Stupidity

Shortly before midnight last night I was driving Vacant along Manning Road, Double Bay. Approaching Cooper Park I noticed movement and reflection just inside the darkened park and immediately picked it for young kids out late, mucking around and probably drinking. It’s what plenty of kids do on a Saturday night when they’re too young to enter licensed premises yet old enough to be out unsupervised.

As I travelled past at about 50 kph two simultaneous impacts slammed into the cab with an almighty crash. It scared the pants off me and I hit the brakes thinking a side window had shattered. After checking and confirming the windows were intact I lit up the park with the side spotlight. A bunch of kids ran for thirty metres then stopped, as if taunting me to get out and chase them. I reversed the cab a little and they ran some more, and stopped again. But what could I do ?

Next thing a middle-aged fella tapped on my window. ‘Mate, I saw them throw those rocks at you’. ‘What, are they schoolkids ?’, I asked. ‘I think so’, he said. ‘They’ve been hanging around for awhile and all the residents are really pissed off with them. I’ve already called the police. How about you drive around to the other side of the park while I tell them I’ve got a gun’.

Still shaken and not really thinking straight I agreed and took off to look for them. However by the time I arrived it suddenly dawned on me that this was ridiculous. What the hell was I going do if I did find them ? Make a citizens arrest ? Beat them up, single-handedly ? Not to mention working in concert with someone threatening them with a supposed gun !?

Immediately I turned around and went had some dinner, embarrassed at my blatant stupidity. I could easily have ended up like this bloke, being stretchered from a park early this morning in Manly.

Comments

[Aurelius]

Hi Adrian
The desire to for immediate retaliation is understandable. But as you say, at least you didn't end up in an ambulance. How many of the stabbed-cabbie stories have a similar start to yours?
Yeah, you might have ended up doing something daft, but you recovered and went and had dinner.
And got to write about it afterwards.

[Jock]

Hey,
I live just off Manning Road and there are mobs of kids like that all the time. Its the back route from Bondi Junction to the Golden Sheaf. Down that stretch i usually just speed through with all windows up. Good on ya nonetheless for not going after them with that dude.

[Lee]

Your moment of 'stupidity' is normal, Adrian. It's a normal reaction but your thoughts soon cleared and the adrenalin calmed down and you didn't react. In a similar position to the one you found yourself in, I would've been angry too, and wanted to be able to get the little rats...who should be at home in bed at that hour of the night!

I do wonder about the parents of these kids. It will never cease to amaze and anger me, their lack of concern for their children and their children's welfare. Let alone the welfare of others at the hands of these kids.

One such example...those boys in Victoria who video'ed and sexually abuse that young girl of 17.

Neglect and ignorance of the whereabouts of one's children is not just confined to the so-called 'lower-classes'...it's a disease that has no class distinction.

I'm glad you came to no harm, Adrian.

[Lee]

'abused'...typo!

[justajoba]

hmmmm..grap them by there collars and a good kick in the arse ...i think

[Nathaniel]

Adrian I had a similar experience happen last week lucky for me the kids got the car in front and I skidded to an abrupt halt, made a hasty u-turn and got out of there.

It's not just their actions that cause the anger but the potential for damage to the cab someone else owns and the hit in the hip pocket to get it repaired, as I'm sure you will agree.

Take care out there.

[Walter]

Back in the day, my first rule in an incident like that was to get the heck out of Dodge. Knew a fellow driver that got out to confront the kids who broke his rear window--that guy was in a coma for a month and out of work for six months.

[Lee]

Adrian! Where are you Adrian! Come out and play! You are missed! I hope nothing is wrong!

[briscab]

Happening to often up here on the south side of Brisbane as well. Two weeks ago on a Saturday morning around 1.45am as I slowed the cab approaching traffic lights a young guy wearing a hooded track top and a bandana pulled up over his face stepped off the footpath, It immediately caught my attention but to late, as I passsed him he let fly with a rock right through the closed front passenger window. The rock (about two thirds the size of an A4 sheet of paper)lodged itself between my shoulder and my seat. End result glass thru-out cab, pieces embedded in my arm and the best earning part of my night gone. I did'nt stop either ....just drove on in shock for a few minutes. Reported the incident to police who said "Theres nothing we can do".

[Lee]

These clowns need rounding up and put into the army! Let's see how good they are then!