Bees are also rather tame, by comparison to wasps. In high school, we used to take our orange-ade and put a line of it on the bricks where we ate. After a few days, the bees started learning where the motherlode of nectar was going to be every day, and they started showing up, en masse. We used to freak all the girls out by petting them and letting them walk on us. Bees are by nature quite tame, and only attack when they feel their hive is being threatened (sticking a garden fork onto the hive would certainly qualify).

Wasps on the other hand, will sting you just for the hell of it. Unlike bees, wasps can sting over and over again, with no detrement to the wasp. Bees only sting as a last line of defence since it's going to kill them anyway. I rather equate it to people walking around with a live grenade stuck to their chest permanently. Sure, it'll stop a threat from entering your home, but you REALLY don't want to have to use it.

All that being said, if a wasp ever got caught in my car and was obviously pissed, I'm not sure I'd keep the intelligence or presence of mind not to jump out. Those things are just MEAN.

Oh, and don't ever swat a wasp in the presence of other wasps. If you break their pheremone sac, all the other wasps around go into automatic kamikazee mode. I was once cutting grass at a commercial location (years ago - I was 16) when I saw a wasps nest on the wall. Hating the little buggers, I decided to rid the world of this dire threat. There were only 3 wasps on the nest, so I figured I could take them. I went to the truck, got a long pair of needlenosed pliars, and sneaked up to the nest. I sloooowly reached up with the pliars and squished one on the edge, so as not to alert the other two that their guard was down. Before I could pull my hand back, I was stung 6 times on the hand that was holding the pliars. Right on the freaking fingers. Now when I want to kill a nest of wasps, I usually use hairspray and a lighter. Their wings are so thin, they pretty much melt instantly, and the wasps all fall to the ground, ready to be stomped with impunity. I also hear that carboureator (sp?) cleaning fluid works wonders too. It doesn't even have to be lit. On the other hand, I have on several occasions seen a friend of mine take a tissue, walk up to the wasps nest, and crush the whole nest at once. I still think he's f-ing nuts though. I mean, even if it CAN be done, how do you ever figure that out? You have to try it at least ONCE without knowing it can really be done.