced aggressiveness.

Hundreds of volunteer drivers were questioned, both about their driving habits and the vehicles they drove, including the degree to which they had “customized” or “personalized” their ride.  Personalization included using furry dice hanging from the rear-view mirror and other dashboard and interior decoration together with placing bumper stickers, custom paint work and even what kind of stereo they had fitted.

The findings were clear: 16% of those who engaged in personalization of their ride were more prone to commit acts of road rage.

The researchers found that customization markers, such as bumper stickers were actually signs of territorial possession.  The greater the degree of personalization, the more territorial the driver and therefore, the greater the likelihood they would engage in aggressive and violent behavior.

It does not matter that the vehicle is itself moving, it is the relative encroachment or interference with driving activity, which acts as the cue for increasingly aggressive territorial behavorial responses from drivers.  Drivers are animals too, and they will actively protect space or a possession they have become attached too – those who use, for instance a bumper sticker, demonstrate a closer, personal link to their vehicle and are more prone to respond accordingly.

Szlemko observes there is an apparent disconnect between drivers who are in what they consider a “private space”, but are in fact within the “public” arena.  He further states that drivers are displaying aggressive behavior because they forget they are not in a private setting, but on public highways.  Perceived infractions don’t simply include driving too close or making intersecting maneuvers but also include, driving too fast, driving too slow, failing to use turn signals and simply looking at the other driver or their passengers.

With the correlation between bumper stickers and road rage so effectively demonstrated, the next time you feel the urge to tail gate in order to be able to read the “Peace” sticker on the back of the car in front, maybe you will be wise to check whether there is a gun rack in the back! 

Article contributed by Maverick Label