WildHoneyAlways said:
Okay, as a graduate of the University of Illinois I am totally guilty of this. I loved, loved, loved the bus system there. If any of you are familiar, I lived on First st. and got on the 21 Illini at first and daniel. In order to fit on the bus you have to be aggressive. The bus fills very quickly! Many property owners don't shovel the sidewalks so it helps to take the bus. I will not apologize for taking a bus that my tuition pays for. Why walk three blocks for a bus stop when there was one right in front of my apartment building?
Anyway, I hate when people chew gum with their mouths open. God, that's annoying....
I know this isnt what you said, and so Im not putting words into your mouth, but it reminded me of something else that bugged me. People who think that those who are nice/being polite are weak and
deserve to be taken advantage of - in my opinion, it takes far more strength to be kind than it does to be cruel. The bus thing really doesnt apply to that example without taking a hammer and pounding the round peg into the square hole.
Im not looking for an appology, my tuition pays for my bus pass too, and if I was living on campus I wouldnt want to just throw that $90 nonrefundable contribution away, so I completely understand.
It still doesnt resolve my contempt of people who could reach their destination faster by walking than waiting for a bus, though. For instance, people who live on campus, travelling 5 minutes on foot to some destination off campus, 2 bus stops - by the time you figure in the time it takes for people to get on/off, driver to check passes, close doors, get back into traffic, stop, let people off, in that short distance they havent saved any time whatsoever; plus, its taken them time to wait for the bus. The bus does fill up quickly, and thats exactly the point, the bus fills up quickly with people who dont need to use the bus. If you can get there faster by walking, walk, no illusions that the bus is faster but you have to wait ten minutes to catch it, if its faster, then walk - Why take up an extra seat on the bus for people who need to spend 35 minutes on the bus just to get home, forget the time it takes to actually catch a bus; which becomes exceptionally longer when two or three busses drive by because theyre full. Ive resorted to walking down these 3 or 4 stops myself just to catch the bus, just to let all these people off first so theres room enough for me, but I wouldnt have to solve my problem like this if other people didnt cause it by mismanaging their efforts. Winter is no excuse either, if youre going the same 2 stops - if youre going 4, I have sympathy, if youre going more than 4 I have even more sympathy, but again, not for 2. Sure, its cold, but by standing in the cold for 15 minutes to catch a bus, to travel 5 minutes walk, it doesnt help you... youre just standing there in the cold, rather than walking, which keeps a level of body heat that is higher than if you are simply standing in one spot being idle...
Incidentally, private property owners in a lot of cities are liable for the strip of public property in front of their own, theyre charged with maintaining it, and their failure to do so - if it results in injury - becomes their problem, not the city's. Its in their best interest to shovel, if they choose not to, thats all well and good, but theyre still responsible for it. Some cities have bylaws which force citizens to shovel their walks, and if they fail to do so, the city will clean them, but the owner will receive a bill for it... Back in the 50s, Im told, people did it just out of common courtesy, rather than out of fear for legalities... Thats my hangup, really, lack of courtesy, I can let the bus thing slide for anyone who needs to use it, or for whom it makes things easier, but it bothers me greatly when people abuse their privelege at the expense of others. Sure, you can, but just because you can doesnt mean you should... And therein is my fundmental difference in arguments from rights to priveleges, I argue against it if its a privilege, and for it if its a right - and buses are priveleges.
But I guess thats the whole thing with pet peeves is that people do them anyway, regardless of how you feel - if people didnt do it, it wouldnt bother you, right? It doesnt matter what my logic is, or what other people's illogic is, my being irritated isnt going to change their actions, but even so, it still bothers me.
Oh well... Off to class I go.
*crosses fingers that my ride home at 10 tonight wont be cluttered with people going downtown to drink*
when they have a massive spoiler on the back of their little corsa, and tinted windows and a UV light underneath the car. And a stereo that's worth more than the car.
