I was on the highway today and lived. Four lanes, four trucks, heavy but not horrible traffic and an exit, and the most unsafe driving condition we can do something about were present. The truck in front of me went right onto the exit. giving me a clear view of the lit brake lights of the truck in front of him. As I hit my brakes I see the truck that was behind the tanker truck that is now passing me on my left. As I'm wondering if the truck behind me will have brakes as good as mine or to avoid becoming a Hyundai pancake will I have to crash into the truck on the exit. (Driving into the rolling bomb was not an option.)

Fortunately for me the brake lights were just to slow down. (Parts of MA interstates still have a 55 pretend speed limit.) The passing bomb stayed on my left as we went by a State Trooper on the side of the road at 55 mph. (My visibility was, not good and I didn't see him until we were past him.

While we can't do much about icy roads or sun glare, etc. the only thing we can do to make the interstates safer is get the cops off of them.

I know it is counter-intuitive, but by trying to make it safer we create a hazard. (The "obvious" solution makes the problem worse.)

There are many counter-intuitive things but if I name them the moderator will accuse me of being too political. Other examples are from chess, and I'd rather not bore you.

The only other non-political and non-chess example I can think of is the "benefit" to morale of employee evaluations. (Everyone thinks they should get the highest rating, hence most are disappointed.)

I've heard that correctly prescribed and correctly take medication is the third largest cause of death in the US. (I make no claim of accuracy on that, but if true it is very counter intuitive.)

The other ones are jokes like nothing spices up a marriage like divorce or death must have survival value to be part of the living process.

Count yourself lucky you don't live in Britain where we have bus-only lanes on several major motorways. Where is the logic there? According to official figures, maybe 1 bus uses it every minute, compared to about 1400 cars and 200 freight lorries (trucks).

Traffic regulations are devised by people who don't like people.

DOWNTOWN los angeles has some of the most evil timed traffic lights imaginable esp on 7th st.

Try the Valley sometime, WORKCOLLAR. Allow me to introduce you to the joy that is the junction of the 101 and Mulholland Drive/Valley Circle Blvd.

ScottN- I went thru there with my pal from Ucla in the Smog!, in the 80s, I was looking for the Air Muesum , for my favorite ww2 plane- then Ifound out it moved to Chino, Ca

I was driving on the Riverside freeway when some idiot lady nearly crashed me with her mobile phone on.Then she gave me the middle finger at me...

Cheeleader ambush, and they get to be homeschooled!

When I was in jr. high, they beat me up and suspended me and they got away wih it.I called them ------,and hit em-(it was the other way around, I got sent to the principal for fighting)I was 4.2 and they were 5.5 and above. The rest of the school heard or saw what happened and left me alone! later the 4 or 5 kids tried to get me arrested for fighting and they showed the principal where we fought. It was just outside the school fence!The principal said call the city police!(they didnt, i wonder why)
When I got home black n blue, my parents grounded me for a month for fighting.

wow.Nove and you-know -who.you can ask...

A schoolkid got a call from his Army mommie from Iraq, and gets suspended for using a cell phone! She called back and a teacher took away the kids cell phone, growled no phone calls unless its a emergancy!The mommie might be dead any minute!

abc news last year.

And how are any of these counter intuitive things?
Put them on the rants or news boards.

He's saying no fighting, and no cellphones!
(no matter what!)

p.s.- one cheerleader is bailed out by Dr. Phil for $30 grand.Dr.Phil's producers refuted that statement.(could be the other way around, though.)

they hid their faces on camera.

nbc 11 news..

somoone clarify ? (you know who)

the article in question is in Usa Today.

Regarding the school kid I've heard their is another side to that story. The School's version is that the teacher came up to him and told him to get off of the phone (school policy) and rather than telling his mom to hold on for 1 sec and than telling the teacher "it's my Mom, a soldier in Iraq, she doesn't get that much time near a phone, I'm on my lunch period so can I please talk to her" he started cussing at the teacher and that's what he got in trouble for. Also they said he's been a discipline problem often. Of course another 'nother version of the story I heard was that the teacher straight grabbed it out of his hand and hung up the call (which being an international call didn't have a callback number) and than he started cussing at her because he wasn't sure if he would EVER get to talk to Mom again.

I really don't know who to believe as either version sounds believable. When I was in HS I remember girls getting into trouble for wearing shorts/skirts that were too short because they were a half a centimeter above the length allowed by the dress code while other girls were wearing short skirts, crop tops and cleavage shirts that were way more off the dress code but no one in the administration had a problem with them wearing that.

I even had a teacher who told me that he stopped enforcing ANY dress code violation after he sent a girl who was wearing cheerleading shorts that were in CLEAR VIOLATION to the office to call her folks to bring in some more suitable cloths. She tried to show him the 2 other notes that the office sent to previous teachers that day saying she was fine but he sent her anyway. Of course she came back with a 3rd note saying her shorts were fine and he had no choice but to abide. After that he said he wold never send anyone to the office for dress code violations because if they aren't going to fairly enforce it what's the point.

I remember punk-rock girls saying that the cheerleaders could practically wear bikinis to school and the administration wouldn't do anything while they got into trouble and had to get the parents to bring in new cloths for stuff that didn't even break the rules or barely so. I also remember a preppy girl saying the "freaks" (what we called goth kids at my school) could wear anything while she got into trouble. She calmed it was because the administration and teachers were afraid of the freaks. I remember another Punk Rock girl who wore crop tops that showed her whole belly (blatant violation of the dress code, not that I minded) and never got into trouble. Truth is that the administration was completely arbitrary in what they did, or at least some other factor was at work that I didn't understand. Perhaps parents' connections came into play. The point is my experience with school administrators is that so many have no idea what's going on in their own school and aren't fair at all. So basically I have no idea if this kid is a discipline problem who had it coming or not. Sorry for spending this much time saying "it could be either way I really don't know."

While we can't do much about icy roads or sun glare, etc. the only thing we can do to make the interstates safer is get the cops off of them. I know it is counter-intuitive, but by trying to make it safer we create a hazard. (The "obvious" solution makes the problem worse.)

Blue Berry, The Germans have a word for this - solutions for a problem that make the situation worse - but I can't remenber what it is!