3 ms·

That metaphor backfirews pretty hard IMO, is that intentional?

• thaumasiotes 5y ago
  How so? Everyone running a light together is the expected behavior if you change the color of the light. In other words, it describes nothing that isn't occurring constantly everywhere. Where does the metaphor backfire?
  • deleted 5y ago
    [deleted]
  • mb7733 5y ago
    The metaphor backfires because if everyone runs red lights they will collide with one another, as well as with those going through green lights.
    • thaumasiotes 5y ago
      > if everyone runs red lights they will collide with one another In the same way that if everyone runs green lights, they'll collide with one another? How do you go through intersections?
      • anigbrowl 5y ago
        Red lights rarely exist in the middle of a road just to slow down traffic, they mainly exist at intersections to allow people on different roads to take turns. It's really not a useful metaphor in this context.
      • mb7733 5y ago
        Green lights... are synchronized to avoid collisions.
  • kzrdude 5y ago
    Imagine an intersection with 3 independent entrances. Normally 1 is green and 2 red. If everyone runs red lights, then we have cars entering from 3 ways instead of the normal 1. The result is collisions in the middle of the intersection. "Running a red light" does not just mean "go when it's red" but it explicitly means "transgressing a stop signal". That there can be stop signals on multiple entrances also is complicating and sets up the crash.