The usual scenario goes like this.
Local authority change some aspect of main road traffic management after bowing to pressure from aggrieved local residents fed up with shite road system and surfacing, rather than simply improving the road surface and system.
Commuters react badly to said change and seek alternative 'ratrun' to avoid aforementioned traffic management measure.
Residential road becomes racetrack for the usual brain-dead F1 wannabe in his/her shiny silver over-engineered invariably German company ego booster.
Local residents complain to local authority (who, remember, brought this all about) concerned for safety of loved ones.
Local authority, in blind attempt to shut residents up rather than address original or secondary issues, now commission traffic audit, planning survey, engineers report and detailed plans for ill-conceived traffic calming scheme (this all takes months, if not years).
Local authority's cowboy contractor (Lowest Bid Wins Contract Screw Quality Ltd) installs badly spaced and therefore ineffective speedhumps in residential road (this takes weeks, if not months).
Usual brain-dead F1 wannabe in his/her shiny silver over-engineered invariably German company ego booster is now joined by local chemically-assisted youths on scooters and Cro-Magnon mouth-breathers in white builder's trucks in using residential street 24 hours a day and 7 days a week as newly-chicaned racetrack which, ironically, induces all the above to drive faster.
Local residents roll eyes, suck air through gritted teeth and wish they had never mentioned the problem in the first place.
The usual scenario then begins all over again. However, a new off-shoot scenario occurs concurrently, going like this:
Local child interupts breakfast of neighbouring family to advise that they suspect that their much-loved family pet of family appears to be motionless at side of aforementioned road.
Father of family retrieves remains of much-loved family pet from road and tries to explain to four distressed daughters, accompanied by sobs of distraught spouse, why much-loved family pet won't be coming through the catflap ever again.
Local family of six mourn senseless death of much-loved family pet whilst trying quite hard not to hate wanker who killed much-loved family pet for sake of beating the next red light.
Father of family of much-loved family pet rants in weblog but it doesn't help much.
Sorry to hear that. My family had a lot of cats when I was growing up, and I went through this a few times. It's horrible.
Posted by: SimonG at May 18, 2003 01:37 AMThanks Simon
Posted by: bignoseduglyguy at May 18, 2003 11:21 AMThis is why I have four inside cats now. I had a beloved cat killed in 98, when we lived in the country. Three years ago, as we were moving into down, someone deliberately ran over another cat. I love my animals too much to want to go through that again. We live on a busy road now and during the spring, you see about a cat a week that has been killed. If you raise them inside and never allow them to go out, they adjust just fine. There are always going to be idiots on the road. It's about the only thing you can do that works.
Posted by: Teri Pittman at May 19, 2003 02:08 PMOh man, I'm really sorry to hear that. It reminds me of the time my best friends dog broke out and was hit and drug a quartermile but a truck driver that just didn't want to stop.
Luckily, the plates were taken down anf teh retard was brought up on animal cruelty charges, but it didn't bring the pup back...
If you need somone to chat with, catch me at home or email me.
Posted by: Jason Stare at May 20, 2003 06:33 PM