There are two kinds of pedestrians - the quick and the dead.

[deralte]

I like this article on car fish, not the least of which because it gives you an idea of exactly what it is like to drive in NJ, and what it does to you as a driver. I always feel so weird driving outside of the northeastern states simply because I'm suddenly driving far too aggressively. Suddenly, the only people on the road keeping up with you are the truckers, macho guys (who can't stand seeinging a tiny car driven by an even tinnier woman passing them), and the other NJ drivers. And people start being nice, and letting you in traffic and giving you the right of way. What's up with that? (I am excepting areas within or around big cities since everyone drives agressively around them.)

It also addresses one of the reasons why I will never put a bumper sticker on my car - I really hate that people think a sentence or a few words on a bumper sticker will not only define the owner of the car, but will also somehow influence the mind of the other drivers. A fish sticker will not automatically convert anyone who sees it to Jesus. The support our troops ribbons have so far suceeded in me wondering why there are so many different colours (with the extra thought of who in their right mind puts a pink! ribbon on their car when they aren't the estatic father of a newborn baby girl?). My father put a bumper sticker on my car while I was away first term, and I was so annoyed when I got home I made him tear it off immediately. It wasn't just that I don't believe in bumper stickers in the first place, or that they really can make any car extremely ugly, but also that he somehow thought it was okay to use my car as a slogan for something (as it happens, I agreed with the sticker, but I still never want one on my car).

This isn't to say bumper stickers don't work on occasion, they just never really have the effect people are hoping. My friends once bought a bumper sticker that said 'Wench' on it and put it on my car as a joke. Since I'm a good sport (and was too lazy to find any peroxide to clean it off) I left it on for a few days. I had intended to leave it on for a week or so to ensure the joke was good and dead, but I had to take it off after a few days. Guys were deliberately pulling even with my car, checking me out and even honking me, just from the stupid bumper sticker. After a couple of days, I couldn't stand it and ripped the thing off (peroxide wasn't needed, just fingernails thankfully). In short, bumper stickers are crap... and I really should stop ranting about this and get back to studying.

Comments

[gramarye1971]

I had a professor of political philosophy who commented on how much he hated bumper stickers as well. He said that he always had the urge to make bumper stickers that read 'I have no original ideas of my own' and sneak around affixing them to the cars of people who deface their rear bumpers with silly, trite messages.

So the class all chipped in and got a box of stickers made that had that exact message, gave it to him on the last day of lectures, and wished him luck. ^_^

[deralte.livejournal.com]

*grin* I like both your professor and your class.

[kizzib.livejournal.com]

oooooooooooooooooh, I need to post the piccie of the 'jesus car' we saw in florida!!!

[spacelem.livejournal.com]

My other bumper sticker says something witty and insightful. Probably involves Bruce Campbell being better than God.

[tritoneclarinet.livejournal.com]

The only car I've seen where I enjoyed looking at the bumper stickers on it was one that was literally plastered in the most unusual stickers the owner could find. This resulted in an amusing multicolored checker effect.

As for the driving outside of the Northeast, I so hear you...

[deralte.livejournal.com]

Multicoloured checker effect sounds interesting. Sort of how suitcases with visiting stickers on them only look cool after you've been to ten or more places. I'd get a bit distracted trying to read them all though...

not at all important, but in case you really did want to know...

[havenward.livejournal.com]

Just because I have to sell them, I've learned this by lecture (think my dad)... The original source of the troops ribbons (either in red white and blue or traditional yellow) was as a charity ~ they'd sell the stickers and raise money to send them food supplies etc. But then everyone and their grandfather got on the bandwagon and unless you're in a surpluss store or charity shop, you can't actually find them for that purpose. (Its sort of the same with those silly rubber band bracelettes... The support for cancer or the tsunami relief was cool, but why the hell do you want a rubber band that says love on it???) The pink ribbons were the same, except for cancer. I find this odd because I always thought that pink was AIDS awareness and cancer was red, but maybe I've got it backwards....

... I need a nap...

[spudtater.livejournal.com]

The pink ribbon is specifically breast cancer, I believe.

[havenward.livejournal.com]

Now that I think about it, I think you're right. There is one for just cancer in general as well, but I don't remember what it is... Which is sad, in a way, because while I totally understand what they're trying to do in raising charity, its almost becoming a "just another ribbon" sort of thing...

[modern-maria.livejournal.com]

I put an Autobot symbol sticker on my car. A girl can hope.

I had the notion to put a sticker from everyplace I traveled on my car in 2002. I succeeded in two instances. Thereafter I had trouble finding stickers such that could be stuck on a car and not disintegrate after the first rainfall, and I gave up.

[lucyjin.livejournal.com]

The only bumper/window sticker I have in my car right now is one that says where my car originally came from.. I still have that Edinburgh Zoo one in my glove compartment, though. xD

Apart from that, the only other bumper/window sticker I'd be willing to use would be one that says "Please Slow Down for Horses". ^^;

[deralte.livejournal.com]

Well, at least telling people to slow down for horses has a practical usage. I'm a bit more leinent about stickers in people's back windows. I have one for truth in kanji at the back of my own car. I figure they have much less impact, not to mention not many people can read mine *L*

[ashfae.livejournal.com]

I had a bumper sticker on my car once that said "Picard/Riker '96" or somesuch.

I took a folklore class which dealt not with twenty million creation myths but with current folklore, urban legends, so on. We spent two days studying bumper stickers. I will never use one again. Well, maybe another Picard for President type one...

[deralte.livejournal.com]

If, you were to assure me that everyone reading the sticker would actually get the joke, I would happily put a 'Vetinari for President' sticker on my car. But since most people would be stupid and assume he was a real person, there will never be such an occurence.

I can't decide if I'd want to take a class on bumper stickers or if it would drive me up the wall on a subject I'm already annoyed at.

[ashfae.livejournal.com]

It would drive you up the wall. It certainly did that to me, at any rate.