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2007-04-01 Home Front: WoT
State Dept. Warns: Be Careful Overseas
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Posted by Dave D. 2007-04-01 00:00|| || Front Page|| [2 views since 2007-05-07]  Top

#1 That one about Haiti is a riot.

I don't know if this is Condi or Negroponte, but someone gets praise from me for this.
Posted by Mike N. 2007-04-01 00:43||   2007-04-01 00:43|| Front Page Top

#2 ... In the oil-rich Gulf nation of Qatar, the population of fewer than 900,000 racks up an astounding 70,000 traffic accidents per year, its report says.

I blame PWI (Praying While Driving).

drivers rarely use lanes designated for turns, often cut across multiple lanes of traffic, rarely look before changing lanes, do not yield the right of way when merging, commonly run through red lights without stopping

I saw this in Armenia. Sitting in a taxi at a thoroughly red light for more than fifteen seconds, I witnessed another vehicle in a slower lane barrel through the intersection at top speed. If I hadn’t had a previous understanding of the residual Soviet gangsterism still prevailing, I would have been stunned.

A Philippine girlfriend of mine once pointed to the striped white line separating the lanes we were driving in and said: "In Manila, those lines are for decoration only."
Posted by Zenster">Zenster  2007-04-01 01:37||   2007-04-01 01:37|| Front Page Top

#3 The first time I drove in Rome, I discovered that the white lines were there only for decoration. Six cars would line up abreast at a stoplight - on a four-lane highway. The French will run red lights, cut across two or three lanes of traffic to make a left turn, and pass you on the left when you're riding the center line. The Germans just drive FAST.
Posted by Old Patriot">Old Patriot  2007-04-01 14:13|| http://oldpatriot.blogspot.com/]">[http://oldpatriot.blogspot.com/]  2007-04-01 14:13|| Front Page Top

#4 And it's open season on pedestrians in Boston. I think they give bounties, IIRC.
Posted by Alaska Paul">Alaska Paul  2007-04-01 16:52||   2007-04-01 16:52|| Front Page Top

#5 Here in Mobile, Red Lights are "Advisory" (many wrecks by light runners, Some slow down, others just ignore, I had to slam on the brakes to miss one just last week)
Posted by Redneck Jim 2007-04-01 19:59||   2007-04-01 19:59|| Front Page Top

#6 Tucson is #3 in the nation for red light running. I almost hate to post this because of what seems to happens to #3s around here.
Posted by Jackal">Jackal  2007-04-01 20:11|| http://home.earthlink.net/~sleepyjackal/index.html]">[http://home.earthlink.net/~sleepyjackal/index.html]  2007-04-01 20:11|| Front Page Top

#7 The Germans drive exactly as fast as their vehicle and ability allow, no faster, and only foreigners break the law. I've seen the results of German parallel parking: about 5" between their car and the bumpers of the cars fore and aft. As for some other nations: when we moved to Brussels, I was told to expect one car accident a year. On the 366th day we were there, I was in an accident that totalled my car. I felt pretty lucky at that -- there were frequent crashes at the corner of our quiet side street. It seems in Brussels everyone except me was too important to learn and obey the traffic laws.

I remember when Mr. Wife came back from that factory start-up in Egypt. He's always been a very good driver, but now... we were driving downtown one evening, and he suddenly turned the wrong way on a one-way street -- clearly marked -- and when I protested, his comment was, "What's wrong? I've got my lights on!" The drivers in Cairo (presumably it's the same throughout the Arab world), drive wherever they please, and at night turn off their lights "to save the battery". *sigh* Mr. Wife did return to American driving habits with time, and later even recovered from five years of driving on the Autobahn. ;-)
Posted by trailing wife 2007-04-01 22:51||   2007-04-01 22:51|| Front Page Top

17:11 Old Patriot
23:28 Old Patriot
23:22 Old Patriot
23:14 RD
23:05 RD
23:05 Grumenk Philalzabod0723
22:59 Grumenk Philalzabod0723
22:56 RD
22:51 trailing wife
22:50 Asymmetrical T
22:45 Grumenk Philalzabod0723
22:41 twobyfour
22:36 Grumenk Philalzabod0723
22:33 Zenster
22:33 Barbara Skolaut
22:28 tu3031
22:26 Zenster
22:25 Grumenk Philalzabod0723
22:23 Theamble Forkbeard2343
22:18 Zenster
22:12 tu3031
22:07 sinse
22:07 tu3031
22:01 sinse









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