people bugging me about my charger

[Cooter]

Won't argue the fundamentals of bullying as the same kid that got pushed around physically will shoot the bully same as the one that went 'postal' for 'emotional' abuse. End result is still the same. The bully is dead and all parents could/would do before these punks began dying was to tell little Johnny to 'run tell' which we all know NOW just made things way worse. Now, teachers/parents pull kids, move, have bully arrested, etc. Because of a fear that wasn't there 30 years sgo.

Point is, nobody saw a real problem until people started dying. Sad, but true.
A mind is a terrible thing to f*ck with. Some just had to learn that lesson the hard way that's all. Some were brought up KNOWING when to say enough before something happens. Like coming up to a strangers car and opening the damn door.

[Troy]

You sort of have to expect the attention when you drive one of these cars - it comes with the territory. That's like complaining that random people take pictures of you when you're out with your super model/celebrity girlfriend. Many, if not most, people have never seen these cars in person - let alone out on the street where they are approachable.

I must be too nice. I talk to people and welcome the chance to tell them about my car. Are some people annoying? Absolutely! But many just want to know more about cars and can't find anyone to help them. If I approach someone about their car and they're a dickhead then I assume it's a "trophy" that they paid a lot of money for but don't have a clue about. Maybe they are just busy but I feel better thinking that they feel they are too good for me.

As for opening a door - ridiculously bad manners, inconsiderate, and/or downright stupid. Probably parents who also have no respect for others.

The comments about shooting are silly. Just because you have a permit to carry a gun doesn't mean you can just shoot anyone for doing something dumb. Don't you guys with permits actually study the law? Physical violence is a LOT more likely - but, really, wouldn't you just drive away? After explaining how bad of an idea it is to open someone's door of course! Yes, I have guns and a carry permit. Doesn't mean I'm pointing one in the face of every stranger on the street! If I'm in the suburbs a the Dairy Whip on a Saturday afternoon my reaction would certainly be different than if I were in the middle of a high crime area downtown late at night.

Troy

[Kern Dog]

This went too far.
My point was possibly extropolated. I am as friendly as you can imagine when approached about the Charger. I bought it as a $1700 beat down 318 driver and spent years and my own $$$ to build it the way that I like it. If people come up to talk or take pictures, I am totally fine with that.
It shifts from normal behavior when a stranger touches the car. It gets weirder when they open a door or a hood. I've had people look under the car and again, I am okay as long as they don't touch the car. I'd take it as disrespect and a personal insult if someone violated societal manners and opened my door whether I was inside the car or not.
People recall a few years back that a certain "Numbers Guru" was accussed of opening hoods to look at fender tags at car shows. The story was that this person was trying to document more cars for a registry. To me, the same respect for another persons property applies even if at a car show...Do NOT touch another persons property without permission.

[xs29bb1]

OK - something just happened to me today... albeit not with the Charger.  I have a pristine 1956 MGA, and every Saturday morning there's a big group of us that gather at a coffee shop w/ our cars.  Some of these guys have 5-10 cars so literally every time I go, I see something different.  In all there are usually 12-20 cars there every Saturday from Pierce Arrows, to Morgans, to Model T's, to classic Jags and Mercedes to Mustangs, Corvettes, Impala's, T-Birds, Austin Healy's, you name it, you might see it.

We just get some coffee, and then go out into the parking lot and talk shop about our cars.  Very cool - it's like our own personal car show every week.

Anyway, because this happens every week you oftentimes get random people who just drop by to look at the cars.  Today a guy was there w/ his 2 kids, one about 5 the other about 8.  While he's talking to his 8 year old about some car, I turn around to see his 5 year old literally hanging/swinging over my drivers' side door grabbing the steering wheel and hanging on!  As I start to walk to my car, the dad turns around to see his kid doing this and does...... nothing!

Certainly, I can't really get mad at the child, but come on Dad, get your shit together!

By the time I get there the kid is thankfully off the car.  The guy asks me if the car is mine, I tell him it is and politely give him a hint that it's not OK to let your kids do that w/ someone else's car.  After he explains this to his kids for a few seconds I started talking to him a bit, and his kids were very polite and well mannered.  Always saying please and thank you, etc. 

After a while I asked the kids if they wanted to sit in the car, and I immediately got the "yes please" from both - so I let them take turns sitting behind the wheel - Dad took pictures w/ his phone, kids had a blast.

People typically come out of the woodwork to look at this car, and I can't go anywhere w/o having a 10-minute conversation whenever I park it... but I never had a kid do THAT before.  Funny it happened today for the first time w/ this thread going on

So it actually ended well - although I was a bit anxious when the kid was swinging across my drivers' door that he may have scratched the paint.  (thankfully he didn't)

[bill440rt]

Do NOT touch another persons property without permission.

Exactly.

Just to clarify my response earlier, I would not have gotten physical with the guy, but my can of whoop a$$ definitely would have been verbal.

[stripedelete]

You sort of have to expect the attention when you drive one of these cars - it comes with the territory. That's like complaining that random people take pictures of you when you're out with your super model/celebrity girlfriend. Many, if not most, people have never seen these cars in person - let alone out on the street where they are approachable.

I must be too nice. I talk to people and welcome the chance to tell them about my car. Are some people annoying? Absolutely! But many just want to know more about cars and can't find anyone to help them. If I approach someone about their car and they're a dickhead then I assume it's a "trophy" that they paid a lot of money for but don't have a clue about. Maybe they are just busy but I feel better thinking that they feel they are too good for me.

As for opening a door - ridiculously bad manners, inconsiderate, and/or downright stupid. Probably parents who also have no respect for others.

The comments about shooting are silly. Just because you have a permit to carry a gun doesn't mean you can just shoot anyone for doing something dumb. Don't you guys with permits actually study the law? Physical violence is a LOT more likely - but, really, wouldn't you just drive away? After explaining how bad of an idea it is to open someone's door of course! Yes, I have guns and a carry permit. Doesn't mean I'm pointing one in the face of every stranger on the street! If I'm in the suburbs a the Dairy Whip on a Saturday afternoon my reaction would certainly be different than if I were in the middle of a high crime area downtown late at night.

Troy

Well said!

Opening the driver side would be startling and all bets are off.    But the passenger side, with a kid in the car, while inappropriate, is not an act of aggression.   In fact I see it as "teachable moment".    No doubt the situation would be burned in a 5 year olds memory, including, the grace and class with which their father handled the situation.

[Ghoste]

Sorry but to me opening either side is aggressive.

[bull]

People are morons but any type of confrontation would just lead to more trouble, even if they deserve it.
Like the earlier poster said, just turn the key, fire it up and say I have to run.

yeah that's true 

Not trying to get overly deep here but I believe this is a lot of what's wrong with society today. Out of fear of retribution, people are not being told they have done something wrong and that they need to stop. Too much as been let go for far too long.

Yes but who's going to put it right?

Everyone who knows right from wrong. Too many decent people keeping quiet and that gives the a-holes license to mouth off even more.

[stripedelete]

Sorry but to me opening either side is aggressive.

Pretty tough to be aggressive across that seat.    Provided you"re not parked outside a crack house.

[Ghoste]

Do you know that?  Someone just unexpectedly yanks your passenger door open while you're waiting at a drive thru and you think, "oh well he must have kind intentions but poor manners since he opened that door and not my drivers side"?
I guess I'm just not as trusting as some.

[bull]

The comments about shooting are silly. Just because you have a permit to carry a gun doesn't mean you can just shoot anyone for doing something dumb. Don't you guys with permits actually study the law? Physical violence is a LOT more likely - but, really, wouldn't you just drive away? After explaining how bad of an idea it is to open someone's door of course! Yes, I have guns and a carry permit. Doesn't mean I'm pointing one in the face of every stranger on the street! If I'm in the suburbs a the Dairy Whip on a Saturday afternoon my reaction would certainly be different than if I were in the middle of a high crime area downtown late at night.

Troy

Of course you're not pointing a gun at the face of every stranger but you have to admit the guy took it to the next level by opening the door. He was invading personal space and it's really not a whole lot different than opening the front foor of someone's house IMO. He could have knocked on the window at least. Opening someone's car door, any car door, is just not something you do and most reasonable people with healthy boundaries tend to err on the side of caution when it comes to inappropriate activity by strangers. I don't know if you have any children but that raises the stakes exponentially too. Still, speaking for myself (and perhaps a few others) the guy would not have gotten shot just for opening my door. He may have gotten one pointed in his face or shouted down at minimum. The point I was trying to make is that randomly opening someone's car door without being asked to or given permission to is a good way to get shot, punched, maced, tazed, verbally assualted, etc., by some people. I was speaking generally, not specific to myself. People are on high-alert these days, especially in the cities. Our cars attract a lot of attention and 99% of it is benign and friendly but I know there's an element out there who would probably just like to KO me and take my 68 on a little joyride. I have a permit to carry concealed but rarely do, except when I head out for a spin in my Charger.

I was in a situation several years back where I did as you say "respond instinctively" when someone/thing threatened my child and in that case it was the WRONG thing to do.

My son and I (he was about 11yo at the time) were going for a run in the park near our home.  We passed a couple w/ some kind or pit-terrior type thing.  Anyway, these people did NOT have the dog on the leash and as we passed by, the dog took off after us.  My son was a few steps behind me, and when the dog caught up to him it started nipping at his legs trying to bite at him.  I immediately turned around - went straight for the dog, and I guess as it could see I was about to rip its head clear off its body it turned and ran back to its owners.

I guess I could have left it at that but I was so enraged that these people would illegally have that dog in a public place not on its leash that I instinctively started yelling and swearing at the owners.  We were right near a large pond, and I distinctly remember yelling at the owners that "if I ever caught this dog off its leash again and it pulled this shit, I'd personally drag it out into the pond and drown it".  They were too stunned to say anything.  Truth be told, I was really nuts for about 45 seconds to a minute....

Anyway AFTER all this my son was now terrified - of ME more than what happened to him w/ the dog.  He had never seen me that angry before and it scared the shit out of him.  I literally had to have a conversation or two w/ him the next couple days to discuss what happened, why I reacted the way I did, and that I admitted that I had indeed over-reacted, etc etc.  Really, that was worse than if I had just chased the dog away and had a few "more polite" words w/ the owners about putting the dog on the leash.

So just a word of caution - going postal in front of your child when something like this happens can sometimes be worse than the incident itself...

Honestly I don't think "wrong" is a word I'd use to describe this. Your kid got frightened by your outrage but you talked to him about why it happened and even if he doesn't fully understand it all now he certainly will if/when he has kids of his own. Sure it could have been handled better but you can't really armchair quarterback yourself when it comes to protecting your kids from a sudden threat like that. People go straight into flight or fight mode in those instances so the fact you didn't gut the dog right on the spot with your bare hands tells me you handled it about as well as can be expected.

[bull]

Do you know that?  Someone just unexpectedly yanks your passenger door open while you're waiting at a drive thru and you think, "oh well he must have kind intentions but poor manners since he opened that door and not my drivers side"?
I guess I'm just not as trusting as some.

The people naive enough to believe everyone has nothing but benevolent intentions seem to be the ones who wind up dead more often than not.

[Fred]

Do NOT touch another persons property without permission.

Exactly.

Just to clarify my response earlier, I would not have gotten physical with the guy, but my can of whoop a$$ definitely would have been verbal.

Yes but you've got to be so careful, he might retaliate in a manner not appreciated by kicking the door in. Who knows what a person might do when told he's in the wrong especially when that thought had never even occurred to him. They're the kind of people that think you' re being unnecessarily aggressive towards them and figure they'll teach you a lesson instead.
Best thing to do is to say.....sorry mate, got to go and drive off.

[JamieZ]

In Ohio, Castle Doctrine extends to one's vehicle, so shooting someone for yanking any door would be covered.

[spoolinhard]

Do you know that?  Someone just unexpectedly yanks your passenger door open while you're waiting at a drive thru and you think, "oh well he must have kind intentions but poor manners since he opened that door and not my drivers side"?
I guess I'm just not as trusting as some.

The people naive enough to believe everyone has nothing but benevolent intentions seem to be the ones who wind up dead more often than not.

Thats a strong statement, more opinionated than fact.

[bull]

Do you know that?  Someone just unexpectedly yanks your passenger door open while you're waiting at a drive thru and you think, "oh well he must have kind intentions but poor manners since he opened that door and not my drivers side"?
I guess I'm just not as trusting as some.

The people naive enough to believe everyone has nothing but benevolent intentions seem to be the ones who wind up dead more often than not.

Thats a strong statement, more opinionated than fact.

So you believe people who naively put themselves in harm's way are less likely to get hurt than those with a healthy dose of cynicism? Either way I doubt assault statistics are broken down by how trusting the victims were.

[tucknroll]

well, I learned a very good lesson during the whole thing and that is to keep the doors locked always.

[spoolinhard]

Do you know that?  Someone just unexpectedly yanks your passenger door open while you're waiting at a drive thru and you think, "oh well he must have kind intentions but poor manners since he opened that door and not my drivers side"?
I guess I'm just not as trusting as some.

The people naive enough to believe everyone has nothing but benevolent intentions seem to be the ones who wind up dead more often than not.

Thats a strong statement, more opinionated than fact.

So you believe people who naively put themselves in harm's way are less likely to get hurt than those with a healthy dose of cynicism? Either way I doubt assault statistics are broken down by how trusting the victims were.

Having a good disposition doesnt go hand in hand with putting ones self in harms way. I consider myself a benevolent person. I will go out of my way to help a person in need, yet I do not stop for people with car troubles as I don't trust anyone that I don't know. You nailed it with your last comment, in the criminal justice system the different databases that we use to collect information on crime do no reflect the disposition of the victim. Would be extremely difficult to do and even then not too reliable IMO.

[spoolinhard]

Having someone open up the door of my car to talk to me would have me at an instant alarm. Their demeanor in the crucial moments following that act would determine how alarmed I should be and how I react. If someone is immediately friendly I would give them the benefit of the doubt but at the same time be brief in the time that I would give that person as I would not appreciate being accosted that way regardless.

[bull]

Having a good disposition doesnt go hand in hand with putting ones self in harms way. I consider myself a benevolent person. I will go out of my way to help a person in need, yet I do not stop for people with car troubles as I don't trust anyone that I don't know. You nailed it with your last comment, in the criminal justice system the different databases that we use to collect information on crime do no reflect the disposition of the victim. Would be extremely difficult to do and even then not too reliable IMO.

I am the same way. I often go out of my way to help friends and strangers alike but those people I don't know do not enjoy anywhere near the level of trust my friends do. I have a very calm disposition but inside I am a fairly vigilant person. I pay attention to my surroundings and sometimes think about the what-ifs and exit strategies. About 9-10 times a year I visit a shopping mall that was shot up by a psycho about a year ago so in my world it doesn't hurt to be prepared for the worst. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clackamas_Town_Center_shooting I am not paranoid and I don't expect trouble but I am very much mentally prepared for it to happen at any time. Vigilance is like anything else I would consider prepatory; it's better to have it and not need it than heed it and not have it.

[bull]

Having someone open up the door of my car to talk to me would have me at an instant alarm. Their demeanor in the crucial moments following that act would determine how alarmed I should be and how I react. If someone is immediately friendly I would give them the benefit of the doubt but at the same time be brief in the time that I would give that person as I would not appreciate being accosted that way regardless.

That's true and yet a person's demeanor may not have anything to do with his intent. Many bad guys seem pretty decent right up to the time you find yourself on the ground with a goose egg on on your head and your wallet missing. I'm sure criminals much prefer their victims to have their guards down when they attack.

[stripedelete]

Do you know that?  Someone just unexpectedly yanks your passenger door open while you're waiting at a drive thru and you think, "oh well he must have kind intentions but poor manners since he opened that door and not my drivers side"?
I guess I'm just not as trusting as some.

I know what you are saying, but, given the situation, violence is coming from the drivers side, not across a kid, and  not likely a charger at a drive thru where the guy in front of you is probably waiting on his fries.  

At the same time a "threatening" might be a better word choice than "aggressive".

But, given the situation, the passenger door is already open, he's an old hippy, and not try to kill me - I'm not punching or shooting him.   That would put me in the other eff'd up side of the spectrum.  

I'm just not that angry.

[Fred]

Do you know that?  Someone just unexpectedly yanks your passenger door open while you're waiting at a drive thru and you think, "oh well he must have kind intentions but poor manners since he opened that door and not my drivers side"?
I guess I'm just not as trusting as some.

The people naive enough to believe everyone has nothing but benevolent intentions seem to be the ones who wind up dead more often than not.

Thats a strong statement, more opinionated than fact.

Actually I believe it to be true also. People who trust unconditionally are more susceptible  to harm.

[Cooter]

People are stupid. With all the car jackings that begin this very way, some still open strangers car doors.
I cannot force myself to feel the least bit bad IF the idiot ran up on that one guy/gal that had their granade pin pulled that morning and ended up beat down, or worse. Ignorance of the unwritten rules of common sense does not excuse.
Attention is one thing, but you rights end where my nose/property begins. I understand this. There are A LOT of folks who I purposely avoid because if I see their face to long, I know there will be a problem. I also understand nobody takes an asswhoppin anymore. Too many are armed, therefore, I attempt to avoid the whole scene BEFORE it gets to the decision stage. Many today feel they 'shouldn't' have to do this, as they aren't the ones with the 'anger' problem...  I call BS again. If more people would just think brfore they decide, this wouldn't be a problem. Some will stick their hand in a flame and complain when they get burned. Even go so far as to blame the flame for their stupidity. Natural selection usually takes care of these dumbasses sooner or later.

Every time the club has any kind of celebrity people I ALWAYS make it a point to be unlike the disrespectful people they meet everyday.
Some have commented on this and asked ME if I wanted THEIR autographs. on the flip side, there are those who are selfish, and look at YOU if you attempt to try and 'explain' where THEY went wrong. They often come with the same bulls*it remarks about attention and if you didn't want it groped, leave it home. To this, I call BS. Most times the comments comparing the cars to groping their ole ladies does the trick.

[Mike DC]

Many, if not most, people have never seen these cars in person - let alone out on the street where they are approachable.

Bingo.  Guys neck-deep in the car hobby tend to forget that.  


Decent presentable 2nd-gens were already rare enough to draw attention in public 20 years ago.