SMBC Comics Forum

Back in the USENET days, I remember some tech types posted a thread on the hobby of "Highway Fishing." Basically, you go out on the highway with a speed radar gun, pull up a good distance away and behind someone whose car you don't like, then pull the trigger of the speed radar, pretending it's a "tractor beam." There was a "scoring system" based on how much the victim ended up braking.

StCredZero wrote:Back in the USENET days, I remember some tech types posted a thread on the hobby of "Highway Fishing." Basically, you go out on the highway with a speed radar gun, pull up a good distance away and behind someone whose car you don't like, then pull the trigger of the speed radar, pretending it's a "tractor beam." There was a "scoring system" based on how much the victim ended up braking.

Why would the victim brake at all? I thought radar guns just measured speed?

Title text: They need to make Baby Not On Board signs, as a courtesy of people trying to drive recklessly in peace.

They kind of do...

AlixeTiir wrote:Why would the victim brake at all? I thought radar guns just measured speed?

Presumably because they have a radar detector, and think they're about to be caught speeding.

RyanW wrote:

AlixeTiir wrote:Why would the victim brake at all? I thought radar guns just measured speed?

Presumably because they have a radar detector, and think they're about to be caught speeding.

Surely they would know that you aren't a police officer and can't ticket them for speeding, though.

FYI, those are for paramedics and firefighters. It's easy to miss a tiny human in a mangled car. So the sign lets them know to check for a baby under the seats.

firef wrote:FYI, those are for paramedics and firefighters. It's easy to miss a tiny human in a mangled car. So the sign lets them know to check for a baby under the seats.

even easier to miss a mangled human in a tiny car

AlixeTiir wrote:

RyanW wrote:

AlixeTiir wrote:Why would the victim brake at all? I thought radar guns just measured speed?

Presumably because they have a radar detector, and think they're about to be caught speeding.

Surely they would know that you aren't a police officer and can't ticket them for speeding, though.

The detector just blinks a light, so they know a radar is pointing at them. Not where it's coming from.

Back in the early 80's, hobby electronics was still a thing. I remember an article in Popular
Electronics about building a K-band frequency generator. Speed guns operated on K-band,(today it's laser technology ) and radar detectors(most people had one) would light-up if it received a signal. Good detectors would light up well in time to slow down; so if the detector goes off, brake lights come on. We would stand on the side of the overpass, press the button, and count lights. About as much fun as you can have with a soldering iron.

But there is a bigger questions here:
How much does the convenience/ease of access choose our weapons ?
A sign (law,back ground check, …) NEVER stopped anyone.

gnome-guest wrote:Back in the early 80's, hobby electronics was still a thing. I remember an article in Popular
Electronics about building a K-band frequency generator. Speed guns operated on K-band,(today it's laser technology ) and radar detectors(most people had one) would light-up if it received a signal. Good detectors would light up well in time to slow down; so if the detector goes off, brake lights come on. We would stand on the side of the overpass, press the button, and count lights. About as much fun as you can have with a soldering iron.

But there is a bigger questions here:
How much does the convenience/ease of access choose our weapons ?
A sign (law,back ground check, …) NEVER stopped anyone.

Trying to find the link to the original panel, but the point is, road rage became a thing when firearms developed firepower. Not much raging going on with revolvers, (some,not much,) When people carry guns suited for defense, that's what they get used for, defense. When people carry firepower, they use it to express power.

gnome wrote:Trying to find the link to the original panel

https://www.smbc-comics.com/comic/kill

It annoys me to no end when OPs don't link it

NeatNit wrote:

gnome wrote:Trying to find the link to the original panel

https://www.smbc-comics.com/comic/kill

It annoys me to no end when OPs don't link it

Thanks.
still browsing the faqs for answers on how to do that. There is a lot to go through.