Driver slashes cyclist's throat in South Side attack (Pittsburgh: law, cars)

[green_mariner]

Originally Posted by tclifton

I haven't read anybody blaming the cyclist.

Where did you notice this?

I read something about cyclists and road rage on this thread.

[Garvdog]

Originally Posted by irishvan

is he saying that maybe the victim did something to justify the violence?

Nothing justifies this at all- just saying that some criminal mauling one of his associates/customers/buddies is a much more common crime. The fact that there could be some wacko out there knifing random cyclists is a bit more unsettling. The crime is the same, it's danger to the average person on the street in the South Side is different.

[tclifton]

Originally Posted by green_mariner

I read something about cyclists and road rage on this thread.

Ah.

Yeah, you misread that. No problem though...it's tough with so many posts to get them all straight!

[tclifton]

Originally Posted by green_mariner

I merely added that the level of violation was not the same. That was merely my take on it.

Got it. FYI, I didn't equate them.

[toosie]

Apparently the cyclist himself reported that he believed he cut off the driver. Then the car followed him and someone got out and attacked him. So, this doesn't sound so much like random violence (like wildings where kids go out intending to cause havoc) as much as it sounds like an extreme case of road rage - the driver/cutter felt provoked. That's not the cyclist or police or me or anyone else blaming the victim for the attack - it's just clarifying that it wasn't totally random. Even if he did cut them off, a physically violent response is not ok.

[Velvet Jones]

Originally Posted by green_mariner

How do we know the cyclist did anything to cause this? I notice many people want to blame the cyclist for this.

Is the air thin today? When people are violently attacked they don't often say "Oh, I think it might have been the guy I ripped off in that crack deal last week". When something like this happens and the "victim" knows it is in retaliation for something they did, they will not tell the cops or the media this. I have no idea if this case is anything like that at all, but this is clearly what the other poster implying.

[groar]

Originally Posted by toosie

Apparently the cyclist himself reported that he believed he cut off the driver. Then the car followed him and someone got out and attacked him. So, this doesn't sound so much like random violence (like wildings where kids go out intending to cause havoc) as much as it sounds like an extreme case of road rage - the driver/cutter felt provoked. That's not the cyclist or police or me or anyone else blaming the victim for the attack - it's just clarifying that it wasn't totally random. Even if he did cut them off, a physically violent response is not ok.

i think that is an extreme enough reaction to a commonplace and minor occurrence to be considered random.

if i don't let someone out of the elevator before i go into it and they stab me, i did something pretty jerky and they might feel provoked but that is an insanely extreme reaction to what i've done and i'd consider that a random attack. i think that's a comparable scenario.

i see the random violence vs non random violence in this situation as someone who doesn't know the other person attacking them over a relatively minor incident vs someone attacking someone they are involved with in one way or another. i don't think the only kind of violence that counts as random is people straight up attacking people completely arbitrarily.

[AaronPGH]

Originally Posted by groar

i think that is an extreme enough reaction to a commonplace and minor occurrence to be considered random.

if i don't let someone out of the elevator before i go into it and they stab me, i did something pretty jerky and they might feel provoked but that is an insanely extreme reaction to what i've done and i'd consider that a random attack. i think that's a comparable scenario.

i see the random violence vs non random violence in this situation as someone who doesn't know the other person attacking them over a relatively minor incident vs someone attacking someone they are involved with in one way or another. i don't think the only kind of violence that counts as random is people straight up attacking people completely arbitrarily.

This nails it.

[20yrsinBranson]

Originally Posted by AaronPGH

I can't even believe this ****. These drivers don't deserve to live.

Man's throat slashed in South Side attack | www.wpxi.com

can't wait to hear what the ethnic persuasion of the perps are.

20yrsinbranson

[ditchdigger]

Originally Posted by groar

i think that is an extreme enough reaction to a commonplace and minor occurrence to be considered random.

if i don't let someone out of the elevator before i go into it and they stab me, i did something pretty jerky and they might feel provoked but that is an insanely extreme reaction to what i've done and i'd consider that a random attack. i think that's a comparable scenario.

i see the random violence vs non random violence in this situation as someone who doesn't know the other person attacking them over a relatively minor incident vs someone attacking someone they are involved with in one way or another. i don't think the only kind of violence that counts as random is people straight up attacking people completely arbitrarily.

Or...It was a random act of violence perpetrated on somebody that didn't have the option of rolling up their windows, locking their doors, and beating it the hell out of there...