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MEMernet: Axe Attack, Sad and Lost, and Locked

Memphis on the internet.

Axe Attack

Horrifying footage captured a man attacking a car with an axe after a fender bender weekend before last. The man, apparently fueled by road rage after an older couple rear-ended his car, busted windows and the windshield before police arrived. The Memphis subreddit’s top comment from u/ManRahaim summed it up: “yo, wtf.”

Sad and Lost

Memphis Reddit user u/Super_Situation_9346 poured their heart out about the state of the city last week, especially Cordova (as far as we can tell). The user was “horrified” by litter, plummeting property values, “raggity streets,” and population loss. The sub’s moderator jumped in to say, “this is a sub for the rural Alaskan village, Cordova.”

Locked

Posted to X by Memphis Basketball

University of Memphis Tigers men’s basketball players drenched coach Penny Hardaway with bottled water Sunday after their win against the University of Alabama at Birmingham. The win ensured the team a place in the NCAA Tournament.  

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Letter From The Editor Opinion

Letter from the Editor: Traffic War is Hell

I was sitting at a light in Midtown, getting ready to make a right turn. When the light turned green, I pulled into the intersection. I then heard an enormous blast of sound, like an 18-wheeler’s horn. I turned to see a big silver Mercedes was roaring through the intersection against the light illegally, headed right toward me.

How this guy was able to simultaneously drive, lean on his horn from Hades, and throw the finger at me is a mystery, but the message was obvious: Get out of my way, jerk! I swerved right, bumped the curb, and came to a stop as he roared off down Madison.

Adrenalin pumping, I sat for a moment, shaking with anger and disbelief. I felt violated. I wanted revenge. I wanted to shoot out his $300 tires and whack his shiny Mercedes with a rusty tire iron. Bastard.

I shook my head, exhaled, and got back in traffic. After a couple of blocks, I noticed the right lane was beginning to back up, so I pulled into the left lane. There was a stalled car ahead. As we inched forward, I marveled at the courtesy of Memphis drivers, most of whom were waving in a car or two stuck in the right lane. In almost no time, the right lane was almost empty. But then, the inevitable happened: A few idiots started sneaking into the right lane, driving down to the stalled vehicle, and then trying to force their way back into the left lane.

Instinctively, we formerly courteous souls closed ranks, inching forward bumper to bumper. “Don’t let those jerks in,” I mumbled. As I crept along, passing the miscreants a foot at a time, I couldn’t help noticing that the first car behind the stalled car was big and silver. I began flexing my middle finger in anticipation of sweet, sweet payback.

But it wasn’t a silver Mercedes. It was an old silver Oldsmobile. Two kids were screaming and crying in the backseat. The woman driving looked like she was about to do the same. I declared a truce and waved her in. Her grateful look was ample reward.

Then, amazingly, the car behind her decided to try to force his way in also. The nerve! I revved my motor and pulled forward. “No way, jerk,” I said.

Traffic war is hell. Fickle, too.

Bruce VanWyngarden

brucev@memphisflyer.com