Some words for an unnamed SUV driver

I'd just like to take this moment to give a shout out to the speeding SUV driver who couldn't be bothered to stop after it hit a cat almost in front of my house. I saw you. While I'm sure you thought that because the cat ran off the road after you squished him, he wasn't seriously injuried, you should know that sometimes adrenaline will allow an injured animal to go a distance before collapsing. And animals bodies don't really stand up well to thousands of pounds of force, no matter how briefly applied. You hadn't even made it to the stoplight and the cat collapsed in my neighbor's driveway. What you missed because of your impatience was me stopping to pick up the cat and drive it to the emergency vet clinic even though I suspected the worst, its soft black body already limp, its pupils dilated and unresponsive.

I can only hope you feel at least some guilt, but the cynic in me wonders if you even noticed the bump. I've seen you speeding up the street during the morning commute before. Sure, the cat ran out in front of you, and yes, no one wants to confess to accidentally killing someone's pet, but you should have been able to avoid the cat had you not been speeding. And no matter what, you should have stopped afterwards. Unless you had someone bleeding to death in your car, I can't see that your haste was justifiable in any way.

You should be the one going house to house searching for the cat's owner. The cat had no collar, and apparently no microchip, so I'll be doing that this evening instead of visiting with my parents, who are in town for just one night. Thanks for all of this - it's really made my day just about as shitty as it could be.

And I just want to thank the incredibly kind staff at the Puget Sound Pet Pavilion for responding quickly when I arrived and for comforting me when it was clear that the cat had died from its injuries. I'm truly grateful that you were so caring and understanding.