Agreed, last resort always, but to let buses and vans and cars cut us up and endanger our lives and then wave them on with a smile and reward their shitty road-craft with respect is simply encouraging future problems.
**I'm not sure anyone said 'wave on with a smile'. I've tapped on a couple of windows and had words with people, but generally in a reasonable tone - along the lines of 'mate, that was too close - you almost clipped me with your mirror' or some such - which has usually resulted in them being profusely apologetic. On the odd occasion I've received abuse, I've generally told them they're out of line and gone on my way.
To illustrate the point about unintended consequences -
Once, years ago, on a partic. bad day I banged on the window of some Merc and yelled because the guy had been basically trying to force me off the road as I wasn't accelerating quickly enough between traffic lights. I thought he'd ignored me, but he had actually decided to chase me about a mile to my place of work and try to run me off the road the entire time. I thought that I'd lost him, but after locking my bike up and walking to the front door of the office he suddenly pulled up, jumped out of the car and started trying to hit me in front of a startled group of colleagues screaming 'do you know who I am?' (I didn't).
Eventually he decided there were too many people watching and that he was holding up traffic, so he scarpered.
I got in shit from the grand poohbah of my then employer for sullying the working environment or some such.**
Not sure what connection you are attempting to make ?
Just trying to find an angle that'd make sense to you. Violence has unintended consequences, is all.
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