Beep You!

As anyone who knows me is painfully aware, I am not above using the occasional explative.  Ok, I I have a worse potty mouth than a sailor who stubbed his toe.  So the title of this post is not meant to shelter your sensitive eyes, it is a nod to one of my favorite driving tools, the horn.
I will preface this by saying that I did not learn defensive driving.  I learned how to drive from my grandfather, a cop, who's driving philosophy was "driving is a lot like football, you are the ball-carrier, and all the other cars on the road are the defenders.  Get around them, and don't let any of them hit you."  One of the many things I learned from him, aside from the ability to parallel park any car in any spot, and how to take a curve without breaking, was the proper use of the horn.  the horn is a multi-functional tool that can be used to warn the sleeping driver in front of you that the light has turned green, the car rapidly approaching the stop sign that you do not intend on relinquishing your right-of-way in the oncoming intersection, to warn off drivers intent on merging into your lane that they should in fact use their mirror for checking the lane, and not just to check their makeup, and may other driving offenses.
The problem I have found is that here in Israel, people are very reluctant to make use of their horns, almost to the point where I am not sure most people realize that it comes standard, and they won't be charged a service fee for using it.  Most drivers here instead opt for using their high beams as an all purpose warning system, whether it be to let you know that their ESP is telling them that the light will soon change to green and you should already be moving into the intersection, that they intend on passing the double trailer in front of them by use of the oncoming traffic lane that you so rudely are using for the purpose of going in the direction it is meant for, or that you are not driving fast enough/slow enough for their personal comfort level.  The problem is that high beams, while annoying, do not give the other driver the same jolt like warning that is needed, plus, more importantly, doesn't have the same stress relief properties as a solid horn-honking.  You just can't smash down on the high-beam lever with the same gusto that you can lean on the horn.  In my opinion this is the biggest problem in driving here.  When using the horn you are releasing some of that pent up aggression that you are feeling towards the other dopes who are occupying space on your road, when flashing them with your high-beams, all you are doing the driving equivalent of mumbling under your breath.  you are expressing your frustration only internally, and not actually putting it out there in the open where the issue can be resolved.  There is no consequence for being flashed by someone else's high beams, so there is no motivation to change anything about the way that you are currently driving.  Unlike when someone honks at you, not only is it the automotive equivalent of getting yelled at, but everyone else around you sees that you are getting yelled at, and you feel compelled to modify your inappropriate behavior.
I understand that we can't correct all of the driving problems in this country overnight.  there will always be some people who leave their blinkers on for miles (sorry, kilometers) after they have merged, attempt to pass on blind curves, and drive Priuses in the left lane.  This is not of country of car affecionados, and serious drivers.  Most people here will never know what the difference between supercharged and turbocharged is, what the value of a Z-rated tire is, or that Peugeot owners should have their licenses revoked simply for showing they know nothing about cars at all through the act of purchasing a Peugeot.
While we never be able to solve these problems, maybe if we could take just one small step, if we could get people to honk more, we could make a small but meaningful change on the roads.  If people used their horns here more, they would not need to drive as aggressively, because some of their anger and aggression would be channeled out through the horn, thus saving countless lives taken on our roads by over-aggressive drivers.  Thank you for listening, now get out of my way.