Assassins in Shanghai

A rainy day often provides fodder for imagination.

It has been raining for almost 3 days in Shanghai now, so you can imagine there is a lot of fodder floating about in my brain.

My latest idea is about drivers in Shanghai and it goes like this: their true identity is not really driver; they are really assassins on a killing mission, armed with a black list of targets. Going undercover as a driver in Shanghai is very appropriate since the social incentives are perfectly aligned for drivers to kill rather than hurt - apparently it cost less to compensate the victim's family if the victim died rather than if he were seriously injured. In fact, the difference is significant enough to one errant driver that he decided to roll over *a few times* someone he had accidentally knocked into but didn't die.

But back to the asssasins. Over the past 3 days, I realized, without the shadow of a doubt, that I must be one of their targets, perhaps even quite near to the top of the black list. How else to explain why cars speed towards me rather than slow down even though (a) it is raining; (b) it is a raining night; and (c) I am a lady in heels and a dress walking home on raining night? And what about the fact that there are so many cars on a rainy night accelerating from 0 to 60 kmh in 3 seconds AND collectively beating the red light? Surely surely surely, they must be hoping their brakes would lock and skid once I step off the kerb. Need more convincing? Here is the last straw: they would accelerate from 0 to 60 kmh in 3 seconds even when reversing - into me.

Something positive has come out from all these near-death encounters - I am feeling terribly important. I must be, since only important people get assassinated right? If I survive all this rain and attempts on my life, I shall endeavour to discover what propelled me to such fame...

Happy Think-Positive Day. (Kudos to »Ms M.)