Originally Posted by
sanitycheck
All three of you should have your horns taken away until you grow up enough to use them. It doesn't surprise me that people honk at other cars to make a point -- hell, I see it all the time -- but it surprises me that they would admit to it in a public forum.
Tad judgemental are we?
Honking at a car running a red light is a multipurpose act. While most red light runners probably do so deliberately, a minority of red light runners do so out of inattention and fatigue, and a honk may wake them up. That possibility alone justifies the honk, and in fact it is irresponsible (of you!)
not to alert a driver that they are doing something dangerous, in case they are falling asleep at the wheel. The honk also alerts cross traffic including pedestrians that they are at risk from a rogue vehicle, and may catch the attention of any traffic police in the vicinity who may apprehend the offender. Finally in the majority of cases of deliberate red light running, the honk publically shames the driver, and people do in fact respond to peer pressure and won't engage repeatedly in stuff that draws heavy criticism or negative attention to them.