Friday, June 29, 2007

Heh. Male violence up close.

So, I'm on my way out last Tuesday and I'm in someone else's car, being driven v e r y slowly because she's careful and a bit nervous. We get overtaken (in a residential area, in a 30mph zone) by a really cross man in a sports car with a numberplate that appeared to be a rude word for genitalia, you know, when they try and make numbers look like letters(oh how jovial!). He then stops dead in front of us. Of course, we are going sooooo slowly that we can easily swerve round him and we do, but really, he's just pissed off at us and trying to show us that. So, being the impetuous person that I am, and rude, I reach over and smack the horn. Biiiiiig mistake. This fucks him off and he chases us.

Now, I'm not suggesting that this was in any way a chase of the kind that leaves devastation in it's wake; our heroine, the driver of the slow car, barely got above 20mph. But it was quite scary. At one point the man chasing us drew alongside and threatened us through the window with a beating. Then he dropped back and started pounding HIS horn and waving at me with closed fist. I turned right round in my seat and watched him through the back window, because I WON'T be intimidated. He appeared to be shouting "you are fucking dead" at me. He pointed and thumped his dashboard and windscreen. It was quite a display. Through all of this, his (female) passenger sat there looking bored. She's probably utterly sick of his behaviour. Anyway, my slightly bemused and mocking expression seemed to only rile him further and he had another go at getting alongside and screaming at us, at which point I made it obvious that not only were we not scared (we were), or impressed (we weren't), I was dialling my phone and calling the police. He sped off down a side street. We pressed on with our journey relieved but a little shaken.

So my point is this: he got really fucking pissed off and violent over the speed at which we were travelling. He got himself involved in the slowest ever street chase. He felt that it was appropriate to threaten us with beatings and death. He was bigger than us. He was male. And everything that he did, he did only once he had established that we were two women in the car. What a loser. What a scary, powerful, violent loser. My abiding thought that evening was "what about the woman in HIS car? Is she safe?" My guess is no.

8 comments:

Cruella said...

What an asshole. From inside a car, you have no idea what is going on inside another car. What if for instance you were driving slowly because you were transporting the ashes of a loved one, recently departed? How insensitive would it be for some random stranger to get angry about your speed? Or what if your car was broken and you were going to the garage as carefully as possible?

If you don't know what's going on you have to just wait and show some respect.

The Fabulous Kitty Glendower said...

I had an incident as well, just yesterday. Your story has given me the inspiration to write about it.

And it was just like yours, all about the violent male, pissed because he could not/can not just pave his way through everything.

Pippa said...

Oh Witchy you do make me laugh! Yes, waht a total wanker. Cruella, that's a really good piece of advice. It's something I haven't thought about. Thanks. Kitty, do write about it. I stewed all day over my incident and getting it written down made me feel so much better and so much more powerful. Of course, hearing from you women works wonders too!

Anonymous said...

I echo the wanker sentiment. Did said wanker ever think of HIS lack of logic in the situation?

He was in a hurry. Got annoyed because you were in his way. Then spent X amount of time trying to intimidate you, therefore wasting X amount of time. So much for the 'big hurry' theory.

I have also been in the road intimidation game. It was again, two women in the car. Very late at night, and no one else about. This was in the days before mobiles, so not much help available. I wasn't scared exactly, but considering various scenarios. Come to think of it, there have been a number of other occasions as well over the years. Always just one or two women in the car.

Tossers.

Pippa said...

As my favourite writer Claudia Gahlinger wrote: two women together are women alone", if we are without a male companion, we are considered unchaperoned and alone, therefore fair game. It is my intention to become so physically powerful that no man is ever able to intimidate me again.

The Fabulous Kitty Glendower said...

Pippa, thanks for validating my blog by reading and commenting. It feels good.

I finally finished my violent male in traffic story, glad it is out of my system. Thanks for the inspiration.

Ed said...

That's not violent, it's aggressive and short tempered.

Anonymous said...

What a wanker Pippa.
Ed: no one said physically violent. You can also have a violent storm but no one gets punched.