Of Trains and the Mob
This morning, on my weekday morning commute, I was once again exposed to the mob-like tendencies of the commuting Pinoy. This was at the MRT, of course, and we are talking women pushing and shoving to get into an otherwise almost-empty train car. I’m not into women’s-behavior bashing, but I prefer the first car in the MRT where the women, elderly and disabled ride, so I don’t see how men fight it out. Let’s just say I’ve learned my lesson early on not to ride in the second and third cars during rush hour or any other hour for that matter. It’s a nightmare.
I don’t rightly know what category the cops fit in, you know, the ones who ride in the first car. I mean, they’re obviously not women and not elderly, so disabled? Aside from the reading and comprehension disability (which of course I can only assume), I am at a loss as to what other obscure disability they might be suffering from. With their training, their gun and whatever else they got strapped on, they could just as easily fight it out with the men in the other cars. But no, they prefer the first car, with the women. And the elderly. And the disabled.
Anyhow, if I get to run the MRT, I’d do some serious disciplining. If they don’t follow my rules, I’d kick them out of the train. No explanation needed. I mean, for pushing and shoving and elbowing people? what kind of explanation would reasonably explain such obvious lack of discipline and disregard for other people’s welfare? Every one of us is in a hurry to get somewhere. Never mind that we don’t always want to be where we’re going. All I’m saying, we can all get to where we want to get to without being barbaric and hostile.
So if I’m in charge of the MRT, here’s what I’ll do. I’d weed them rule breakers out from those who do have discipline (can’t have them spoiling the good batch and start a stampede). Then only let them ride after three trains have come and gone. Or maybe after five trains. Or until they’ve learn their lesson, whichever comes last, as Makunga says.
(this was written maybe five years ago)
jaimehernandez4
Leigh
rainierjohn
wanderingshadow
ragbagwriting 
So that was five years ago. Well I say there’s not much improvement. People queue up now, but in some stations the crowd is so overwhelming it becomes just one mass of people. Kinda like an angry commuting mob.
The cops are there for security, so they may position themselves anywhere. I see cops on the (non-exclusive) trains as well.
MRT for sure gives us a good opportunity to observe different characters. Some are funny, some are pretty annoying. It’s sometimes sad that people can be very undisciplined.
As for the cops, I feel you. But being around cops for quite sometime has given me the chance to understand some of their seemingly annoying ways, like what you observed. (I’m not talking about the abusive cops.) Apparently, being a cop comes with privileges…and responsibilities too. It’s like being Spiderman. hehe. Yes, they can ride in the first car, but if something comes up, they will be the ones who should be first in line. That’s their job. I don’t know if you know, but they can choose not to pay bus fares. Though if they chose to do that and for example, their bus was held up, whether they like it or not, they will have to deal with the crims, otherwise, they will answer to the government. That’s their end of the deal. And considering that being a cop comes with great responsibilities (again, this is for the good breeds), I think it’s just right to give them these privileges. The ones I know sometimes go on duty for 24 hours or more, go up to the mountains for days, set out in the dead of the night to search for enemies, not knowing if they will ever come home again, and of course they don’t have overtime pay just like us normal people. And the ones I know don’t take advantage of free bus fares for the sake of fairness and equality. 🙂 Sometimes I think the reason we get annoyed is because we see them as strong and powerful people especially if they are in uniforms so they should behave perfectly or else. But the truth is, some of them are actually very tired and just want to go home. Sorry for the long comment. haha. I’m just explaining things here, but I still do not approve of cops who run after the seats while the women and elderly stand. 🙂
Thanks for the information, never knew all of that about cops. That’s the good thing about posting stuff, one gets to know more and have a better understanding of things through feedback. Thanks, Leigh!