ronpaulitician
08-03-2007, 03:04 PM
I'm sure I'm not the first to think of this, but I couldn't find any articles on the following (not exactly sure what to look for):
I've often thought that our behavior on the road fairly accurately reflects our behavior off the road.
We've put a couple of rules in place (green = go, red = stop) which most of us abide by, but there are some rules that we sometimes choose to ignore (full second stop = slow down to almost a full stop; speed limit X = I can go X+10).
There are some unwritten rules (leftmost lane is the fast lane; if two lanes merge into one, we merge on a one-by-one basis) that most of us follow. You get the occasional jerks that think they're the most important than everyone else, that'll push their way around you when you're merging, or jerks that will zip through traffic from lane to lane as if it's a computer game, but mostly, I find that drivers follow most of the unwritten rules.
I'm thinking traffic is a good metaphor for human society as a whole, highlighting the ineffectiveness of government (traffic jams, potholes, dubiously constructed intersections), and highlighting that people are more than willing to do the right thing even when there aren't any specific rules laid out for them.
Any comments/suggestions?
I've often thought that our behavior on the road fairly accurately reflects our behavior off the road.
We've put a couple of rules in place (green = go, red = stop) which most of us abide by, but there are some rules that we sometimes choose to ignore (full second stop = slow down to almost a full stop; speed limit X = I can go X+10).
There are some unwritten rules (leftmost lane is the fast lane; if two lanes merge into one, we merge on a one-by-one basis) that most of us follow. You get the occasional jerks that think they're the most important than everyone else, that'll push their way around you when you're merging, or jerks that will zip through traffic from lane to lane as if it's a computer game, but mostly, I find that drivers follow most of the unwritten rules.
I'm thinking traffic is a good metaphor for human society as a whole, highlighting the ineffectiveness of government (traffic jams, potholes, dubiously constructed intersections), and highlighting that people are more than willing to do the right thing even when there aren't any specific rules laid out for them.
Any comments/suggestions?