Personal 13 Nov 2005 06:22 pm
"They hit my $pet and then just drove off!"
This is what kennedye said on eJacqui's blog:
When I was younger, our cat at the time got hit by a car (whose driver then drove off, BTW; hey, if you're reading this, I hope you ended up with a giant brain tumor or something, you worthless fuck — but I digress.)
To which I answer… What would you have them do instead?
I've had several cats killed by cars in my lifetime, and I've been heartbroken each time. In my family, cats are members of the family, a step above a mere "pet."
Anyway, if someone hits an animal, and you live in a neighborhood where there is more than one house — as is the case with me — what do you do? Go ring everyone's doorbell until you found out whose dog/cat/parakeet it is?
It doesn't matter what the circumstances surrounding the accident are. The animal is dead, and there's nothing you can do about it. What if someone has someplace to be in a hurry? What if they didn't even know it happened? What if they just didn't care?
In short, what would someone accomplish by sticking around after the fact besides being the target of your wrath and sadness? It serves no purpose.
Don't get me wrong, I'd feel terrible if I killed an animal with my car — shit I feel bad when I hit a frog in the road on those humid, rainy nights — but if I hit your pet, I'm probably not going to stop, because it doesn't do me, or you, any good, aside from providing a dumping ground for your anguish. Which I frankly don't care to be no matter how the accident happened. You probably wouldn't stop either, because I don't know of anyone who wants to be on the receiving end of someone else's anger. Particularly if you don't know the other person and/or how they'll react.
The "decent thing" be damned. It's safer to continue on your way. It's easy and fun (and I suppose therapeutic) to make up fantasies about how the person who hit your pet was a horrible person and deserve death, but the reality is that they're probably a practical person who's looking out for #1's best interest. Which is something you can't really fault anyone for doing, because doing the "decent thing" always comes secondary to our own well-being, and/or the well-being of our superorganism.*
* Which explains why suicide bombings are perfectly logical in some fundamentalist circles.
on 13 Nov 2005 at 6:45 pm 1.erik said …
Since it was my comment, I suppose I might as well respond.
What really pissed me off was that the guy *saw* my mother and I waving at him to slow down as the cat had ran (uncharacteristically) out into the street, hit her, and then just kept motoring along, without ever slowing down.
I just found it incomprehensibly offensive and have never forgotten it.
Generally, I don't expect to find myself in the same situation, as I always drive slower in residential areas (to the occasional annoyance of people behind me) and keep a sharp eye for pets and kids, but if I ever were, I would be compelled to stop. It's just something I would feel necessary, even if all it accomplished was to let the owner vent at me. I can't explain why, it just seems like a necessary thing. (I can say that if said animal were still alive, I would move heaven and earth to get it to an emergency vet.)
I can understand your point though; not everybody shares the sentiment. I think it may have to do with how one views pets in general.
I always brake for hansers, though. <3
on 13 Nov 2005 at 7:33 pm 2.Rian said …
Fair enough, I suppose. :p