Jaywalking
Think about how many times a day you cross against the light?
As dozens who got off the bus at 8:30 pm tonight, I was one of the many tired, hungry folks who were rushing back home for dinner. On the pavement there were a couple and a kid in front of me, while me and most others were waiting for the light to turn green again, this couple decided to cross the road against the light. They started walking quickly and their little boy followed reluctantly. The light turned green just when they were half way through and as I followed them I heard the boy asked, “Mom, why do you cross when the red light is on?”. No response from the lady, she didn’t even look at her son and continued to walk ahead of him. The boy asked at least three times again and the lady just ignored him completely.
Very soon they were out of my sight after I walked into the shopping arcade. At that moment, a point made by Milton Friedman crossed my mind:
He said, “why should we risk the rest of our lives to save 20 seconds?”
Even a primary school kid knows jaywalking isn’t worth the risk, do we need a Nobel prize winner to remind ourselves? Every one could imagine the consequence of jaywalking on a busy road where your views were blocked. In absolutely no way one could be fast enough to dodge the speedy vehicles turned from the hidden corners. Not to mention the danger created to the driver and other road users.
What’s more disturbing to me is the attitude of the boy’s parents.
Tags: