One Second and Two Assholes (idiots)

Please, I haven’t done some good swearing on this blog for some time, so if you are offended by language, don’t read this entry.

Last night I lived by one second. A car blew through a stop sign in front of me (big American car at that) and had I been in his path one second earlier, I would have sustained substantial bodily injury and severe damage to my car. As it was, I jammed on the brakes and watched as his red taillights faded into oblivion.

Today I wrote a paper all morning and then jumped onto my bike and headed to the park. In almost the same area as last night, a car came hauling down the road, going backwards, and as I swerved out of its way, I said “idiot” not very loud, but loud enough for the driver to hear. He chased me down! Cut me off with his car and began to challenge me. I wanted to laugh. Really, it was almost comical. He was a thirty something punk with a cig hanging from his lips. I am sure his ego has been fed by time spent in the West Bank or Gaza, thus a lycra clad, four-eyed, grey headed guy like me caused him no fear. However, I stared him down, was prepared for whatever, and went around him and said, “You are even more of an idiot than I first suspected.” He then called me a “fucking moron” which I suppose I am for having not taken down his license and doing whatever I could to press charges.

Despite this, I had a great ride in the park. It was a beautiful day and I have new biking shoes and a new front tire which added one or two extra KM to the bike. Eva joined me after an hour and a half and we rode around the Yarkon until sunset.

The reality though is that I really won’t be intimidated by the ilk of driver or person that infests this small country. Unfortunately this sort of person defines so many here in Israel. Yes I know there are many, many fine people here but their contributions and impact does not define my life (or any of ours) to the degree that these “idiots” do. The idiot that I encountered today is typical of so many people here: They are self-indulgent, arrogant, and unforgiving. They want to fight; in fact they go looking for a fight and care little for their surroundings outside of their homes. They kill on the roads and learn nothing from their actions. They go to beautiful parks like the Yarkon and leave all of their trash on the grounds. They justify their hate and learn nothing from their mistakes. They make me embarrassed to be an Israeli and even more embarrassed to be a Jew.