ignorance is bliss, but what you don't know may hurt you

x-posted on blurry landscapes

my dear aunt always warned me about showing off my gadgets while on public transport. there's the danger of getting my phone or my mp3 player stolen from right under my nose, or, like what happened to me once, dropping the device and sitting on tenterhooks waiting for the people to get off so i can search on the floor (thankfully that one ended well). and if she had known just how much i depend on my mp3 player while on the bus, she'd have warned me even more about paying attention to my surroundings. well, this time, she didn't need to. i found out on my own.

the problem with traffic in the philippines is that if the driver doesn't act like he's king of the road, he'd end up as the whipping boy. from buses to jeepneys to the tricycles (the frailest motorized public transport in the world), each has to assert its own supremacy on the road to the detriment of the unfortunate slow car that blocked its way. regular commuters on the provincial line can only shake their heads and hold on to their seats whenever the driver weaves in and out of the obstacle course that is the slex at full speed. so last night, while i was mentally bobbing my head to foo fighters' five songs and a cover, i barely paid attention when the bus made that unmistakable lurch that meant it was overtaking and had to abort. after that i got a brainwave, and decided to no longer endure the cold blast from the aircon vent so i put on my blazer. then the bus stopped at the intersection, i looked up, and i knew that something was wrong.

i used to hate sitting at the back rows of the bus because i had terrible motion sickness as a kid. but now that i've been commuting for nine years, i found that the only thing that beats sitting at the rear is sitting at front with no seatmates. and i just happened to barely catch the bus before leaving the terminal, so i was sharing the last three-seater with another woman and her little girl. and having my earphones glued to my ears closed me off from the world, so i was like "whuh?" when i noticed the commotion at the front of the bus. and however much i listened, i really couldn't get what was happening. after about five minutes the bus moved again, but all the people in front of me alternated between standing and peeking at the road ahead, and talking excitedly amongst themselves. i was still helplessly clueless.

the bus let off a few more passengers, and finally stopped in front of the gate of the military camp in my town. i knew something was up. i finally asked the guy in front of me what was happening. apparently, the bus tried to overtake an armored car and got into a bind, but the armored car wouldn't budge. luckily, the oncoming vehicle from the opposite direction gave way and the bus surged ahead, but the armored car still pulled ahead of us. at the intersection, which is an unofficial bus stop, the armored car blocked our bus and some guy with a rifle came out. and everyone who was supposed to get off obviously scrambled back in fear. i heard from a different witness the even the driver sprang out of his seat after locking his window and the door. it was unclear how the standoff ended, but eventually the armored car pulled away, and the people at front memorized the plate number to tell the police. presently the bus moved again, and my suspicions were proven correct when we turned into the town proper (which the bus never does on the regular trip) and headed to the municipality police station, where the passengers at the front as well as the bus driver and conductor gave their statements. the men in the armored car were detained.

all's well that ends well. ya think? my aunt made a comment about obnoxious armored car drivers who think they're king. i refrained from making my own case about bus drivers who should be driving for ferrari. but the sorry state of the world is that road rage is no longer uncommon. only a few weeks ago a bus driver was shot dead from a road skirmish at edsa. this is not the biggest reason why i'm still ambivalent about driving. i have to wonder, though, why i'm still indifferent about it. i'm worried that i've become so apathetic that i can only summon a token amount of fear when i found out what happened. it makes me wonder if this level of egocentricity (is that even a word?) is still healthy.