Entry tags:
daf bit: Bava Kama 32
The mishna teaches: if two people are passing each other on the street,
either one walking and the other running or both running, and they
collide and someone is injured, neither one is liable. Why are both
cases stated? If there is no liability when one is walking, then
surely there would be no liability if both are running! And how can
there be no liability when just one is running -- he's doing something
unusual so it's on him, right? The g'mara concludes that the case of
one walker and one runner occurs on erev Shabbat before sunset, when
running is acceptable behavior, while if they collide on a weekday
the runner is liable to the walker. Why is running on erev
Shabbat permissible? L'cha dodi likrat kallah -- come let us go and
greet the [Shabbat] bride. Rabbi Yannai used to instead stand and
say "come thou, oh queen". (32a-b)
This mishna follows one about collisions when one person is walking in front of another, e.g. if the log I'm carrying breaks the pot you're carrying. The rules there are what I expected: if you hit from behind you're liable, unless the guy in front stopped suddenly, unless he warned you he was doing so.
