Stop Signs

Why are at least half of the drivers in Hoboken under the impression that stop signs do not apply to them?

I was walking my dog earlier today when an SUV came barreling down a side street and flew past the stop sign without so much as a glance. Why did this bother me? Oh yeah, because right as that car came flying down the road, I was in the process of stepping out into the crosswalk with my little dog in tow, when suddenly, I had to jerk him back towards the sidewalk to avoid getting plowed over by the speeding SUV.

Thanks, asshole. In a hurry, I see. Here's a hint: if you're coming towards a crosswalk and there's a pedestrian in that crosswalk, then the pedestrian has the right of way, and while you might not have seen the innocent little dog standing at my side, you certainly couldn't have missed me, a 5'8" woman in running shorts and a neon pink tank top which, granted, I'm not proud of, but normally serves its purpose of making me more visible to assholes like you so that I can actually attempt to cross the street without winding up in the emergency room.

Now I'll admit that I've done the infamous and legitimately ticket-able rolling stop on occasion, but that was down in corn field country where the streets aren't filled with people and the only animals you see walking around are cows grazing or horses waiting to be fed. Furthermore, the rolling stop would've been far better than what this guy did. At least the rolling stop involves some form of slowing down and acknowledging the merit and enforceability of the stop sign in your average driving scenario. This guy basically said "screw you, stop sign, I'm going home," and continued on his merry way without so much as a teeny tiny tap on the brakes.

The scary thing is that this guy is not alone. I see people pulling that same move on a daily basis, and while I'm normally not the biggest stickler for the rules, this crap has got to stop.

Despite the guy's speed, I actually managed to get a good look at his license plate number and was so appalled by his recklessness that for a moment, I considered calling the cops. Of course, at the time they were probably too busy arresting the mayor to deal with rogue drivers, but that's a different story.

Although "grudge holding" ranks up there as one of my greatest talents, I've managed to calm down from my earlier bout of rage and let the incident go...but the next time a driver tries to pull that sort of act while I'm crossing the street, I will have no problem flinging a bag of my little's dog crap onto his windshield. And if he yells about it, I'll just say "sorry...didn't see you there..kind of like you and the stop sign."