Go home team! We did it!
Jun. 22nd, 2009 08:17 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
Today was full of thinking people were mis-categorizing themselves and others. Remember in Vonnegut's Bokonon religion there was a term for people who thought they were in the same group as others but were often wrong, such as whether people on the plane were "Hoosiers" or not. He contrasts them to a quiet couple that simply "are" together.
In the airport I saw a woman with lots of makeup on go up to 2 people in fatigues and "thank them for their service." I reflexively turned away in disgust, but quickly recalled I have a friend who says they do this too with positive results. By the time I turned back she was gone and the two military folks (m & f) had small scowls on.
I got a strange email on my bb while flying to Madison, WI, saying they hoped everyone in the DC area was alright in light of the tragedy. Huh? Turns out metro had a crash in which TWO people were killed. TWO. I would like to note that while I did just fly in an airplane, I was not killed in the Air France crash that you may have heard about on the news.
Ever have a conversation like this:
"Oh, you're from the United States? Do you know "Bob?"
Washington itself has a population of about 600k, which about doubles during each day as commuters go to work, while DCMetro as an entire area is listed as a population of over 5 million. The metro rail system moves an average of over 700k people per day.
I know, I know…I know she means well. But still I "yeesh."
In the airport I saw a woman with lots of makeup on go up to 2 people in fatigues and "thank them for their service." I reflexively turned away in disgust, but quickly recalled I have a friend who says they do this too with positive results. By the time I turned back she was gone and the two military folks (m & f) had small scowls on.
I got a strange email on my bb while flying to Madison, WI, saying they hoped everyone in the DC area was alright in light of the tragedy. Huh? Turns out metro had a crash in which TWO people were killed. TWO. I would like to note that while I did just fly in an airplane, I was not killed in the Air France crash that you may have heard about on the news.
Ever have a conversation like this:
"Oh, you're from the United States? Do you know "Bob?"
Washington itself has a population of about 600k, which about doubles during each day as commuters go to work, while DCMetro as an entire area is listed as a population of over 5 million. The metro rail system moves an average of over 700k people per day.
I know, I know…I know she means well. But still I "yeesh."
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Date: 2009-06-23 12:35 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-06-23 12:41 am (UTC)Not saying it isn't a horrible thing, just that it's odd to think that despite all the odds people expect it might affect the few people they know.
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Date: 2009-06-23 12:38 am (UTC)Regardless, yes she meant well, just as I really meant it when I asked my f-list if anyone takes that route; some of us are out of touch, remember? And as for flying--well--had you mentioned flying to Paris by way of Brazil we might have been worried, right?
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Date: 2009-06-23 12:40 am (UTC)Someone won the lottery up in b'more a while ago, and nobody asked if it was me.
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Date: 2009-06-23 03:32 am (UTC)If you've seen the pictures, they're pretty intense and scary. To me, at least.
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Date: 2009-06-23 10:47 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-06-23 01:16 pm (UTC)So, I can cerebrally understand why this is of small import emotionally to you, but it's important for you to understand that it is of large import to others so that you don't inadvertently belittle them. (it's another thing altogether if you do it deliberately).
Yes, there are deadlier car crashes. That's not the point.
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Date: 2009-06-23 12:05 pm (UTC)I like to think I'm pretty logical most of the time. But I still worry about people I know, even if the chance of something bad happening is really, really, really small.
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Date: 2009-06-23 12:30 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-06-23 02:19 pm (UTC)(Although, I did think of you when I heard about and saw the news... but then I remembered that you opt to drive to points north since mass transit is not effective for traveling to your place of work.)
I think we Metro riders view the system as being essentially the safest way to commute to work around here. The worst that could possibly happen to you while you're on a train is having your bag stolen while napping or being hit in the face by some ignorant tourist's backpack. I suspect few people would expect that two trains would collide like that with all of the checks-and-balances that are supposed to be in place.
Vehicle accidents happen on the Beltway all the time. Air travel accidents seems to occur frequently as well. Subway accidents are not the norm.
The photos are pretty horrifying, with the bottom of one train peeled back like a sardine tin and the other crunched up like a soda can. It makes you realize that the Metro cars are not the most sturdily-built things they appear to be. [shiver]
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Date: 2009-06-24 12:47 am (UTC)I often use the same arguments on msyelf because flying is scary and I travel 7 out of 8 weeks in a row right now - I take great comfort in the odds that I'll be fine, despite my inability to control one thing about whether my plane lands or not.