Today I saw a woman in a burka...driving.

[MindPilot]

It was a very strange juxtaposition. She also appeared to be having a spirited conversation on the phone or maybe grooving to some tunes because she was gesticulating rather enthusiastically. I came alongside the car on the freeway and I kind of did a double-take because I thought at first glance the driver was wearing a motorcycle helmet. But no, it was a full-coverage burka with the little eye-slot screen.

Curiously, I had never--in real life--seen anyone in a burka before and now I've seen two in as many days. The other woman was on a corner waiting to cross the street as I drove past. I have say the unfamiliarity made seeing it a little unsettling.

[gkhouston]

1. That's a little scary because of how restricted the visual field appears to be

in a burka. :scared:

Wonder if someone could successfully market a sport/driving burka with a slightly larger slot? :-)

[MindPilot]

3. Truth be told, she wasn't steering much.

Her hands were busy talking. Thank dog for a straight freeway and a proper wheel alignment.

[pnwmom]

27. And what happens when she gets off the freeway? Geez. n/t

[dixiegrrrrl]

21. There is NO peripheral vision in a burka.

According to what I have read.

Not good for driving, I would think.

[Mimosa]

25. Not good for seeing at all.

I tried wearing one for a few days to see what it's like. Not only can't one see well, it is easy to trip while wearing it, especially going up steps.

[devils chaplain]

2. Interesting because...

... I would assume this is not a problem in many societies where women where burqas because presumably there they aren't allowed to drive. I would think some "wraparound" eyeslits should be in order here.

[MindPilot]

8. I wasn't thinking of it so much in those terms...

more like, you can drive a car by yourself, you're in a place where it's perfectly ok to cross the street without the accompaniment of a male relative; do you really want to wear that thing?

[devils chaplain]

12. From what I understand...

In many cases the women want to wear them. As an atheist, I think it's all daft, but it's a free country.

[pnwmom]

28. Maybe you should, because she's a hazard to everyone else on the road. n/t

[FormerDittoHead]

4. I beat the lock! n/t

[MindPilot]

13. I hope someone doesn't take this thread far afield

I just want to talk about what I saw.

[pnwmom]

30. I had the same visceral reaction the first time I saw a woman

wearing one at Sears, in the ladies department. She was following her husband around and he was dealing with the purchase. Seeing a woman hiding away like that -- seemingly so powerless -- was a creepy feeling.

But at least she wasn't a hazard to anyone at Sears, as she would have been if she were driving with limited vision.

[guardian]

5. There is a tremendous variety of burkas

The diversity is stunning: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AIpdC0o3mdM

[MindPilot]

11. It was the basic black.

[guardian]

15. Well isn't having a

little black burka the foundation of every woman's wardrobe?

[slackmaster]

6. That's a weird one. I can't imagine that's completely safe.

At least she was watching the road and not texting.

Curiously, I had never--in real life--seen anyone in a burka before and now I've seen two in as many days.

I've seen maybe three here in San Diego in my entire life.

[FreeState]

9. I see them all the time in San Diego - but then again I shop at markets

Vine Ripe in La Masa, North Park Produce etc are all heavily muslim/middle eastern - great produce and food at an extremely reasonable price.

That being said people talking on their cell phones, not using blinkers etc cause me a lot more concern than a head covering that one can see out of.

[MindPilot]

18. North Park Produce is one of my favorites,

Every Friday I get a dozen donuts from the shop across the street, between the auto parts store and the laundromat.

I see lots of women in the area with the scarf wrap partially covering their face, but I'd not seen the kind of burka with the screen over the eyes before.

[FreeState]

31. You should check out Vine Ripe in La Mesa if you like NP Produce

BTW - hi neighbor (I live off Adams/Antique Row). A good friend of mine use to live right next to the donut shop and liquor store by NP Produce.

I see more Burka's in east county, but I have seen a few in North Park.

Vine Ripe is like NP Produce, only better selection and price, with a deli and restaurant.

[pnwmom]

32. But the type with only eye slits is very difficult to see out of.

There's no peripheral vision, for one thing.

[rzemanfl]

7. I wonder if her car insurance company knows. n/t

[Zoigal]

10. Have seen a couple older ladies in Costco in Stockton wearing burkas.

However they didn't have their faces covered. Wonder how
the one you saw driving got her CA license. Or are faces
allowed to be covered when pics are taken?....z

[Monique1]

17. The problem is what?

The burka or the cell phone? I have driven on the highways and parking lots watching people drive while on the cell phone. I think the cell phone is the problem not the burka. Not one of the problems I experienced has to do with a burka - it was the gd cell phone. I have been in stores where I can't get through the aisles because - not a burka but the CELL PHONE being used. I have been in a parking lot either waiting for someone to back out or get in their space - it took them five minutes because they were on the cell phone. I wear a hat when I go out in the sun and also sunglasses - what do you do? I don't talk on the cell phone while my car is in motion.

[MindPilot]

22. I don't KNOW she was talking on a cell phone.

I couldn't see her mouth; I couldn't see an ear-piece. What I could see was someone making a lot hand motions...that appeared to me to be the kind of motions someone would make while talking.

But my interest is not the safety issue, I'm just making the observation that driving and wearing a burka is something I just don't often see together.

[pnwmom]

34. If you had ever tried on a burka, you'd know they severely restrict vision,

and that IS a problem for a driver.

Also, what if one of these women rear-ended your vehicle and she's wearing a burka? How will you identify her later if you need to? How do you know the driver is the person on the license?

[lunatica]

14. I'd do a double take too

I've never seen a woman in a full burka.

[Rage for Order]

16. Probably one of those secular atheist radical Islamists that Newt warned us about!

:)

[thecrow]

19. How do you *know* it was a woman?

[Monique1]

20. I have almost been rear ended a couple of times

because men are on the cell phone or I stopped for the red light.

[MindPilot]

24. For that matter how do you KNOW the gender of any of your road-mates?

So, that said, I of course don't *know*, but the hands appeared feminine.

[louslobbs]

26. lol, true, it could have been a guy with a burka fetish thanks Crow

lou

[kenny blankenship]

33. Exactly. It could have been an escaped orangutan

There could be a Klansman in a bedsheet under that burkha, and you'd never know.

[Dappleganger]

23. That doesn't seem safe.

How can she see properly?

[pnwmom]

35. She -- or he -- can't. n/t

[Fuzz]

29. Maybe it was a super-hero but the invisible plane was in the shop.