[Fighting Banana Slug]

Originally Posted by jammies

I'm not so much dubious of calgaryblood in particular, but of anyone's perceptions of events, and the reality of them, and especially the interpretation of events that can bear multiple interpretations. People fit events into narratives, and if the narrative doesn't fit the events, it's the latter that is usually (and unconsciously) amended. It's not a commentary on someone's truthfulness in general, it's an acknowledgement that people are incapable of objective observation altogether.

While it's certainly possible the cop was trying to bait someone into a ticket, is that likely? Is there a dearth of illegal driving in Calgary so that he needs to drum up business? Is a trained professional driver (they do need to go for training above and beyond Joe Commuter) likely to risk an accident for no good reason other than to *maybe* convince someone to cut him off? Extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence; being skeptical of such claims should be default behaviour.

Yup. The initial reactions of both Calgaryblood and Sunday might be heartfelt and honestly believed, but our memories don't work like tape recorders. Eye witness accounts are often fraught with errors and inconsistencies.
Dash-cams, now those work like tape recorders.