intresting afternoon...

quick horn tap just says, "hey! Be careful! You almost hit me."

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Apparantly the gentleman in the other car, you know the one with the gun? He doesn't quite see it your way and there's only one way to find out if it was you or him that just cut me off you up?

uhhhhh

Tapping your horn isn't a request to be assaulted and shot... Some of you folks need to get out more.

We are not saying honking the horn is wrong or conveys the desire to be assaulted when used between two NORMAL citizens.

We are saying that this is what the A-hole in the other car thought of it, and most other A-holes think of it this way as well.

That said, I think its best not to honk at mentally ill drivers like the one in this story. I mean come on guys, do you really think the guy was thinking, oh, that was a light tap of the horn politely telling me to watch out, I should be more careful. yeah right, obviously the guy did not like the horn and this situation could possibly have been avoided if the OP did not honk.

I have been confronted with road rage and this is my opinion, do not give them any outlet to explode like this, whether you think its polite or not.

i remember driving at niagra falls on the canadian side and people would honk and curse and give the finger. i made the comment on the bus that they don't do that where i'm from. lady goes really? are folks that polite there? no mam but a few weeks back some guy shot a guy at a light because he didn't like the music he was playing . so we let things slide

Tapping your horn isn't a request to be assaulted and shot...

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Apparently, the CO didn't see it that way

I agree the psycho drivers reaction was over the top. My point, however, is that as CHP holders we need to go out of our way not to do thing that give the other guy a reason to go off. Most people do NOT like having people honk at them, knowing that I don't do it. The last time I used the horn was for a woman with a dog who was about to step off the curb infront of me.

When I was a driver's ed student in high school (back when Soviets and other dinosaurs roamed the earth), we had films shown to us, sometimes to teach us driving tips, sometimes just to scare the living crap out of us. The driving lab instructor periodically would stop the film and make comments or ask questions. One older film from the early 1960s featured a friendly driver/narrator who repeatedly gave other drivers a "friendly tap on the horn." After the first such "friendly tap on the horn," our instructor Mr. S. stopped the film, and said, "O.K., you're going to see and hear a lot of 'friendly taps on the horn' in this film. It makes sense if you're about to be backed into in a suburban parking lot. But do not do this in Chicago." We all laughed, but Mr. S. was right.

I'll contribute to this thread drift...

I hate to be the one to break it to you Quick Draw ( I always liked El Kabong better) but you don't have the right to "get frustrated and tap the horn" while you're carrying a pistol.

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OMG! Are you serious? I don't have the right "get frustrated and tap the horn" while I'm carrying a pistol.

Whatever!

I'm driving to work tomorrow morning honking my horn for the duration of drive just because...

First, a brief, but ironic, story: A few years ago, I was driving on a Chicago area expressway and had just passed a guy in a Mercedes-Benz. I did a shoulder/mirror check and thought I was clear to change lanes, but goofed--he had sped up and I ended up cutting him off. My mistake. I waved and mouthed "Sorry," but he commenced repeatedly trying to force me off the road. It's the only time in 30-plus years on the road that I believe someone was intentionally trying to kill me.

To make a long story short, I called 911, but before I saw any hint of a police response I managed to create distance between me and the crazed Benz driver, and lost sight of him. The irony? He was sporting an Illinois "Prevent Violence" license plate:




I'm glad that things turned out okay for the OP, but if I had to offer any criticism it would be this: You probably should have tried a bit harder to distance yourself from the nutso driver at the first sign that he was agitated. Hindsight is, of course, 20/20, but that one run-in I had years ago taught me that the possibility for a minor disagreement on the road often carries with it the possibility for things to turn very ugly very fast. I'd suggest that anyone who encounters this sort of situation to disengage at the first sign of nuttiness by another driver.

Best weapon involved in this situation: cell phone. Saved a life, maybe more than one.

interesting afternoon.....that's an understatement.

I hate to be the one to break it to you Quick Draw ( I always liked El Kabong better) but you don't have the right to "get frustrated and tap the horn" while you're carrying a pistol.

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I disagree. I think even in this case (the way it was written), it was ok. It's a communication device to alert other drivers of your presence. In this case a driver cut off another driver and the one cutting off the other, may not know how close he may have come to a wreck.

I do agree, that anytime someone honks, you don't know what the other guy will do.

honestly i will be the first to say i can be a arse, but only when you step out of line.

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You don't have the priveldge of being an "arse" when you're carrying.

a tap of a horn should not signafiy the start of war, and that is what it is.

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I agree with you whole heartedly it shouldn't but you can't overlook the fact that it DID. It really doesn't matter that YOU think it was no big deal, you have zero control over how the other guy is going to receive it. In this case the other guy thought it was worth brandishing a pistol. What are you going to do when you run into the guy that thinks it's worth opening fire?

and im sorry that you go around in life afraid of rubbing someone in the wrong way. i certainly am not

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Remember that when you're sitting in a court room explaining your actions.

You don't get to have an " I'm not gonna take crap offa no one" attitude while you're carrying a firearm. If you don't believe me go ask the other actor in this incident (you know the one in jail?)

My point, however, is that as CHP holders we need to go out of our way not to do thing that give the other guy a reason to go off.

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Oh come on. It is impossible to go through life and never offend anyone (no matter what you do). The whole reason I carry is so I can live life normally. Otherwise we may as well all stay home in fear. Everyone knows what you're saying, your not the first guy to say what you're saying. I just think we all have to pick our battles, I choose to live free, not always afraid of who I might be offending.

I just think we all have to pick our battles, I choose to live free, not always afraid of who I might be offending.

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Yes...and picking the battles wisely is very important. Not every offense from an anti-social lout is worth killing for - or dying for.

Calling someone out merely for rude behavior - however justified - just aint worth it in most cases.

They're not going to change their ways just because you told them you don't like how they act. But MIGHT be crazy enough to decide that their pride is worth dying for - right here and now.

It's took about a half century on the planet - but I finally learned I don't control the universe - or the the creatures therein. But I can avoid putting myself in harm's way by not pissing off the ones that think they want to eat me for lunch.

Wow glad you are OK!

If I were in that situation and had nobody else in the car I might not have stopped to wait for traffic at the left turn. I might risk pulling out in front of a car over getting shot. of course I wasn't there to see the situation you were faced with so I'll go back to my sun chips and diet coke now.

well handled, glad it worked out the way it did.

Was it confirmed that he worked for DOC?? or was the badge a fake??

glad it turned out well for you.

who knows, had the op not honked the guy may have found something else to go off on him for.
kindof like the tiger repellent argument.

ill prove it works right after you prove it don't, but ive never seen a tiger in these parts.

but you never know the offender might have been upset and on his way to kill his girlfriend. the situation might have saved her life.
god works in strange ways.
we can never say what might have been, but the situation turned out for the best.
the op was ready to escalate the situation should he need to, and didnt.

i would have trouble firing on a badged leo even if he was CLEARLY in the wrong.
i've had 2 friends in the right on the wrong end of an leo who had a bad attitude, and believe me neither situation turned out for their better.
one guy, while serving in the airforce, was mistaken for someone else, and got beat down pretty bad. spent the week in the hospital, will have back problems forever.
even though it was a gross negligence of duty.
the good ole boy network exists and can protect those who serve.

not to knock the leo profession, i have tons of respect for the badge and thank those guys for their service, i am just mentioning 2 really bad situations that certainly arent the norm.

soggysod