A Very Personal Decision: My Story

[EnglishArtsteacher]

The man pictured above is allegedly a car mechanic-the question remains, do we trust him?

Greetings fellow GAG'ers. I don't share my personal life much, but as an editor on this website for over six years now, I felt it was time to confess something I did in my personal life.

I wanted to let you know about a personal decision I recently made. I don't really feel like discussing it, but I want to put my position out there. Please be respectful. I realize this is a lengthy post, but I just have to get this off of my chest.

I'm taking the brakes off my car. This isn't a rash decision, so please listen up.

A few weeks ago I saw a car accident. Two vehicles went through an intersection at the same time. Both cars slammed on their brakes at the same time, and collided. Fortunately, no one was seriously injured.

Fun fact: Brakes cause crashes similar to the one pictured above.

Then it occurred to me-if they had just gone through the intersection full speed without stopping, they wouldn't have collided. Sure, there would still be a slim chance of the cars crashing, but by the drivers slamming their brakes, and causing a sudden stop with a slight ric-o-chet afterwards, this led to the crash. Don't let any mainstream media news source tell you any different.

So, I decided to do my own research and what I found was staggering: Hundreds of people every year are seriously injured by unnecessary braking. Back in December, 2009, I'll never forget this incident. I was driving in the snow and I just lightly tapped my brakes and it caused my car to COMPLETELY LOSE CONTROL. My brakes could have very easily gotten me killed. Even more astoundingly, is how often brake pads will warp and distort rotors, causing bumpy rides and squeaky wheels.

. The statistics don't lie. Braked cars cause more wrecks than unbraked cars.

I also found out that late in the 19th Century, brakes weren't even used on vehicles! People would control their vehicle's speed with downshifting, and engine braking. Maybe it's just coincidence, but back when engine braking was used there were almost no automotive fatalities. There were NEVER brake caused car accidents in the late 1800s.

After doing some more digging, I found a nefarious plot-Mechanics: The very people who we trust to work on and care for our cars - get PAID to install and change brakes! You might THINK they care about our safety, or our cars - but they're just in it for the $149.99 brake pad installations.

So I talked to my "mechanic" about taking the brakes off my car, and I was disgusted by how poorly he treated me. Apparently, he's one of those shady CNN Mechanics. He accused me of being ignorant, when I was the one that looked up how much rotational torque brakes can put on your rotors. He didn't even know how much torque a rotor can take before being warped!!! He said(and I quote) "rotors are designed to be compressed, that it isn't actually a problem" just completely dismissing me, and my car. I told him it's my choice anyway, and there is nothing that sonofabitch could do about it.

Then he had the NERVE to say that my personal choice had consequences, and that I would affect everyone around me. Well I've had it with him, so I'm looking for a new mechanic who isn't glued to CNN. The problem is, so many mechanics are bought, and paid by the automotive industry, that ALL of them are insistent about my car having brakes. Most of them won't even look at my car for other reasons, saying that a brakeless car could cause damage to their shop and other cars. I think this is a bunch of bullshit, they just don't like those who believe in alternative braking techniques, and it's discrimination.

Now of course big government is getting involved, saying that I must have brakes. That this isn't just about me, and that I could hurt people. What happened to personal freedom? What happened to liberty? It's time to rebel against Big Auto, and the government.

Look, if your brakes worked, why do I have to have them? Either brakes work, or they don't. It's that simple.

F U C K BIG AUTO!!!!!

So, all I'm saying is, do your research. Don't just listen to the media, and Big Auto. I made a personal decision for my family, we just said no to brakes. We'll be using natural remedies like Gravity, and putting our feet on the ground to stop. After all, if that was good enough for me when I was on my bike as a kid, it's good enough for me, and my family in my beautiful, freedom-loving 2015 Chevy Malibu LS.

Please keep the comments respectful!

Note: This myTake is complete sarcasm, and an attempt to mock how ridiculous the anti-vaxxers come off. Please, the sooner you're vaccinated from COVID-19, the faster we end the COVID-19 Pandemic.

[DarkWinterNights]

If only everyone had vaccinated themselves from the flu we wouldn’t have gone through 100 years of it.


A better analogy is you take your car into the shop for an oil change and the mechanic tells you he needs to a flash the CPU and that will make the car safer. You’ve never had an issue but you don’t know much about cars so you figure what the heck, he’s a professional. A day later your car is dead, you take it in an he tells you it has nothing to do with the work he did yesterday and makes you feel crazy. He fixes it but things aren’t quite the same. Next oil change he tells you he needs to flash the CPU again and it will make the car safer. You’re reluctant but you figure maybe the first time it really was a fluke. A day later your car is dead again. You bring it back and he assures you that it has nothing to do with the work he performed and he refused to fix it without charging you. You’re mad but you have no choice and pay the money anyway.


A year later a new mandatory update is released. They say it is the only thing that will keep you safe driving. You refuse because every time they mess with your car it ends up broken. But instead people treat you like you’re an absolute moron for not trusting the experts and the government wants to take your license away for even questioning why this update is mandatory.


This was a half assed analogy but the takeaway is this, the majority of people who are hesitant are not hesitant because they listen to Alex Jones or talking heads on biased news programs. They’ve been let down by institutions before and some have suffered extensive injury from medical malpractice from doctors and multi-billion dollar corporations and “experts”. These people aren’t going to be bribed into taking it and coercion only angers them even more. They are fully aware of the dangers of Covid and many if not most of them already had Covid at least once.


Personally I had to drive into the office and work throughout the lockdowns because we were “essential” and the entire team got Covid in Sept 2020. Now a year later despite being forced to work in a risky environment for the last year wasn’t good enough and our work was ready to fire us for not complying.


If you want the vaccine, that is totally your choice. But it should absolutely be a choice. This isn’t airborne Ebola and the vaccine isn’t a sterilizing vaccine that makes you fully immune and stops you from spreading it, mandates cause division, anger and distrust. Instead of entertaining the possibility of alternative treatments, this response has done so much damage to public trust, if we get another pandemic with a significantly higher mortality rate, it is going to be far more devastating than anyone can imagine.

[EnglishArtsteacher]

"This was a half assed analogy but the takeaway is this, the majority of people who are hesitant are not hesitant because they listen to Alex Jones or talking heads on biased news programs"

See, this is where I disagree. I think a majority of the people hesitant about vaccines (not just the COVID-19 vaccines either) are hesitant BECAUSE of the propaganda people spread on the internet. In the pre-internet days, most people trusted vaccines. These same people have no problem trusting doctors, or medical professionals when it comes to other health issues.

I definitely agree with you that taking a vaccine is a personal choice. However, your personal choice has consequences-the same way a personal choice to remove brakes from your car will have consequences.

[ChrisMaster69]

Good my take and nice to see some actual sarcasm from across the Pond.

Funnily enough, even though it was meant as sarcasm it did touch on a few things concerning brakes and accelerator pedal.

a lot of people forget that the accelerator acts as a brake by the simple method of lifting off, admittedly not as effective with Eco cars disengaging drive, however why brake if approaching the car in front, simply lift and your car slows, hugely effective going up hills. The number of cars I see braking going up hill 🤦🤦.

Then there are the times where for a split second you have to either brake or accelerate, a large number of people do not fully understand their own cars in regards to stopping distance versus accelerated distance.

additionally I know if I brake hard I will stop short as I have performance braking systems in my cars, chances are however the car (s) behind me do not and will simply crash in to me. Therefore I will often accelerate out of the hazard area rather than braking in it.

By understanding about the hazards you can take the necessary precautions by using your brain, sort of linked to that, my ex wife, my girlfriend and a couple of others have now had their booster shot for Covid (3rd jab) and I will be getting mine in next few months. Look at the likely hazards and react accordingly, think ahead.

[EnglishArtsteacher]

You made some good points about braking lol.

[tatianamay]

OMG yess!!! #EnglishArtTeacherrocks

My parents are doctors, and they're working their asses off to keep this pandemic under control (all the people in the health care sector around the world are), and I see people roaming around in the streets without following the COVID protocols. They're not even wearing their masks properly. An overwhelming number of people have not been vaccinated in spite of the government and doctors urging them to take the vaccine. Some people on the internet, who know NOTHING about the vaccine are using internet articles for justifying their ludicrous anti-vax theories. They base their decisions off of their political affiliations which is absurd if you ask me.

Then why did the scientists discover a vaccine in the first place? Why do I see a vast number of anti-vaxxers dying? Many uneducated morons are coming up with ridiculous conspiracy theories, which make me want to thrash them. My father (who is a surgeon in a leading hospital in my country) told me that the vaccines are designed not to prevent a person from contracting COVID, but to prevent them from dying. I hear some people say that the masks are of no use. Masks are designed to protect others from yourself, not to protect yourself from others! If everyone wears masks, and get vaccinated, this pandemic would end soon, and I think, at this point, everyone is sick and tired of hearing about this pandemic over and over again. Most of us have lost some of our loved ones. Please take the damn vaccine, people! They're to protect you, not to kill you!

ANY MF WHO IS GOING TO DOWNVOTE ME, CAN GO FUCK THEMSELVES. BUGGER OFF! (sorry for using foul language lol)

[EnglishArtsteacher]

I respect your parents! I feel sympathetic for them, and everything you said is exactly what I've been telling people.

You live in India, right?

[tatianamay]

Thank you!
And I'm sorry for some typos, I did not proof-read my opinion, and I did now.. There are loads of typos and grammatical errors 😅

Yep, and people here do not believe that COVID is real, they think its a hoax. Stupid people smh

[EnglishArtsteacher]

It's the same here in the United States of America (USA). So many people here think COVID-19 is a hoax, and there has been a big anti-vaxxing movement in the past 10-15 years it seems.

[tatianamay]

What? For the past 10-15 years? That's nuts and totally nonsensical. And there are some really dense people on here. You've gotta see some of the stupid points people make to support their moronic argument. I can't help but feel sorry for them.

[jillybeanns]

The confusion on my face reading this up until the very last part LOL! Almost got me there. 🤣

[EnglishArtsteacher]

I can only imagine that confused look.

[jillybeanns]

My only thought: “this can’t be real” 😂. People posts such crazy things on this site, I don’t know what’s real and what’s a joke anymore hahaha!

[Dragonpurple]

I was about to say, you need not remove your brakes... just don't use them. I often have a goal of zero braking. Brakes on my last truck lasted 16 years. They still had 30% life on them when I sold it.

It helps to get a dash cam and when some idiot cuts you off, don't brake... just hit em, now you got evidence they cut you off and are at fault. No video, your at fault.

But your point about the sarcasm is noted, I will state though there are thousands of people waiting for the special legal protections to run out. If it is so safe to take the vaccine, why did Trump have his HHS secretary put in those protections and why did Biden keep them on? Thought he was all about undoing everything Trump did.

No one can sue the manufacturers over serious side effects until 2024 unless Biden had them removed. The government is saying on one hand, they are safe... while on the other they gave blanket immunity to the manufacturers. Even if down the road a few decades it is found there is long term side effects, likely won't be able to be a class action lawsuit or anything.

Want more people to get vaccinated, get Biden to remove the legal protections to back up the phrase that they are safe to take. It won't get the majority of anti people take them but every little bit counts. I got mine in the spring but I know people personally who are waiting for the legal protections to run out and then have plans to run out and get the shots ASAP.

https://www.cnbc.com/2020/12/16/covid-vaccine-side-effects-compensation-lawsuit.html

[EnglishArtsteacher]

"No one can sue the manufacturers over serious side effects until 2024 unless Biden had them removed."

This is pretty normal.

[Dragonpurple]

I know it is, and has been for a time... but in the past it wasn't a big deal if someone wanted to wait for blanket immunity to expire. Now in the rush to get vaccinated it is a problem.

If they are as safe as they keep saying, then no blanket immunity is actually needed.

[EmbraceThePain]

Oh man, I read the entire thing trying to be as reasonable in the formulation of my response as I could. I was caught off guard by that very last bit saying everything was sarcasm. Either way, I want to say, it is not a good idea to totally dismiss those who are anti-vaccine and those who are unvaccinated. A lot of scientists can give you a good reason why someone is anti-vaccine and why someone chooses to not get vaccinated. Most of us being critical are not experts in this and there is certainly multiple different point of view when it come to vaccinations. I think creating a strictly binary outlook on this issue further divides people and increases the tribalism that is already a huge issue in our society.

[EnglishArtsteacher]

There are many different view points when it comes to vaccinations, but the only view points that matter are from Epidemiologist, and highly educated medical professionals-and 95-99 percent of them agree with vaccinations.

This is one of the few "issues" that I have a binary outlook because there is no other scientific point of view.

[Daniela1982]

Thank God my Hellcat has big brakes so it can stop very well. Using a stick to drag against your wheels like an old go cart to brake was a "drag" in itself. The problem is people don't check their brakes until they hear a metal on metal sound, but by that time damage is done and it will cost more to fix than just new brake pads. I think I'll put a drag chute in the rear and retro rockets in the front to really making those panic braking a thing of the past.

When your brakes don't work.

[exitseven]

The thing that jumped out at me is that out of the ten vehicles listed as having the most accidents. nine out of ten were made in Japan or Korea and the only American vehicle was the Jeep Wrangler and we all know that they are not built for safety. We should all be buying American made products if not to help our fellow citizens but the life you save may be your own.

[Redstang88]

Pretty poor analogy. We’ve had numerous pandemics in recent history, at this point we can safely say there’s more to it than that.
I’m usually the first to laugh at the conspiracies, but anybody who believes that vaccines will be the end of it has their head farther up their ass than I can imagine.

Closing borders was supposed to stop it. It didn't
Masks and “social distancing” was supposed to stop it. It didn’t
Shutting down stores and businesses was supposed to stop it. It didn’t

The vaccine obviously isn’t stopping it. This is going to continue as long as allow the powers that be to dangle the carrot and keep people scared.

[EnglishArtsteacher]

"I’m usually the first to laugh at the conspiracies, but anybody who believes that vaccines will be the end of it has their head farther up their ass than I can imagine."

The only reason vaccines probably won't be the "end of it" is because so many people refuse the COVID-19 vaccines. Vaccines COULD bring an end to the pandemic, but since people want to be anti-vaxxers, and general science-deniers, we'll probably have to live with COVID-19 the rest of our lives.

Closing borders did work, but when we opened borders, it ruined it.

Masking, and social distancing definitely work, but since so many people didn't do it, it didn't work.

We didn't shut down stores, and businesses long enough, but it worked when we did it.

There is nothing about your comment that has any merit to it. You also never explained why my analogy was "poor".

[Redstang88]

I have no problem with vaccines and do not deny science. I have a problem with human rights violations and massive abuse of power by governments across the globe
You simply cannot shut down the entire planet until a bad cold is wiped out
COVID is here for the a while, if you choose to stay at home quivering in fear that’s your business, but leave me out of it

[EnglishArtsteacher]

It's not just YOUR choice though, because YOUR irresponsible decisions affect everyone else.

That would be like taking my brakes off of my car, driving recklessly, and telling people it's "my choice" to drive a car. The analogy is perfect.

[Redstang88]

Like I said in my last comment, my objection is to blatant human violations and unelected academics making arbitrary decisions impacting millions of lives. Forcing people to get the vaccine to keep their jobs or simply participate in society is ILLEGAL. END OF ISSUE

[EnglishArtsteacher]

Actually, mandating people to get vaccinated to keep jobs is not illegal lol.

Even George Washington did it, dipshit.

[misterCage4]

All the time reading this I was just thinking "this guy is out of his mind" until I read the last paragraph. Good one

[EnglishArtsteacher]

Thanks.

[Kayla45]

No brakes: this mytake joking about anti vax.

Meanwhile in my head:
https://youtu. be/G7WTIR4V7tc

[purplepoppy]

You shouldn't have confessed it was sarcasm. p

[EnglishArtsteacher]

I thought about not doing it, but the people on this website are so dense, they would have taken it too seriously lol.

[strateguy632]

here is a fun fact, from physics, brakes and braking DECREASE VELOCITY speed. even suicide is bad but killing and risking other drivers is worse.

[SecretsofKB]

I love this analogy!

It's such a simple thing to do to protect yourself and others. I wish people saw it the same as brakes on their cars.

[EnglishArtsteacher]

Thanks for reading!

The reason why so many people in the USA won't take the COVID-19 Vaccine is because people are turning this into a political spectacle, when it should have never been about politics.

[SaoirseS]

That was fabulous! Thanks for posting.

[EnglishArtsteacher]

You're welcome!

[goaded]

OMG, I'm so sorry I didn't read this before! Brilliant!

[EnglishArtsteacher]

Thanks!

[BillyBalls]

Another myopic liberal opinion.


Those who question are the ones looking at the BIG PICTURE.

Deal with it.

If you don't want to crash your car, lock yourself in your house and hermetically seal any cracks to protect yourself from the boogie man.

[EnglishArtsteacher]

I'm assuming this comment is sarcasm?

[BillyBalls]

Why would you assume that?

[EnglishArtsteacher]

Because you think following evidence-based science is a "myopic liberal opinion".

[Anonymous]

The brakes made out of aborted baby parts are the most effective. I already upgraded!

[EnglishArtsteacher]

Yikes! Some vehicles have brakes which contain aborted baby parts?

[stuntbrain]

If nearly all auto accidents involve desperate braking, then not having brakes would make cars very much more safer

[stuntbrain]

As brilliant as this is, it doesn't accurately reflect vaccination status.

[stuntbrain]

The vaccine is like a helmet. People who aren't wearing such protection don't put you in danger of suffering head trauma

[anylolone]

You created a retarded word salad that you keep wondering how it didn't sent the message you wanted.

[Zygum]

Too long story, no time to read and comment. On this forum there are fake stories

[joeldalton]

There’s zero reason for a healthy person under 30 to get these shots.

[EnglishArtsteacher]

Are you saying this because people under the age of 30 years old are more likely to survive COVID-19? Well, to extend on my satirical myTake, I guess there is zero reason for someone under 30 years old to have brakes on their cars, because people under 30 have better reflexes than people 30, and over, so therefore, they can stop their cars without brakes much easier than older people.

Here are some reasons for eligible people under 30 years old (and all eligible people) to get vaccinated from COVID-19.

1. It significantly reduces your risk of being hospitalized due to COVID-19.

2. It significantly reduces your risk of spreading COVID-19.

3. It helps get closer to Herd Immunity, bringing an end to the COVID-19 Pandemic.

[joeldalton]

Good lord that was a stupid statement. Reflexes don’t stop cars.

1) People under 30 who are healthy do not generally get hospitalized by covid-19. 99.9% of people 30 and under are not hospitalized.
2) The shots do not significantly stop the spread of covid-19. That is apparent with the delta variant. The Pfizer shot is only 39% effective. That’s why you shot takers are in masks again.

[joeldalton]

3) We are at herd immunity in the US. A Red Cross study of blood donors show that 80% of the population has antibodies

[EnglishArtsteacher]

1. This doesn't matter. People under 30 rarely die of heart disease, but that doesn't meant it's still not important to eat healthy.

2. This is an objectively false statement.

3. This is another objectively false statement.

[joeldalton]

1) That’s because heart disease is a cumulative condition. You don’t eat a cheeseburger and drop dead. So yes, it does matter that they recover from covid quickly and easily Jesus, you suck an analogies.

2) Try again. www.cnbc.com/.../...l-prevents-severe-illness.html

3) Try again. www.wthitv.com/.../...-survey-finds-575229731.html

Please tell me where you are a teacher, I want to make sure my kids never encounter you.

[he-takes-a-part]

Nonsensical
Its good that you don’t share your personal life in here

[EnglishArtsteacher]

You do realize this myTake was satirical, right?

[ChiPaPa]

Hahaha, you had me fooled.