| THIS IS A READ-ONLY ARCHIVE FROM THE SORABJI.COM MESSAGE BOARDS (1995-2016). |
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I ride the subway and bus daily. Im a very "gentlemanly" kind of person. I follow subway etiquette, as where Im from, its expected. Stand to the right, walk to the left on the escalators. Give up your seat for a woman or the elderly. Sit on the inside seat if the two are open so someone can sit next to you. etc etc. So, yesterday as is the case almost on a weekly basis I see some asshole sitting in the seats reserved, they clearly say "Priority seating for the elderly and handicapped" These seats are the single seaters right by the door that face outword, as opposed to the pairs of seats facing forward and backward throughout the rest of the train. This elderly woman gets on with a walker. This middle aged schmuck is sitting in the designated seat, she clearly is aiming to get, his nose is buried in paperwork. he eventually looks up, sees her trying to get her old ass and the walker into a regular seat directly across from him. he goes back to shuffling paper. At this point i want to bash his skull to bits. At the next stop, the elderly woman gets up, heading back in the car, trying to find a better suited seat..she comes to another designated seat with some 20 something in it, who offers to help her into the seat next to his. NOT EVEN the designated seat, but helps her into the window seat with her walker, almost assuring that she won't get out in time when the train comes to a full stop at her destination. Im FUMING!!! Im raging. I want to destroy all of these inconsiderate imbecils. Further, i want to say something. I think, as I stand next to the door arriving at my stop, to tell schmuck #1 "hey pal, pay attention to the sign" and point to the sign "Priority for the elderly..". I want to do this, but I wuss out. Should I say anything? In the past I have bullyed a seat away from some dumbass teen who didnt yieled to this elderly guy. But it didnt really subside my anger. My anger in that instance rested with the parents of this kid, who didnt teach him these things. Further, i have to remind myself that in LA, subway culture is still relatively new and perhaps these things just arent known. Is it worth saying anything to these assholes? Or should I just suck it up? |
Generally, if I end up in the priority seating seats (because it's a full train or whatever), I get up if I see someone who obviously needs the seat more than me. But most people who ride public transit spend much of their time pretending there's no one else on the train with them. You could say something to them...then, perhaps, on some other message board out there, a parallel thread will appear..."Some asshole on the train today told me to move out of the handicapped seat." I don't know. Perhaps you should say something if you see that happening again...the person struggling with their walker/wheelchair/whatever would probably appreciate it. |
I guess if the a big one comes, it does not really matter if you are on the surface or under it... |
San Fran, Mexico City and Tokyo all have subways and withstood major earthquakes with little to no damage at all. Seismic waves are milder under the surface. |
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Further in a 4.5 quake, the system shuts down temporarily. Anything above a 6.0, it shuts down to allow for inspections before proceeding. So, if a quake large enough occurs, to split a fault line, the system shuts down. Your car don't shut down automatically. the freeways are more dangerous in an earthquake. there were many collapsed freeways and deaths in Northridge. No subway collapsed or killed anyone in LA. Moreover you don't have items falling upon you underground. Since seismic waves are absorbed by the earth around you, it isnt as dramatic. A bigger danger could be subsequent gas leaks. LA has plenty of pockets of natural gas, but they say the tunnels are wrapped in industrial plastics to prevent seepage. Also there is a water system that runs along the tracks to prevent fire. It was the most expensive subway per mile built in the world. I feel relatively safe in it. no enough of this nonsense, get back to my dilemma. |
When you mentioned being pissed at the guy's folks for not teaching him subway etiquette, I think you hit a nail on the head. I have noticed more and more that people are just down right rude and nasty. They want to go somewhere and do something, and it is your job to get the hell out of thier way. Parents are not teaching thier children respect for others. They are teaching ME ME ME ME ME ME. Like that kid the Dinner Lady was talking about. Kids are the boss and parents say "I don't want to crush thier spirit" or "Let kids be who they are", and feel they do not have the right to tell thier kids not to do something. |
I don't think there's anything wrong with saying to someone plopped in a seat 'hey buddy, move it for the nice lady'. I mean, only the asshole will resent you, everyone else around you will think what a good guy you are for helping an old lady. People definitely get boisterous on the train here if something gets screwy. It's also OK to say something to the driver and let them order the people out of the seats so the old and crippled can sit. Some people are such jerks though. Yeesh. |
"But but but PATRICK....I want to sit in that seat. What old lady? She's not even a blip on my radar, dude. I WANT that seat, so I'm taking it." Man, I'd love it if you said something to those guys. I'm ball-less, like Spunky here. Somebody's got to do it! Did I use a fortiori correctly? Margret? |
You expect it out of the loudmouths fucks in Beantown. But also remember, the Boston subway is one of the oldest in the country, so the etiquette has been there for generations. Yeah, ok, next time, Im gonna rail these people. This is all i needed, a little backup. Like i said, yesterday it was on the tip of my tongue. |
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Stand right, walk left. What's so freakin hard about that? If you need to have a conversation, or hold hands and look all lovey and shit, stand above and below one another, not blocking the entire escalator. I get tired of saying excuse me as I walk up or down. The only thing that annoys me more is double parking, especially in the bike lane. Some woman got killed in Cambridge recently while biking, so I'm hypervigilant about traffic, and I've yelled at more than one driver, and even left a note on someone's car. |
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I believe Boston subway is the oldest in the nation and it is well used but somewhat lame. They just introduced new cars for one line which were designed by someone with a futuristic vision and no idea about what it's like to ride the train. There was less space to ride than ever before. Then I heard one shorted out and they all had to be pulled. That's progress! As for the porter sq. escalators I think one problem is nowhere is it stated stand right walk left. In the London subway it's all posted so it's more the rules. But then again you wouldn't catch me attempting to walk that escalator. Too daunting! |
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No shit, especially on the beltways (?) at the Airport. If you are the left, you had better be moving, or your head's comming off your shoulders. O'Hare, Minneapolis and Dulles are just as bad |
quietly, and under my breath. why are people so violent? I'm sure when someone says "At this point i want to bash his skull to bits", it's just an exaggeration, but still. why such violent imagery? it's a rhetorical question, anyway. |
If you say it and imagine it. You probably won't do it. At least it works for me. |
Sometimes I think that people use the actual violence as a release. That scares me just as much as the words, because I wonder if they really mean the words anymore. On Friday I spent the day in the hospital, poisoned by the food that I got from La Fonda, and having heart and lung problems as well. For the first time since I have been here, there was a long wait, and the poor woman ahead of me had been driving and this car cut her off and ran her off of the road, and when she got out of her car to make sure it was allright, they beat the crap out of her. She had a broken nose, broken arm, sprained ankle, cuts on her face and her head, whiplash, and bruises all over her body. All this because the guy didn't want her in the place she was in while she was driving because he wanted to be there. She didn't yell or scream at these guys for cutting her off and running her off of the freeway, she just got out to make sure her car was allright and bam. People in general just freak me out. As for the other part of the story, my boss from La Fonda called my babysitter and told her he was putting me on suspension over the weekend because I didn't call him from the hospital room. I have a severe virus in my stomach and two different problems with my heart right now. They are hoping that the heart problems will go away with the virus. This is supposed to take 7-10 days to go away. My boss called me later that night, and I told him what the doctor said. He said that it couldn't be from the food there, whatever. I quit my job. He was just being an asshole, and I can get plenty of jobs for $7 an hour without getting poisoned by their tamales. |
whats the point in saying that i wonder. |
Whats the point in asking that I wonder. |
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you, then you could get unemployment. Call the Board of Health. I got canned because I was too sick to work, too. |
I waited till I got to the front of the line, and said "Forget it, I am not buying anything from a company that treats there employees like that", and I just walked out. Not a very good capatilist, I realize, but why could she not work the schedule around for a few weeks???? |
I'm glad you gave the Kaybee Manager a good talking to. People need to speak up. I stole an ice coffee from Starbucks the other day. Actually a FRAPPUCINO. But I'm not a rebel, I just was irritated that the place was totally disorganized and no one was paying attention as to who was paying and where and for what so I just walked out with my beverage. I must say I don't feel guilty for depriving them of $3.10. |
When my mother was dieing of cancer in the hospital. My boss wanted to know when I would be back. It was a strain on the office. I thought maybe he would like me to shoot all his family members so he could just go to one funeral. You know get it over quick. And, not put an unreasonable strain on his business. I'm sure they would approve. |