I was involved in a minor traffic accident on Monday.
It wasn't anything to write home about. I was motionless at a stop sign, waiting for a gap in the traffic large enough to turn right. There had been a few spots where I could have made it if I floored it and took a chance, but I was going to a cookout and wasn't in any hurry.
That was when the huge SUV banged into my back bumper. It wasn't a really big impact, just enough to dent my bumper very slightly and scrape the enamel off in a few spots. No one was hurt, and it turned out that the SUV didn't have any visible damage at all.
But it seemed to me that the driver of the SUV had deliberately run into me, a small tap as he became impatient when I refused to take any big chances and get out of his way. As I was shutting down the engine and turning on the hazard lights, I was thinking that I might just have a very angry fellow on my hands when I got out of the car. And, as most of the CCW license holders reading this will agree, I really didn't want to get into a fight.
Not that I was thinking of shooting anyone if I was attacked. I was armed with my usual complement of less-than-lethal weapons, so I was pretty confident that I could handle two or three enraged punks if they wanted to get physical. But, no matter how well trained or well prepared you are, there is always a risk involved when it comes down to violence. That is why, well armed though I was, I was a bit apprehensive.
It is at this point that we (finally!) get to the subject of this little essay.
Most people have met those blustering blowhards before, the guys who loudly proclaim how much they just love a good fight. Most of the time they are just blowing smoke because they never actually get involved in anything physical, but there are a few that surely love tying one on at a local bar before getting down to a fistfight in the parking lot later on.
I can't help but wonder what is wrong with those guys. They think it's fun to take chances and seek out situations that might result in serious injury? Maybe they just carefully choose their opponents so they always go up against someone so much smaller and weaker that they simply never get hurt too badly. It would certainly be a rude awakening if they ever pick on someone who decides to claw their eyes out of their head, or something else that would be permanent.
Anyway, I'll do just about anything to avoid a fight because I know it can be become deadly serious in a heartbeat. Hey, I like all my organs right where they are! Including my eyes.
To get back to my fender-bender, it turned out to be nothing to worry about. The driver of the other car had just seen one of those small gaps in the traffic and, assuming that I was going to floor it, had simply jumped his SUV forward without waiting for me to actually move. Even the cop who arrived to write out the accident report took it in stride when I followed Ohio law and informed him that I was a CCW license holder who was currently armed. He didn't take possession of my weapon or pat me down or anything, which is always a possibility.
It might seem a bit boring to you, dear reader, to go through this entire little opus only to find out that nothing at all exciting happened. But I'm really glad that the cookout was the high point of my day.
Comments (4)
I put it that "I don't like getting into fights; I'm allergic to pain".
Posted by Firehand | May 31, 2007 6:49 AM
Posted on May 31, 2007 06:49
Hey, a GOOD accident story! Glad to hear you weren't hurt or got into a fight. SUV guy is an idiot, of course. Assuming what you were going to do.
I see that all the time, by the way. People assuming I'll be out of their way before they get there, so they don't even slow down. Scary.
Take care.
Posted by Fodder | May 31, 2007 8:16 PM
Posted on May 31, 2007 20:16
Is it a legal requirement in the USA to call the police over such a minor accident?
Here I think you need to call them if someone was injured or the damage is above a certain sum (something like $2000), otherwise it's not strictly necessary. Although I suppose you can still do it if you want.
Posted by Nicholas | June 1, 2007 3:28 PM
Posted on June 1, 2007 15:28
Is it a legal requirement in the USA to call the police over such a minor accident?
Remember that the USA is about the size of Europe. Except for a few of the little ones, most of our states are about the size of a whole country in Europe. In fact, a fair number of them are significantly larger than the average European country.
Although there are Federal laws which blanket the entire country, mostly we try to let each individual state decide what is best.
So, to finally answer your question, it is the law in my state of Ohio to call the police for every traffic accident, but that might not be the law somewhere else.
James
Posted by James R. Rummel | June 1, 2007 9:39 PM
Posted on June 1, 2007 21:39