While walking the streets of New York the other day, I was reminded of the very dangerous “life or death” daily game being played between cars, cyclists and pedestrians. It was the game of chicken.
Cars changed lanes without warning. Cyclists wove between buses and taxis. Pedestrians walked fearlessly into oncoming traffic while cars passed within inches of hitting them. It was insane.
I saw one teenager not run, but walk casually across a street despite the light not being in his favor, with traffic speeding toward him. An accompanying friend told him to watch out, to which he replied “He’s not crazy,” referring to the driver behind the wheel of the car headed toward him. “He’s not crazy???” Man, this was the ultimate game of chicken!
How did that teen know the guy wasn’t crazy? Maybe he really WAS crazy. Or maybe he was drunk. Or maybe he had lost control of the vehicle or his brakes had gone out. A hundred scenarios raced through my mind as that car raced toward the teen. My only thought was, if anyone was crazy it was probably the teen, who was willing to risk his rail-thin body against a one ton metal torpedo traveling 45MPH directly toward him. How could anyone in their right mind believe they could win that battle?
In the end, the car slowed down just enough to allow the crazed teen to complete his “Sunday-in-the-Park” saunter across the street. All was well and no blood was shed. Then I realized: the game of chicken was actually an opportunity for that teen to prove to his friends how “bad” he was. The fact he was stupidly willing to risk life and limb somehow showed he was important and a force to be reckoned with. He survived to bask in the glow of fearlessness on the opposite side of the street. But how many times do teens play this game of chicken every day, yet NOT live to tell about it? Or worse, how many of us ADULTS do it?
Think about it… how many of us walk into traffic leaving less than a foot between ourselves and a moving car, while leaving less room for error if that car suddenly had to swerve or make some emergency maneuver? Traffic lanes are already narrow, yet us pedestrians decrease them even further by placing our bodies in the streets, creating a veritable tunnel for moving cars to have to maneuver through. But is it fair to the drivers who have the right of way? Is it worth risking our entire lives over? Or are we all just being stupid?
Check out this video entitled “3 WAY STREET” from Ron Gabriel, who tracked the intersection of 28th and Park in New York City during the course of just one day. It should at least make you think!
