1. Welcome to SportsJournalists.com, a friendly forum for discussing all things sports and journalism.

    Your voice is missing! You will need to register for a free account to get access to the following site features:
    • Reply to discussions and create your own threads.
    • Access to private conversations with other members.
    • Fewer ads.

    We hope to see you as a part of our community soon!

Thou Shalt Not Drive Slowly in the Left Lane!

Discussion in 'Anything goes' started by Write-brained, Jun 20, 2007.

  1. Saw this mentioned tonight on The Daily Show.

    This ranks right up there with the Pope blessing all those cars last year.


    http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070619/ap_on_re_eu/vatican_road_rage

    The Vatican on Tuesday issued a "Ten Commandments" for motorists to keep them on the road to salvation, warning drivers against the sins of road rage, abuse of alcohol or even simple rudeness.

    The unusual document from the Vatican's office for migrants and itinerant people also warned that automobiles can be "an occasion of sin" — particularly when used to make a dangerous passing maneuver or when used by prostitutes and their clients.

    And it suggested prayer might come in handy — performing the sign of the cross before starting off and saying the rosary along the way. The rosary was particularly well-suited to recitation by all in the car, it said, since its "rhythm and gentle repetition does not distract the driver's attention."

    Cardinal Renato Martino, who heads the office, told a news conference the Vatican felt it necessary to address the pastoral needs of motorists because driving has become such a big part of contemporary life.

    He cited World Health Organization statistics that said an estimated 1.2 million people are killed in road crashes each year and as many as 50 million are injured.

    "That's a sad reality, and at the same time, a great challenge for society and the church," he said.

    ...

    The document, "Guidelines for the Pastoral Care of the Road," extols the benefits of driving — family outings, getting the sick to the hospital, allowing people to get to work and seeing other cultures.

    But it laments a host of ills associated with automobiles: Drivers use their cars to show off; driving "provides an easy opportunity to dominate others" by speeding; and drivers can kill themselves and others if they drink, use drugs or fall asleep at the wheel.

    It warned about the effects of road rage, saying driving can bring out "primitive" behavior in motorists, including "impoliteness, rude gestures, cursing, blasphemy, loss of sense of responsibility or deliberate infringement of the highway code."

    It called for drivers to obey speed limits and to exercise a host of Christian virtues: charity to fellow drivers, prudence on the roads, hope of arriving safely and justice in the event of crashes.

    Martino's initiative was sure to make headlines in Italy, where car culture is deeply entrenched — this is the home of Ferrari and Fiat — and where weekend highway deaths make the evening news on a regular basis.
    ...

    But for some, the document was at least reason to poke fun at the Vatican.

    "Overtaking is a sin? Well, then I'm a murderer, I'll turn myself in immediately," quipped movie director Dino Risi, whose classic film "The Easy Life" — "Il Sorpasso," or "The Overtaking" — ends with a car crash.

    "I think the Vatican has lost its marbles," he added, according to the ANSA news agency.

    There was no indication Pope Benedict XVI had approved of, or even read, the document.
     
  2. imjustagirl2

    imjustagirl2 New Member

    I saw it here last night. :D

    http://www.sportsjournalists.com/forum/threads/43217/
     
  3. zeke12

    zeke12 Guest

    This is at least the third time for this one...
     
  4. Well fuck them and fuck you, too. ;D
     
  5. zeke12

    zeke12 Guest

    Atta Boy, w-b!

    That's the kind of moxie we like to see out of you...
     
  6. Breakyoself

    Breakyoself Member

    if people do drive slowly in the left lane, do i have the right to smite them?
     
  7. PhilaYank36

    PhilaYank36 Guest

    I'm surprised I haven't committed vehicular homicide...



    more often.
     
  8. A motorcycle ... a goddamned motorcycle ... cut me off yesterday. Took everything I had not to make him my hood ornament.
     
  9. dog428

    dog428 Active Member

    You know what's annoying me more and more for some reason? These assholes who slow to 10 mph on a highway, bringing traffic to damn near a complete stop behind them, as they cruise along BESIDE the mile-long left turn lane.

    I've been tempted twice in the past two days to give somebody a little NASCAR rub as this shit was happening. I don't understand. It's a perfectly good lane. The asphalt in it is as good as the asphalt on the highway -- hell, maybe even better. There's no reason to slow to a crawl before driving on it. And those yellow lines that come just before the turn lane, it's OK if your tires touch those as you enter the turn lane.

    Making matters worse: For some reason -- possibly overuse -- my horn stopped working last week. Killing me.
     
  10. Flying Headbutt

    Flying Headbutt Moderator Staff Member

    I could start a crusade for this commandment.
     
  11. BTExpress

    BTExpress Well-Known Member

    Depends on what you're definition of "slowly" is.

    If the speed limit is 55, and I'm doing 60 in the left lane, and you come barrelling in on my tail doing 75 . . . I am NOT going to move over.

    Why?

    Because an asshole running up on someone's tail at 75 is apt to pass on the right in anger at any moment. If we both happen to change lanes at the same time --- with him flooring the accellerator --- then you have an accident waiting to happen.

    If getting somewhere five minutes sooner is so important . . . leave the house earlier.
     
  12. BYH

    BYH Active Member

    If driving 60 mph on the highway is so important...........drive in the middle lane.
     
Draft saved Draft deleted

Share This Page