Curse

I pwnd U · Jan 19, 2006, 01:38 PM // 13:38

Quote:

Originally Posted by Old Dood

Buses are inefficient. No way I am taking a Bus to work. I work 70 miles from home. It would take hours and hours to get there. What I would like to see in public transportation is the Bullet Trains. Larger cities in the US have some of those or at least regular commuter trains. You have to read up on our history as to why Public transportation was nerfed back in the 1940's & 1950's. Our whole system of transportation is geared toward vehicles. This is why we have the freeway system. There are great dividends to having a freeway system in the United States. I can get into my car and drive across country and never have to stop at a check point or use a passport.

Once again if you never lived here or spent any time here in the United States then you will never understand our culture. I live in the Mid-West. It is a whole different animal then lets say New York City or Chicago. When I am in those cities then the Public transportation is very useful. I take the "L" train or the subways when I am in those cities.

Also I pwnd U, Just make sure your engine temp is between 180-200 degrees and you should be fine.

hehe i have one of those crappy temp gauges that just gives me 1/4 hot 1/2 hot 3/4 hot and HOLY SHIT PULL OVER YOUR GONNA BLOW YOUR ENGINE UP hot.

but i do believe that 180-200 is between half and a 3/4 hot where it is staying. i also think that its slightly broken cause it fluxiates temp a little to easily. like the night it "overheated" it went from HOLY SHIT PULL OVER YOu GONNA BLOW YOUR ENGINE UP hot to ok if you keep driving your gonna overheat your engine way to fast for me. so i think that its slighly broken and unaccurate. so far its been fine since i got my oil changed and coolant topped off so i should be alrite but thanks for the tip. also i refuse to ride the bus to school, as i am a senior and im not taking that big yellow fuel hog to school. ill take my car thank you.

fiery · Jan 19, 2006, 02:36 PM // 14:36

take the metro

Raptox · Jan 19, 2006, 03:18 PM // 15:18

Quote:

Originally Posted by lord of shadow

oh and FYI, i lived in Washington DC until i was 15. i now live in london but i think i qualify as having "been born and raised in the US"

Quote:

Originally Posted by fiery

take the metro

Both of you, then, have lived in or near DC. As such, you should both know that the Metro sucks. It is the worst mass transit system in the US and turns a 5 minute drive into a 60 minute fiasco. There are nowhere near enough stops, the lines don't run out far enough, there aren't enough trains, and it's too expensive. It costs more to park and ride the metro every month than it does to own a car, pay for gas, AND pay your ridiculously high insurance.

Furthermore, it is impossible to live in or around DC without a car. Things just aren't centralized enough. The majority of housing inside DC is either too expensive for the people who work there or is located in Southeast, which is one of the worst places to live in the entire country. All the rest is gov't buildings. Outside DC, where you might actually find an affordable place to live, it's basically suburbia as far as the eye can see. You need a car to get to work, period. That's why they say "Nobody who works in DC lives there." It's not 100% accurate, but it's really damn close.

An example: I compained before about the traffic along my former commute. Well, if I had taken public transport, it would have been worse. It involved something like an hour on the metro, and then two or more bus transfers, and I lived relatively close to a metro stop. All in all it's about two hours, which for a 15 mile journey is unacceptable.

On the other hand, the NYC subway system works extremely well and you don't need a car at all if you live in the city.

Quote:

Originally Posted by lord of shadow

i accept that you personally may not have access to public transport for a 70 mile work journey, but even you have conceded that most of the united states has a perfectly adequate public transport system.
i have nothing against you using a car for a sensible journey, but to imply that the only mode of public transport in the entirety of the US is ludicrous.
would you care to explain why people in new york or DC doing the school run need SUVs.

"Most" major US cities have decent mass transit, with the exception of a few where it either isn't possible (Houston, high water table) or they were just lazy and never bothered (Los Angeles). DC's is bad unless you won the housing and job lottery and happen to have a stop within walking distance of both your house and job. The mass transit system in suburbs and rural areas is virtually nonexistant, however, and not useful to most of the popoulation. Thus, it is underused. We do not have the good railroad system you have in England, we just have a crapload of roads for cars.

Doing a "school run" in an SUV doesn't bother me if the family actually has another use for the SUV. Nobody *needs* a Hummer, though. They're pointless without a machine gun rack and a snorkel, anyway.

TheEPIC · Jan 19, 2006, 04:49 PM // 16:49

I'm kind of rather sick of seeing all these people all angry with Americans who complain that we should drive less and use public transportation and such. I swear if I could find the "What Grinds My Gears" thread that would be it for me.

First, as Raptox has already stated, unless you live in a big city like New York the mass transit sucks. Out here in California (where it seems most everyone commutes), you have to drive unless you lucked out and have one of the MetroLink trains that stops near your house and near your job. (Oh, and Los Angeles has a new subway system, there just aren't that many people using it)

Second, we like driving, and we will continue to do so in whichever car we choose. If it's a SUV or a commuter car, it really makes no difference. Some people just like the feeling of having more size when they are driving. Think about all those mothers who drive the SUVs and such, usually the have some number of smaller kids with them, so it makes sense they'd want to have a larger vehicle that if they get hit in will protect their children. Also, it is infinitely more comfortable to make long trips in a van or SUV than a small car when you have more than two people.

Lastly, many people in America don't like people they don't know. We won't ride on buses or trains next to strangers because we have all these fears ground into us from our earliest days in school and from our parents and such. I personally am not all that much of a people person, and that effects my view on the prospect of public transportation, and there are many other Americans similar to myself.

Anyways, people in America are never going to stop driving in large numbers. We like our cars, and we won't give them up. We derive joy from our cars and driving them around on the highways and mountain roads and such. I don't mind suggestions for new sources of fuel, in fact I look forward to alternate fuels. But stop telling me to use public transport, it's not going to happen (and such is the case with many Americans), you might as well be talking to a brick wall.

Old Dood · Jan 19, 2006, 05:29 PM // 17:29

Thank you Epic and others. You saved me allot of typing. This is a bug in my craw too all this American (US Citizens) bashing. I was trying to be nice about it then you read quick pat answers like "Take The Metro..." What a crock...

I wrote earlier it is bred into our culture about vehicles we own and the driving of them. It is what we do. I drove my kids to school everyday and picked them up for one main reason...security. School buses are not very safe. No seat belts, Unruly Brats on board, etc. My daughter rides with her mom (Mrs Dood ) every morning. Mrs Dood works at the hospital right next door to the high school. When my daughter gets out of school she walks over to Mrs Dood's office and goes home with her at 5pm.

This thread was not started to argue with other people's views on how Americans live their lives. It was about VEHICLES...period. Drop the arrogant tone please or simply do not respond.....Thank you!

TheEPIC · Jan 19, 2006, 05:42 PM // 17:42

Back on topic. I have been so very pleased with my little Honda Civic. It is such a little performer. I feel like I can dart in and out of traffic ( Not like I would

). Also it is just super cheap to maintain and fuel.

It bugs me though to see all the little dings it has accumulated from all the road construction around where I live. I'm beginning to consider getting a new paint job once all the construction work cools down. As I've said before, I really do love the car I've been blessed with and I get angry when I hear another rock ping against my door, or even really angry when someone hits my car (read back a little).

I'm now looking forward to graduating college as my parents told me that as a reward they'd help me make a down payment on a new car. Thus allowing me to have a fun car (my current Civic). And a commuter car (probably a future Civic).

Old Dood · Jan 19, 2006, 05:45 PM // 17:45

The only thing with a new paint job is it is never as good as the factory one. I hear ya though...Nothing irritates me more then walking up to my car and seeing a brand new ding in it.

{integral} · Jan 19, 2006, 05:46 PM // 17:46

Old Dood, I'd just like to apologise for almost turning this thread into a flame war. Perhaps this thread was not the best place to show my displeasure (some of what I've written is, I hope, still valid).

Old Dood · Jan 19, 2006, 05:49 PM // 17:49

Appology Accepted!

Raptox · Jan 19, 2006, 06:13 PM // 18:13

Quote:

Originally Posted by TheEPIC

It bugs me though to see all the little dings it has accumulated from all the road construction around where I live. I'm beginning to consider getting a new paint job once all the construction work cools down. As I've said before, I really do love the car I've been blessed with and I get angry when I hear another rock ping against my door, or even really angry when someone hits my car (read back a little).

A guy by the name of Chuck Klosterman wrote a book that has a quote in it I really like. It goes something like this:

"I hate sitting in traffic because of road construction. One of the most depressing thoughts I ever had was that, no matter how far into the future we get, there is always going to be road construction somewhere."

I'll fix that quote once I get home and find the book.

lord of shadow · Jan 19, 2006, 07:23 PM // 19:23

Quote:

Originally Posted by lunchbreak

Old Dood, I'd just like to apologise for almost turning this thread into a flame war. Perhaps this thread was not the best place to show my displeasure (some of what I've written is, I hope, still valid).

++
sorry i was just flicking through and really could not stand that everybody assumed driving a car was the only way.

just one last thing though, i actually cycle everywhere which, through major cities, is actually on average twice as fast as using a car. i'd like to know how many others use this option as the bike is techinically a vehicle.

Old Dood · Jan 19, 2006, 08:31 PM // 20:31

We have bicycles for the whole family. They are older Schwinn "Cross-fits" for Mrs Dood and I. (Kinda a half mountain/racing bike...thinner tires) The kids have Schwinn mountain bikes. We use them mostly for leisure. We have a river trail in town where we live and they are a blast to ride on. I love getting up early and riding down to the river trail on a warm morning to ride. Much safer then the roads and quiet.

Arturo02 · Jan 19, 2006, 08:31 PM // 20:31

Quote:

Originally Posted by Old Dood

This is a thread about people and their vehicles that do not seem to Get It.

Why do people have to be so stoopid and leave their engines running while pumping gasoline? Start your vehicle up at home and let it warm up first. I do not want to smell your exhaust or be apart of your death(and mine) when your vehicle backfires.

Same goes for people that jump back into their vehicle to stay warm...this causes static electricity...meaning...BOOM..

this actually is a myth. Gas station pumps are grounded. You don't have to worry about that anymore.

As for backfiring, if a Model T pulls up behind you at the pumps I'd be concerned. :P

Arturo02 · Jan 19, 2006, 08:54 PM // 20:54

to comment on the whole public transportation thing...

here in America many of us want more public transportation. A lot of us would rather sit and read the paper or watch something on our ipod video instead of sit in traffic.

But our infrastructure screws us. It is a personal transportation system.

In suburban and urban areas, where are you going to put more rail lines? No more room. This one is compounded by housing development not being paced enough in a community. But that is valuable property tax dollars and towns are hurting for money.

In rural areas, how will you offset the costs involved in the distances public transportation has to travel? Phone service in rural areas is paid for by the rest of us. We would have to do this as well with this idea.

Not to mention that for most of the car's existance, it has been an extremely cheap and reliable method of transportation as well as a freedom.

Getting your first license is a big deal here in the US, it is a ritual of growth in a teen's life. Their first taste of freedom. This naturally stays with you.

Another factor is housing. It isn't easy to live within 10-15 minutes of your workplace anymore. Heck, even living that close can take a half hour to get there. But the trend is people living further and further away from where they work because that's where the more affordable housing is.

There really is no solution until gas goes up to the point where everyone will be forced to take public transportation.

Ultimate Warrior · Jan 19, 2006, 11:46 PM // 23:46

Ok I thought that this thread is about vehicles, not people who are against vehicles. Please stop fighting with each other before this thread gets closed. If someone has said this already oops. And if they have I am just reminding you of it.

I pwnd U · Jan 20, 2006, 12:55 AM // 00:55

ok fiery look u may live in the big city and have a metro but my town sure dont. srry there is no metro here. u either ride yur bike or drive a car. i would ride my bike but see i live 10 miles from school and its uphill to it. and i do mean UPHILL. not easy some im stuck with my car. and my car is running fine again!!

Naprius · Jan 20, 2006, 08:42 AM // 08:42

i hate people that keep bugging me for driving a car, cause it causes GLOBAL WARMING..

Right my friend... we're going into an ice age and you keep annoying me with your hippie crap. I could do with a bit of global warming right now, thank you.

Ohhhh so CO2 causes the global warming right??? well just kill yourself then, what do you think is coming out of that hole you call a mouth when you breathe, jack ass.

Hippies of the world, grab your bike and get off my case.

Old Dood · Jan 20, 2006, 11:52 AM // 11:52

Ok..Ok...Everyone! We are all friends now. No need to add fuel to the fire...it will cause greenhouse gases.

Seriously I accepted an appology...So I am good with it. I will save my frustration for my diabolical plan to add heat seeking missles to my car hood for the idiots that annoy me on the road. hehe

Ensabah Nur · Jan 20, 2006, 12:22 PM // 12:22

Oh man Dood, I so often fantasize about hood mounted gatling guns.....*dream sequence begins.... sequence ends . "Huh,Uh, Oh well, I bet if we all had machine guns mounted on our vehicles EVERYONE would be more courteous and law abiding on the road."

lord of shadow · Jan 20, 2006, 09:34 PM // 21:34

well im glad that's settled, nice to know one other person uses a bike. any others out there?

and sorry to go back to the arguments but the only risk of us being plunged into an ice age is if the gulf stream stops... unfortunately it is indeed slowing down at the moment, because of what? melting ice caps.. guess what causes them? global warming.
so while i am not against cars, and as previously mentioned i happilly "get on my bike" at every possible oppurtunity. the ice age you want global warming to save us from is caused by it (and also not certain by a long shot)

continuing with the high(secondary) school earth biology lesson, what you breath in constitutes approximately 2% CO2, what you breath out around 4%, not pure CO2 im afraid...

anyway im not against cars, or pollution, just against people saying incorrect things. this is my last correction in this topic. if anyone has any questions about general science however, feel free.

the workings of an internal combustion engine might be a good start.

until well.. fairly soon..
bye