# Why, Oh Why, Must Drivers Holler at Pedestrians? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [October 18, 2005, 3:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-oh-why-must-drivers-holler-at-pedestrians/326752 "2005-10-18T15:00:54Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Lissa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/85f322/32.png) [@Lissa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lissa)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2005, 3:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-oh-why-must-drivers-holler-at-pedestrians/326752/1 "2005-10-18T15:00:54Z")
I live and work in the city, in the Historic District. Our neighborhood features something that is quickly becomming an anomaly in American neighborhood-- sidewalks. From my home, it’s a short walk to work, to the grocery, to the Post Office, library and city park. It gives me a warm, nostalgic, Leave it to Beaver feeling. But lately, I find myself opting to drive. The Holla Boys have driven me indoors and behind the wheel. Perhaps it’s a local phenomenon, but any pedestrian can count on being hollered at by passing drivers, even when the driver seems at a loss as to what to holler: “Hey! Heeeeeey!” will work in a pinch, apparently. Some of them may have clever phrases they use for such occasions, but generally, it’s unintelligible as the driver zooms past. They honk, even if they don’t know the pedestrian. I knew we were in for a treat last week, and the sociologist who lurks within the depths of my soul decided to use the occasion to document this behavior. A giant tree limb had broken off and crashed down on top of a car in front of one of our museum buildings, so the boss told my co-worker and I to go up the street, take pictures, and wait for the police to arrive. Oooh, boy. Perhaps our purposeful stride was off-putting, because no one hollered at us as we went up the street and around the corner to the other building, howver, as soon as I stepped into the street with my camera, it started up. The first was certainly a Rhodes Scholar. He stopped at the light, spotted me, and began energetically rolling down his truck window. “Yeah, girl!” he yelled. “You TAKE them pictures!” “Thanks for the sage advice,” I muttered, not looking at him. Three other drivers did the same, ranging from a simple, “Woooo!” to unintelligible phrases. Four times, people I did not know honked. Last evening, I took the dog for a walk to the park. “Yep, walkin’ your dog!” someone at a stopsign said, apparently feeling the need to pause and roll down his window to share this astute observation before driving on. What the hell is this? I swear I don’t understand it. Is the condition of modern man so lonely that some people must sieze every opprotunity to interact, even if it’s just yelling something at a complete stranger as they pass? Do they drive around, hoping for an opprotunity? ---
**Author:** ![velvetjones](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/5f9b8f/32.png) [@velvetjones](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/velvetjones)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2005, 3:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-oh-why-must-drivers-holler-at-pedestrians/326752/2 "2005-10-18T15:06:58Z")
The only explanation I can think of for this bizarre behavior is that you’re hot and this is the only way the neanderthals can think of to interact with you since they’re not allowed to club you and drag you off by the hair. Now I’ll have to go find that doper picture thread and see for myself. ---
**Author:** ![Lissa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/85f322/32.png) [@Lissa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lissa)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2005, 3:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-oh-why-must-drivers-holler-at-pedestrians/326752/3 "2005-10-18T15:18:19Z")
> [@velvetjones](#): > > The only explanation I can think of for this bizarre behavior is that you’re hot and this is the only way the neanderthals can think of to interact with you since they’re not allowed to club you and drag you off by the hair. > > Now I’ll have to go find that doper picture thread and see for myself. Don’t bother. I’m not on there. I’m so hot that film spontaneously combusts when exposed to my image. _snicker_ I’m not bad looking, but I’m no supermodel-- about average, really. I don’t think that could be the reason. ---
**Author:** ![Happy\_Scrappy\_Hero\_Pup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/ea5d25/32.png) [@Happy\_Scrappy\_Hero\_Pup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Happy_Scrappy_Hero_Pup)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2005, 3:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-oh-why-must-drivers-holler-at-pedestrians/326752/4 "2005-10-18T15:30:40Z")
I had a friend that did this. Every woman of even passable attractiveness got a “Hey beautiful” or a “Lookin’ GOOD, girl!” or something like that. One day I asked him, “Does that EVER work?” He replied, sagely, “It only has to work ONCE.” ---
**Author:** ![AncientHumanoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ancienthumanoid/32/278_2.png) [@AncientHumanoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AncientHumanoid)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2005, 3:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-oh-why-must-drivers-holler-at-pedestrians/326752/5 "2005-10-18T15:38:09Z")
Big tits, maybe? I have a youngish friend, kinda cute, but not WOW! Except she has real big’uns. She’s not heavy at all, just your average height to weight ratio, so they stand out. About two feet! (Kidding) Anyways, a couple of her friends are so gorgeous you would want to carve their likeness into stone. Slim, medium height, athletic build, great faces. Really, face wise they blow her away to the beach and back. A matter of just plain old cute vs “I would die a thousand times over for her” good looks. Guess who gets all the hit on lines and looks and double takes? That’s right. The tits. We’re guys, we’re like that… ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2005, 4:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-oh-why-must-drivers-holler-at-pedestrians/326752/6 "2005-10-18T16:02:13Z")
Except that we’re not all like that. It’s just that you notice the ones who are. Which is why they do it. ---
**Author:** ![A.R.Cane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ee7513/32.png) [@A.R.Cane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/A.R.Cane)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2005, 4:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-oh-why-must-drivers-holler-at-pedestrians/326752/7 "2005-10-18T16:02:53Z")
If it happens as often as you say, I would hazard a guess that you’re of above average in physical attractiveness. Why not just accept it as complimentary. Sure it’s a little crude and I’m not suggesting you react, or even make eye contact, but they are acknowledging your beauty, enjoy, as it won’t last forever. I occasionally see a woman, in a public setting, who is striking in some way, her clothing, hair, facial features, whatever, and I’m tempted to pay her a compliment, but for fear it will be misconstrued I do not. It’s a shame really, because the passing remark could brighten both our lives just a tiny bit, but it goes unsaid because of too much defensiveness in the world. ---
**Author:** ![SusanStoHelit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/7ab992/32.png) [@SusanStoHelit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SusanStoHelit)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2005, 4:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-oh-why-must-drivers-holler-at-pedestrians/326752/8 "2005-10-18T16:36:26Z")
> [@A.R. Cane](#): > > If it happens as often as you say, I would hazard a guess that you’re of above average > in physical attractiveness. Why not just accept it as complimentary. Sure it’s a little crude and > I’m not suggesting you react, or even make eye contact, but they are acknowledging > your beauty, enjoy, as it won’t last forever. I have said many times in many threads that I’ll never turn down a genuine compliment, but men yelling things from car windows is not genuine, IMO. I’ve always felt an undertone of aggression and threat from those encounters, one to which I cannot respond because I’m on foot and they are effectively anonymous. If a guy comes up to me in a coffee shop to hit on me, he is making himself vulnerable. I appreciate the courage and the compliment, and I will always respond politely. Assholes who yell at you from windows aren’t really “appreciating your beauty”, they are asserting their dominance. ---
**Author:** ![tdn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/94ad74/32.png) [@tdn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tdn)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2005, 4:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-oh-why-must-drivers-holler-at-pedestrians/326752/9 "2005-10-18T16:36:35Z")
> [@A.R. Cane](#): > > I occasionally see a woman, in a public setting, who is striking in some way, her clothing, hair, facial features, whatever, and I’m tempted to pay her a compliment, but for fear it will be misconstrued I do not. It’s a shame really, because the passing remark could brighten both our lives just a tiny bit, but it goes unsaid because of too much defensiveness in the > world. What’s that supposed to mean? ---
**Author:** ![tdn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/94ad74/32.png) [@tdn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tdn)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2005, 4:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-oh-why-must-drivers-holler-at-pedestrians/326752/10 "2005-10-18T16:37:37Z")
> [@SusanStoHelit](#): > > Assholes who yell at you from windows aren’t really “appreciating your beauty”, they are asserting their dominance. Huh? Where do you get that from? ---
**Author:** ![SusanStoHelit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/7ab992/32.png) [@SusanStoHelit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SusanStoHelit)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2005, 4:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-oh-why-must-drivers-holler-at-pedestrians/326752/11 "2005-10-18T16:45:34Z")
> [@tdn](#): > > Huh? Where do you get that from? I almost always get yelled at by cars full of guys. Then they high-five each other as they drive off. IMO, a situation like that is not done to pay me a compliment or brighten my world, but to show the pack how alpha you are. I could be completely wrong, though. It’s mostly a gut reaction. If any other women feel the same, I would appreciate hearing from them. ---
**Author:** ![Bricker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/977dab/32.png) [@Bricker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bricker)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2005, 4:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-oh-why-must-drivers-holler-at-pedestrians/326752/12 "2005-10-18T16:50:02Z")
> [@SusanStoHelit](#): > > I almost always get yelled at by cars full of guys. Then they high-five each other as they drive off. IMO, a situation like that is not done to pay me a compliment or brighten my world, but to show the pack how alpha you are. > > I could be completely wrong, though. It’s mostly a gut reaction. If any other women feel the same, I would appreciate hearing from them. Not a woman, but I see your point. It can hardly be a genuine compliment, or even a genuine overture, when it’s delivered like that. ---
**Author:** ![tdn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/94ad74/32.png) [@tdn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tdn)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2005, 4:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-oh-why-must-drivers-holler-at-pedestrians/326752/13 "2005-10-18T16:53:58Z")
It may not be a genuine compliment, but that does not mean that they are trying to assert dominance. They might just be being rowdy. Or horny. Or drunk. Not everything a man does is a power play. ---
**Author:** ![Man\_With\_a\_Cat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/cab0a1/32.png) [@Man\_With\_a\_Cat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Man_With_a_Cat)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2005, 5:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-oh-why-must-drivers-holler-at-pedestrians/326752/14 "2005-10-18T17:30:17Z")
> [@Lissa](#): > > Don’t bother. I’m not on there. I’m so hot that film spontaneously combusts when exposed to my image. _snicker_ > > I’m not bad looking, but I’m no supermodel-- about average, really. I don’t think that could be the reason. My learned opinion is that you need to submit a picture to the **Private, Trustworthy, Non-Car-Yelling-From Board of Esteemed Doper Gentleman** , so that we may determine the proper level of hot (or not)-ness to apply. It is only when armed with this knowledge that we can make a proper evaluation of the reasons for this particular phenomenon as it applies to your fine self. Humbly submitted, **Bus Guy** Commander, PTN-C-Y-FBEDG ---
**Author:** ![The\_Weird\_One](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7bcc69/32.png) [@The\_Weird\_One](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Weird_One)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2005, 6:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-oh-why-must-drivers-holler-at-pedestrians/326752/15 "2005-10-18T18:00:20Z")
> [@tdn](#): > > It may not be a genuine compliment, but that does not mean that they are trying to assert dominance. They might just be being rowdy. Or horny. Or drunk. Not everything a man does is a power play. Alright, but when a unfamiliar man acts rowdy, or horny, or drunk towards a woman, the woman is likely to feel threatened, whether that was the man’s intention or not. When it’s in person, that’s a good defensive mechanism. When the guy is just driving by in a car, it still triggers a similar reaction. I still don’t understand _why_ guys do it. Explanations would be sincerely welcome. ---
**Author:** ![dalej42](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/67e7ee/32.png) [@dalej42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dalej42)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2005, 6:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-oh-why-must-drivers-holler-at-pedestrians/326752/16 "2005-10-18T18:08:24Z")
Well, I’m a 36 year old male and I always have people yelling at me while I’m jogging. Very annoying. I don’t hear it often any more, but I used to have people singing the theme from Rocky when I would come running down the street. Rocky was a boxer, not a runner. ---
**Author:** ![Scumpup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ce73a5/32.png) [@Scumpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scumpup)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2005, 6:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-oh-why-must-drivers-holler-at-pedestrians/326752/17 "2005-10-18T18:15:46Z")
Such mashers deserve a good, sound drubbing with a walking stick. The techniques taught by [Professor and Madame Vigny](http://ejmas.com/jnc/jncart_vigny_0500.htm) would be perfect, except for the whole masher being sheltered in the car thing. ---
**Author:** ![tdn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/94ad74/32.png) [@tdn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tdn)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2005, 6:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-oh-why-must-drivers-holler-at-pedestrians/326752/18 "2005-10-18T18:18:41Z")
> [@The Weird One](#): > > I still don’t understand _why_ guys do it. Explanations would be sincerely welcome. Search me. I never did that kind of thing even when I had a car. ---
**Author:** ![Jackknifed\_Juggernaut](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/9de053/32.png) [@Jackknifed\_Juggernaut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackknifed_Juggernaut)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2005, 6:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-oh-why-must-drivers-holler-at-pedestrians/326752/19 "2005-10-18T18:30:10Z")
I’m a guy and I’m also baffled by these men. They can’t possibly think that sex is possible. Here in NY, women with attractive features are bombarded by lewd comments, stares, yells and taunts. These come from drivers, construction workers, store employees, etc. The women basically learn to ignore these since they are pretty much constant. And I’ve never seen any of these guys get lucky. Not once in 7 years of working in NY and in countless years of wasting time. The funny thing, no one seems to know anyone who would do such things. ---
**Author:** ![tdn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/94ad74/32.png) [@tdn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tdn)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2005, 6:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-oh-why-must-drivers-holler-at-pedestrians/326752/20 "2005-10-18T18:49:07Z")
> [@Jackknifed Juggernaut](#): > > The funny thing, no one seems to know anyone who would do such things. I wouldn’t say no one. I’ve done it. I was working as a temp, and I had an assignment that was essentially construction. During our breaks, I would stand outside with the construction workers and hoot and whistle at the dames and broads right along side them. I could see myself doing it, and I knew it was wrong, but it was as if some strange force compelled me. It was really weird. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-oh-why-must-drivers-holler-at-pedestrians/326752.md?page=2)