Almost
It’s 1 am. I am driving; almost empty street, four lanes, no streetlights. Still, there are occasional headlights and neon signs in store windows, so there is a nice pattern of occasional light amid deep shadow. It’s cold; I have my windows closed; the (rather noisy) heating fans are on. Suddenly, I notice a guy next to my side window. You see, he was crossing the street, and I did not see him until I almost hit him with my sideview mirror. The guy is black. He is wearing a black jacket, black pants, and a black hat. It is a very dark night.
He is not looking at my car. He is not looking at any other cars on the road, for that matter; he is staring straight ahead, straight across the street. Maybe he is thinking of something. Maybe he is high. Maybe he is suicidal.
And if he had started crossing the street just 5 seconds earlier — or if I had accelerated away from the previous stoplight just a bit faster — I would have hit him.
I am an almost murderer. It is a very disturbing feeling.