‘The Theme’

I hate to have my first post after Eid be so dark and grim, but I feel this is something every Jordanian needs to be aware of.  Anyone who lives, drives, or visits Jordan knows that drivers in this country are completely psychotic .  There is a potent mix of aggressive drivers, impatient drivers, unfocused drivers, and just plain stupid drivers; which is a very dangerous combination.

Here is a sad but true statistic for you, courtousy of the Public Security Department’s media office:  Nine poeople were killed and 216 were injured in 883 road accidents during the Eid Al Fitr holidays!!

Police Spokesperson Major Basheer Daaja said that the Kingdom witnessed several serious accidents in spite of the awareness campaigns organized by the deparement.  He urged motorists to abide by and respect traffic regulations and to take precautionary measures to avoid such accidents.  Daaja also called on citizens to drive carefully, especially during rainy weather when the raods are slippery. Warning against using brakes which lead to skidding, he advised drivers to use the lower gear instead during winter.

What awareness campaignes?!  They are obviously not doing enough.  I understand that our roads do not accommodate for perfect driving, but drivers in this country have no respect for traffic regulations nor the safety of others.  They just want to get to their destination and don’t care how many laws they break along the way.  The sad part of it all, is that I can see traffic police standing idle doing nothing about it!!  I am well aware of the thunder storms and downpours across the Kingdom over the last few days; but I can safely assume that 95% of the 883 accidents was caused by our very own home-grown stupid drivers.

I don’t even want to get started on my feelings towards driving in Jordan.  That is another topic all together on which I can ramble on forever. The point of this post is an utter shock at the drastic number of accidents that occured in a 5-day period.  Not all families managed to celebrate a joyous Eid Al Fitr.  I honestly think a statistic such as this deserves more attention than a tiny paragraph on the third page of the Jordan Times.  Jordanians need to be aware of the rising number of car accidents and the deaths/injuries attributed to these accidents.  I also think the Public Security Department needs to do a hell of a lot more than mere traffic campaigns.  There is a serious and dangerous problem that needs to be tackled immediately before more lives are lost.  For God’s sake people…wake up!!