"Must control fist of death."
Alice from Dilbert
These days aggressive behaviour on the road, also known as road rage, is a very hot topic. Equally disturbing is that air rage also appears on the rise. Studies and reports on these matters are released on a regular basis. However, not many of those studies have suggestions for how to stop to rise of outbursts on the road or in the air.
Interestingly enough, some studies claim that the most likely time road rage occurs is friday afternoons. This may sound odd, considering that friday afternoon is supposed to be the time when a person can actually unwind and throw his anxieties away for the weekend. However, if you consider what a worker (of any job) goes through during the work week, it wouldn't be so surprising.
Many people work in big cities and may not live there. That means many have to commute, often for hours, to get to work. Many have to get up early to get to work each and every day so that they won't be late. They often worry about whether they will make it to work on time. This ordeal can be a stressful experience. When you have a few thousand people crammed in a traffic jam, sparks can lite fires easily.
Even when one gets to work on time, the stress one gets at work can be overwhelming. Meeting deadlines, dealing with annoying co-workers, and constant fear of failure can all be contributing factors to a person's stress level. There are very few ways people can relieve their stress in the workplace and so a person's stress level rises through the roof. Near the end of the week, many people's stress is like a volcano about to explode. On friday afternoon, they find that they can't take the pressure anymore. The result is often a violent outburst where a person is unable to control oneself. If this happens during the drive home, the outcome can be dangerous. One can become ruthless on one's driving and the result can be deadly. However, road rage can occur anytime of the week, so when you are behind the wheel, don't let the guard down even if it is sunday morning.
Even when one can work at home, one isn't free from stress. Trying to make ends meet, managing the time, dealing with children are not easy tasks either. If the stress one accumulates at home is not properly channelled, the result can also be violent — domestic abuse, family fights, war of words, etc.
We are all busy people, but we should find some time to relax. One can take a few big breaths, take a brief walk (for example, to the water cooler and back), or yell all you want (it works for me, but don't do it in public, as others may think you are nuts).
Cases of air rage is on the rise in recent years. One can threaten or, in some extreme cases, attack other passengers or the pilot. Flying can be stressful even before you board the plane.
For some odd reason, many choose to get to the airport at the latest possible time (that also applies to me). On the way there, many check and double-check to see whether they have brought all the necessary items. At the airport, one often has to wait in long line-ups to check-in for the flight. And then there is the X-ray scanner (my wallet has failed me many times). Even if you get to the board the plane on time, the flight may be delayed for various reasons. Getting on a plane is a stressful experience and some people can become disgruntled from it. If the service on board is terrible, it just adds oil to the fire. Some may go beserek and threaten others, usually total strangers, for no reason. Of course, there's the long wait for the luggage after the flight, but that is not an overwhelming experience compared to being threatened at 35000 feet.
We could ban alcohol on board and at the airport, but that would lead to another group of disgruntled flyers. Don't forget the airlines are trying to take us to our destinations safely. So as long as the delay isn't ridiculously long, I wouldn't mind.
We are living at the speed of light and we often complain whenever something is not up to speed. I think we should lighten up. I'm not saying that we should go back to the time when everything crawls at snail's pace. I just think that we should stop and smell the flowers once in a while (but not too often, either).
The recent FEDS elections had a measly 8 percent turnout. However, this isn't too surprising. Many of us have little idea about what the FEDS do. If the FEDS can have more exposure around the campus, may be people will start to care about our student government. This is the first year where all votes are made electronically. Many may have turned away from voting because it was time-consuming and confusing (it took me 20 minutes to complete the ballot). E-voting is a good idea, but they should make sure that students understand to system before implementing it full time.
[Last issue a columnist made a response to my opinion on the tuition fees on both sides of the border. The tuition here at UW is lower if you are in REGULAR. For instance, this year I paid $4600 in tuition, while students of California, Washington, and Idaho pay $3000?4000 U.S. to attend the State universities of their own state (Cal State, WSU, and ISU respectively), or $4500?6000 Canadian. I apologize for making such a glaring ommission. Mr. Cole's point is by no means invalid, I'm just trying to compare tuition fees of the two countries on a more even playing field. (You may wonder why I chose colleges from the western states, it is because I AM from the west, namely, Vancouver, B.C. If you wonder why I came here in the first place, the short answer is that the math program here interests me the most.)]
Jason "the Screamer" Lau