One Ride, Three Stabbings, Zero Solutions
And a little personal reflection as a dad.
So it’s just another Monday afternoon. You're sitting in the bus in Antwerp with your freshly washed socks, hoping your neighbor doesn’t smell like old leeks, and BAM, someone whips out a knife and stabs someone to death.
What the hell is wrong with people? Can’t you ride through Antwerp in peace anymore without some deranged circus act deciding to slice your throat as a protest against his miserable life? And then some official steps up and says, “We’re investigating whether the victim and the suspect knew each other.” Oh right. And if they did, then what? “Oh yeah, Hans stabbed Jan, but they went to kindergarten together – never mind then.”
Two others tried to step in and got stabbed too. Because heroism in this era gets punished immediately. Like the universe going, “Oh, you tried to do the right thing? Here’s a knife in your spleen.”
So what does society do? We all get back on the bus tomorrow, headphones in, sandwich in hand, praying the next lunatic remembered his morning meds.
You wonder: where did it all go wrong? Was the Wi-Fi down? Did someone just sell their NFT collection for fifty cents and a juice box? No one knows. But one thing’s for sure: in these times, De Lijn (the Flemish bus company) isn’t the only thing going off the rails.
And then you get politicians on TV with their serious little faces. Some guy in a suit that fits like a garbage bag, saying with the confidence of a soggy tomato: “We take this case very seriously.”
Oh really? Now you do? When your average bus ride has more tension than an episode of Breaking Bad on crystal meth?
And of course, the experts crawl out of their holes again: “We need to invest more in mental healthcare.” No mate, we need to invest in emergency bus escape drills. Equip every passenger with an inflatable helmet, a neck massage from the driver, and a whistle that screams “HELP!” in sixteen languages.
And what if you were just casually wallowing in self-pity that day? Just sitting there, reflecting on your failed marriage and the fact your daughter only talks to you through TikTok filters — slice! — suddenly you’re part of a homicide investigation.
“What exactly did you see, sir?”
“Well, I was thinking about my mortgage when someone started yelling and the next thing I know, there’s a guy on the floor looking like a disassembled IKEA shelf.”
“Was it traumatic?”
“Not really, I had my noise-cancelling on. Lovely stuff. Bose QC45.”
And the attacker? He’ll get a lawyer with glasses from 1972 saying his client was in a “confused state.” Yeah? So am I every time I try to figure out public transport. But you don’t see me shanking anyone with a travel card.
So what have we learned from this? Absolutely nothing. Because next week it’ll happen again. In a tram, in a metro, maybe at the dentist’s waiting room. Because this is the West in 2025:
We have tech that tracks your heartbeat from your wrist, but no clue why your neighbor manages anger with a steak knife.
I can’t believe that this ‘just happens’. I rarely take public transport, but that used to be different. Everything was a lot cheaper back then, because now public transport is also unaffordable. At least, not here in the Netherlands. For 5 euros we could travel with two people through the entire province, what a time! I don’t remember the current prices, but the last time I checked, I remember the feeling when I immediately realized that I would rather just take the car!
Fortunately, apart from stinking drunk men or young people lighting up a joint in the back, I have never experienced anything crazy on the bus. Or let me put it this way — nothing violent. And now that I am a father, it seems completely bizarre to me. Taking a bus ride through the city just for the sake of your child’s development, just to let him experience that? Let’s hope he doesn’t suffer lifelong trauma because some lunatic performs a sick act.
Now, I do think the chances of it happening are pretty small, to be honest. But I have to admit, there’s a lot of weird stuff going on in the world. And I guess that’s always been the case, but now that media is so accessible, you end up seeing a whole lot more of that crap.
Anyway, I had to share this with you guys. Crazy world. You and I can make sure we do our part in making it a better place. Let’s pay attention to that, okay?😊
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humanity is going off the rails ..and taking everything with it