I am writing this letter as a member of the UC Davis community, proudly serving as a staff member since 2005. Today, as my friend and I left Froggy’s Bar and Grill for a relaxing lunch hour respite, we crossed G Street well within the confines of the crosswalk when a white car driven by a young man turning off Second Street came within inches of hitting us. We stopped short, he stopped short, and as he drove off I counseled him calmly (after all, I am representing UC Davis even during my free time), “Watch where you’re driving.” His reply as he sped away? Let’s just say it was a variation on a vulgar four-letter word.
Let me get this straight, young man (who I assume is a UCD student): You drive carelessly, almost take out two young women who are lawfully inside the crosswalk, and when you are respectfully advised to be careful, this is your response? This is not the first time I have been harangued as a pedestrian walking through Davis city streets. Just crossing in a crosswalk in the evening has earned me an admonishment in the form of less than polite language.
What’s wrong in Davis? Why the hostility? If you younger people are so frustrated and impatient just waiting for a person to cross a small town street, how will you deal with the real issues in life — waiting to hear if an interview yielded you a job to pay your bills or anticipating news of whether or not your biopsy for cancer is benign or malignant, just to cite a few examples? If you (young man driving) were trying to impress the young woman sitting in your front seat, let me tell you as a woman — it’s not attractive. That sort of attitude is the reason why our society is suffering from a crippling lack of civility.
I understand that there are much more pressing issues facing our university and our world at this time. But why make things worse by being so rude? It comes down to this. Be nice, be kind, treat others as you yourself would like to be treated and please, watch where you’re driving.
Larisa Archer
Student Affairs
Hello, hash,
I appreciate your comments and you have a very good point. However, I have experienced moments (two, in fact) where I simply crossed the street, walking in the crosswalk, and have had expletives yelled by the drivers. In these cases I kept quiet. So, what is the excuse for those drivers? Frankly, there is none. I had every right to ask the driver to watch where they were going and that individual is fortunate that I was too shaken to write down their license plate. And I certainly plan to let these bad, rude drivers know when they’ve messed up. I would rather say something and at least stand up for myself than stay quiet and just let it pass.
There is no justification for careless driving. However, I’ve been trying to picture someone saying “watch where you’re driving” in a polite way and it always seems to feel atleast a little bit angry and condescending.. Heck I would be angry too if I almost got killed. I also wouldn’t be surprised if a driver became upset at a comment similar to “watch where you’re going.” Saying that is as useless as yelling at a football player for dropping a catch. The driver obviously understands that they should watch where they are driving when they almost hit someone and stop to stare at the person they almost hit.. If they intended to hit you they would have..let’s face it. I just don’t understand your shock at a driver becoming upset after captain obvious swept in with her .02 cents. But I’m glad you’re okay and this piece serves as an example of why we should always look both ways and wait for cars to stop before crossing a street.