Kuwait Driving

Mad Max

“When I looked into my rear view mirror and all I could see was the grill of the GM monster vehicle behind me I knew I had a situation.”

It is quite daunting when road rage is directed against you, especially when the driver is behind a SUV and is covered, as in the Muslim sense of the word. Road rage and dominance of the road is part of the culture here as is general stupidity, lack of respect and no sense for the greater good.  Accidents involving Westerners are our fault because they wouldn’t happen if we were not in the country.  

I was driving in the fast lane, big mistake, with my seven year old and very under powered Hyundai Elantra.  I had just crossed the Hawally Bridge heading to Salmiya on the Fourth Ring Road “when there came such a clatter that I sprung to my rear view mirror to see what was the matter.”  Actually, I knew there was a car on my ass when I saw the headlights flashing like mad followed by the continuous horn blast.  This driver came up so fast I didn’t have a chance to react.

The drill is that these bully drivers aggressively drive so as to force the cars in front of them into the middle lane.  They can repeat the process with the next driver and the next and thereby progress forward with sheer ruthless  aggression. 

 As I drove that day traffic was such that I had no where to go. I couldn’t move to the slower lane.  I was blocked in. I slowed down only to further infuriate the daughter of Islam behind me.  She flashed her lights with more vigor and left her horn blaring.  I’ve never heard such a long continuous sounding of a horn in peace time or in anger.  This lady was off the scale nuts.

I was of the general impression that this was not worth dying over.  My little Muslim dare devil had different ideas and passed me closely on the right nearly scraping me with her mirror while forcing me out of the passing lane to the left. I have never quite seen such a wrathful stare, with such overt evil intent, as the one I got from this insane Islamic woman.  I felt like a true infidel. 

 Mad Max then pulled out in front of me and braked hard and got her speed and mine down from about 80 to 30kph it just a few seconds.  It took some effort to avoid driving into the rear of her vehicle.  She then rapidly took  off leaving me slow and vulnerable as other traffic had to,  in turn, slow down to avoid hitting  me as I sat  there like potential road kill. 

As Allah would have it I got to the next light a few minutes later and who should be beside me but my little mad Muslim.  I gave her my biggest smile and waved over to her in a bid for greater Western/Arab road solidarity.  

She screamed over to me “Fuck You!!!”  

You just have to love these people and their little cultural foibles.

mr