Once when crossing the border from Wales into England with me sleeping and my girlfriend driving, she somehow managed to get into an accident [her fault]. There were no injuries, just a bunch of bent metal.

Well, of course in the U.S. we are conditioned to get immediately into a defensive posture after an accident; be prepared to face the anger of the driver you just hit, start sweating over the upcoming interaction with the police, etc.

Well, the couple she hit just got calmly out of their car, inquired as to everyone’s condition [as did we], etc. No shouting, no blaming, just polite conversation – as if we were all at a backyard BBQ.

My girlfriend was just about in tears, apologizing profusely, and the other couple were amazingly nice, just saying things like, "no worries", "nothing to get in a twist over", etc. They said not to worry, that the accident didn’t even wake up their sleeping baby.

When the police arrived he acted like a true public servant as opposed to the storm troopers we have here in the U.S. He inquired as to injuries, and then - amazingly to me – asked both parties if we wanted him to make a formal report. I was like, W-T-F, aren't you even going to give us a ticket? Nope, no ticket, he just wanted to make sure everyone was in good condition to continue on his or her journey - amazing.

The other driver said he didn't need a report, that he trusted us, and that worst-case scenario Hertz would cover his damages. The only thing that bothered him was that he had just waited six months for delivery on his new car [long delivery waits are apparently common in the U.K.?] but even at that he was smiling when he said it.

See, I said to myself – this is the way that a civil society deals with these matters.

Then again, a week earlier I saw a minor fender-bender near Marble Arch and the two drivers got out and started yelling at each other. One driver then broke the antenna off of his car and started hitting the other driver who then proceeded to pelt the other guy with the fresh produce he had sitting in his back seat so I guess it all evens out in the end.