3/22/2009

Try Minding Your Own Business

For some reason, this man was running the exhaust off his scooter down at Ma Chang Ting (馬場町) in Manka (艋舺), Taiwan this morning when I was taking off for my bike ride. I understand that I'm going to be labeled as a fusspot or gwei-mao (龜毛) by some for not minding my own business. Others will say as a "foreigner" I have no say in Taiwan's environment or anything other problem for that matter, but I'm going to post this anyway. I went over and asked the guy what he was hoping to achieve by polluting our country, to which I received a snappish "Gan ma? (幹嘛)?" or "What the f&^%?"

I'll be the first to admit I don't get mechanics. To me, running off your motor as a means of remedy when it has some serious exhaust problems does not fix it. Instead, it simply pollutes the neighborhood and makes everyone uncomfortable, "foreigners" and locals alike. The simple solution is to get the scooter fixed.

9 comments:

MJ Klein said...

Patrick, next time, make yourself some money by taking a photo of the offending scooter that shows the license plate, and turn it into the police station for a cash reward.

Unknown said...

I agree with you, Michael. That is the preferable option! After all, we all pay money to the government for our scooter licenses for environmental effects. So, essentially, you and I are paying for his buy!

Patrick Cowsill said...

I think I am too emotional. Or, maybe it's too early in the morning: I am not in the right mode to take a picture of the license plate in situations like this. I simply want to grab this guy and throw him in the river.

Anonymous said...

Who leaves their engine on like that? No gongdexin

Patrick Cowsill said...

He's not leaving it on: he's purposely running it.

Anonymous said...

This kind of irresponsible behavior drives me crazy. It's bad enough that we have to deal with people who drive old, run-down scooters that emit choking fumes, but to have someone doing it purposely for no reason in a public area just infuriates me.

Good for you for saying something Patrick, even if it didn't have the desired effect. Hopefully, someone saw you and will be more apt to speak out the next time someone does something this stupid.

Anonymous said...

When it comes to block smoke coming out of scooter tailpipe, I'm shameful to tell you the truth that I have been fined by police officer on this issue.

Andre said...

i'm with you patrick. i too would like to throw that guy into the river! that really pissed me off. i hate how people here don't have a conscience and care for the environment here at all. i especially hate seeing people throw all sorts of crap out the window onto the road like it's nothing while driving.

Neil Thompson said...

It always amazes me that the first thing a lot of people do when they get to their scooter is put the key in and switch the engine on. They then leave the engine running while they put the helmet on, light a cigarette, chat with a friend, make a phone call. Makes no difference if the scooter is in an underground car park with poor ventilation.

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