More Denver Road Rage (environment, work, house)

[Charles]

Wasn't there some Air Force Academy Air Force guy who pulled out a gun on the I-25 near Colorado Springs some years ago and shot somebody to death? Didn't he go to prison? I heard about it but don't know much else.

[livecontent]

Originally Posted by Charles

Wasn't there some Air Force Academy Air Force guy who pulled out a gun on the I-25 near Colorado Springs some years ago and shot somebody to death? Didn't he go to prison? I heard about it but don't know much else.

No he did not. He was older and retired. He was being harrassed by a much younger driver. He exited off the ramp and stopped. He stayed in his car. The other driver came out of his car and up to him and attacked him through the window. He reached for a gun, in his car, and shot the young driver. It was considered self defense.---that is what I remember.

Livecontent

Lesson to Learn---many people carry guns, so be careful with your temper even if you think you are right--you can be dead.

I had the exact same thing happen to me, about 15 years ago. The young guy came out of the car. I reached for my cell phone. The cell phone was black and very large--it was the early years of cell phones---thinking it was a gun and ran back to his car. He probably never saw a cell phone before, as very few people had one.

Also keep in mind, for all the miscreants, people have cell phones, cameras, recorders--people can get help fast and record your deeds and for the few of the nastiest--many have guns.

[McGowdog]

To the OP, sorry you got a bad impression of Denver based on that BMW dude.

That's a classic example of road-rage alright. I know that when you're in the heat of the moment and all, you never know what you'll do until you are actually in that situation. The "grouch and the brainstorm" are the dubious luxury of the world. I can't afford to live in that. Every morning, I consciously go out of my way to set that stuff aside when I take the wheel. The textbook approach would obviously be to just wave at the guy and maybe even say "sorry" and don't pull over, even if you are right. Would you rather be right or happy (alive)? Some people do have a gun. These days, you never know who might have the gun. It might be soccer mom.

When I was out in the San Fernando Valley, we were at a gas station and this guy decided to get out and yell at the people in from of him at an intersection and the female passenger pulled out a gun and stuck it in the guy's face. He yelled at her to, "Shoot me, go ahead! I'm a bleeping bleep who's down on his luck anyway!" They drove off and the lady eventually pulled the gun back into the car. When my brother came out of the gas station, I said "You just missed some drama. Let's get outta LA."

[missingcol]

Originally Posted by jazzlover

Ah, just another @#$%^&ing day in paradise! I used to have to drive from Cheyenne to Denver pretty often. If something similar to that didn't happen at least once on each trip, I was surprised. Someone will undoubtedly pipe up and say that it's way worse in California (or wherever). That's sort of like saying it's better to sit in bathtub half full or manure than one completely full. People shouldn't have to put up with that stuff anywhere.

Driving in San Jose (101), CA for over ten years, never seen this. Maybe I am just lucky.

[flyingbuffalos]

Ahh, livecontent, after reading several of your posts, I think I have a friend-crush on you.

[livecontent]

Originally Posted by flyingbuffalos

Ahh, livecontent, after reading several of your posts, I think I have a friend-crush on you.

Thanks, ah, I do not know what to say, but, ah, well, I am all flustered, I do what, --I did grow up near Buffalo,the home of flying buffalos(wings) and moved from Texas. Ah, shucks

[dracul]

Your advice is well taken McGowdog! I really should never have stopped to hear what this hyper-amped moron had to say...the results could have been dire. I always tend to confront problems and discord straight on to seek quick resolution...but in instances such as this, where so much antagonism is spewing forth, a person could get waxed before even being able to state their position. I'm certainly glad to still be alive with no broken bodyparts, bullet holes or knife wounds. Sticks and stones...and so forth....

As far as my antipathy for Denver in general is concerned; I overstated my ire. I regularly enjoy the city's many venues, its extensive infrastructure, excellent medical facilities, entertainment options, beautiful architecture, great gyms, lovely parks and world class museums. I was born here and most of my kin reside in the region. I've many long standing friendships that will be missed when we leave Denver. Additionally, I'm really fond of our houses that we've put so much work into over the last 10 years, etc., etc. It's just that it is time to downsize: to seek a much smaller town and scale back a tad...to slow the pace somewhat, enjoy a milder climate and have a lot more open space around me...and try to avoid so many maddened motorists

[flyingbuffalos]

Originally Posted by livecontent

Thanks, ah, I do not know what to say, but, ah, well, I am all flustered, I do what, --I did grow up near Buffalo,the home of flying buffalos(wings) and moved from Texas. Ah, shucks

Aww, crap, I went and terrified you. Sorry. I am a harmless, married (happily) woman--you just seem to be an intelligent, witty, atheist person with a lovely writing style. One of the reasons I SO want to leave central TX--I am only about 40 miles from Crawford. If you aren't an evangelical, right-wing Bushie, then you must be some sort of pinko, commie, atheist, liberal. Well, I'm NOT a commie, LOL.
Hope you aren't hiding from me, under the fridge, with the roaches...
mel

[McGowdog]

Originally Posted by dracul

I really should never have stopped to hear what this hyper-amped moron had to say...the results could have been dire. I always tend to confront problems and discord straight on to seek quick resolution...but in instances such as this, where so much antagonism is spewing forth, a person could get waxed before even being able to state their position.

... to seek a much smaller town and scale back a tad...to slow the pace somewhat, enjoy a milder climate and have a lot more open space around me...and try to avoid so many maddened motorists

Well what if you get out and scrape his face up with the asphalt? Feels nice, at first. But then you've got witnesses, some of them cheering at you, some of them a little vigilant, and you've got your license plate being called into *277. At this point, do you stay there until a cop shows up and take your lumps or drive off and risk a sort of "leaving the scene" infraction? The biggest problem is when you have other passengers. I'm pretty sure that they'll be annoyed with your decision to "engage".

So yeah, it's best to just ignore them. If you can, get their license number and call *277. If they get called in enough ( I think it's about 3 times), the cops will do something about it.

When you drive through an eastern Colorado town, everybody waves at you. It's a whole different world out there for sure.

[steveco.]

The only thing the cops can do is give the guy a warning. I remember hearing about it on the radio one time. They said if you call in an aggressive driver they recieve a written warning via mail. If they get called in twice within a certain amount of time they recieve another written warning and if they are really bad and are called in 3 times a trooper hand delivers a written warning to their residence