WHAT is the world coming to when the Vatican has to issue a new set of the Ten Commandments for motorists in response to the global increase in road rage?What is Singapore coming to when SBS Transit has to launch a campaign to stop people from whacking bus drivers?

Since yesterday, posters have been put up at bus stops showing a fist and the words 'stop abuse'. It used to be that we would see more benign posters espousing the wonders of being kind and courteous. At most we would see posters of little dogs with the words 'Stop Animal Abuse'. Now we're told to stop abusing animals and bus drivers. How scary is that?

When you think about it, violence seems to be on the increase in areas related to commuting. You have people attacking bus drivers. Motorists attacking other motorists. Passengers attacking taxi drivers or vice versa. The only reason MRT train drivers don't get whacked is that people either can't see them or believe they don't even exist.

Think about it. When was the last time you heard about a postman being abused? Or the pesky survey takers on Orchard Road? Have you ever thought about whacking the mosquito guy who rings your doorbell wanting to check your bamboo poles for the umpteenth time? Well, maybe when he rings your doorbell one too many times while you pretend not to be home.

My theory is that Singaporeans generally hate commuting. And violence results because they hate those they perceive to have the upper hand in the process of commuting.

Let me explain.

Motorists, for example, hate the process of driving through bad traffic.They hate the CTE but never fail to use it. What may alleviate their general sense of hatefulness is if they have a nice car.

But not everybody has a nice car, so violence results when the equilibrium is upset and a not-so-nice car offends a nice car by cutting into its path. One is quite sure that if studies are done, most bust-ups that result in violence will invariably involve one nice car and one not-so-nice car.

Of course, there will also be incidents involving two not-so-nice cars because they are likely to be driven by people who are not happy about having to drive such cars in the first place.

As for buses, the greater likelihood of violence is due to proximity. You have to get out of your car to hit the driver of the other car. Your ability to hit the other driver is also dependent on the other driver coming out of the car in the first place.

You can't hit the other driver if he or she has locked the car doors and is calling the police on a cellphone.

Whereas on the bus, you can just reach out and hit the driver. I'm not saying it's the right thing to do, I'm just saying that it's more convenient.

And the people who hit bus drivers are more dangerous because their level of hatefulness is higher - not only are they not in a position to drive a car, be it nice or not-so-nice, they have to take a bus and be subject to the proclivities of a driver who is more interested in his schedule than theirs.

Yes, this may all sound crazy. But it's a crazy world we live in when just getting from point A to point B can result in fisticuffs. Maybe it's time to doa deeper study into the violent tendencies of Singaporean commuters. I would offer, but I'm afraid of getting whacked.