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Buddhism and the Art of Obeying Traffic Laws
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| Buddhism and the Art of Obeying Traffic Laws |
| 08.03.04 (6:43 am) [edit] |
The last couple of days I`ve been at my farthest school, which, if you`ll recall, is about an hour-long bike ride uphill towards Mt. Fuji. And I think I need to vent a little about the way people drive.
Like so many aspects of the Japanese culture, peoples` driving habits are an odd contradictory combination of two extremes. It`s quite similar to the social lifestyle of many here; lots of business men are incredibly calm, composed, and professional during business hours...but as soon as work ends, and they hit the bars and the clubs...pure mayham. I`ve been to a traditional Japanese pub, and it`s just nutty.
This dichotomy, as I`ve observed atop my old-fashioned one-speed bicycle, seems to also exist between the average driver at a stop-light, and the average driver while the car is in motion. Imagine, if you will, a conversation, in insufferably polite, calm, and complacent tones, between two men while waiting for a stop-light:
"How was work today?"
"Excellent, incredibly productive, and thank you for asking. How was yours?"
"Oh, productive as usual, thank [u]you[/u] for asking."
"Oh, not at all, I do insist."
And then the light turns green:
"DRIVE! FASTER! FASTER! FASTER! FASTER!"
"But the speed limit..."
"WHO CARES ABOUT THE SPEED LIMIT?! ALTHOUGH WE HAVE HUNDREDS OF RULES GOVERNING THE USE OF CHOPSTICKS, THE PLACEMENT OF SHOES, AND THE TAKING OF BATHS, WHICH WE ALWAYS STRICTLY ADHERE TO, REGULATIONS CONCERNING DRIVING ARE MERELY A SUGGESTION! DRIVE FASTER!"
"We have to get into that lane, but there`s a car..."
"THEN CUT HIM OFF! WE ARE A CULTURE PRIMARILY FOCUSED ON THE GROUP INSTEAD OF THE INDIVIDUAL SELF, BUT THAT DOESN`T APPLY WHEN WE`RE DRIVING!"
"Hey, a stop sign..."
"RUN IT!"
"Oh, look, a white guy on a bicycle..."
"RUN HIM DOWN! WE`VE BEEN IN SELF-IMPOSED EXILE UNTIL 150 YEARS AGO, AND IT`S TIME TO MAKE UP FOR IT BY SCARING THE CRAP OUT OF EVERY FOREIGNER WE SEE!"
At least, this is how I feel while I`m riding my bike.
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posted by: PresentMoment (reply)
post date: 08.03.04 (7:28 am)
hahahaha
posted by: Lara (reply)
post date: 08.05.04 (9:13 pm)
I feel that way in Surrey as well, haha!!! I've caught up on your entries but since you were visiting with your family it doesn't look as though I missed much. I'm glad you're having fun! Can't wait for the next entry.
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