Road Rage

Discussion in 'Off-Topic Discussions' started by Gabe F., May 10, 2017.

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  1. Gabe F.

    Gabe F. Active Member

    Yesterday, my fiancee and I were driving up I-355 here in Chicagoland. We go to pass the guy in the middle lane because traffic was a bit slow in that lane. As we were making the pass, the guy turns his signal on. At that point I was already abreast with his car so I just kept on moving until I passed him.

    I stayed in the left lane for a bit, but when I decided to move back into the middle lane the guy wouldn't let me over. I sped up to around 70 at first (the speed limit is 55) and he sped up. He maintained that speed for a while so then I pushed it all the way to nearly 90 AND SO DID HE!!

    I slowed back down and he gave me one of the nastiest looks I've seen. I threw up my hands and shouted "WHAT THE ***K?!". He looked angry as ever and his poor wife looked like she was about to have a meltdown.

    As I've thought about this, I wonder if it has less to do with me not letting him pass (even though I didn't do it deliberately) or because my fiancee has a skin tone that doesn't equate with his. I don't know the guy so I'm not passing judgment, but I can't figure out what in the hell set him off like that.

    Any of y'all experienced something like this before?

    PS

    Dear Angry Driver,
    :moon:
     
  2. Kizmet

    Kizmet Moderator

    You mean "people who act like assholes?" Yeah, once or twice.:yeah:
     
  3. BrandeX

    BrandeX New Member

    Did he have any bumper stickers on his car?
     
  4. Steve Levicoff

    Steve Levicoff Well-Known Member

    Of course. "TRUMP."

    And "TRUMP PENCE."

    And "Make America Great Again."

    And "I belong to the NRA."

    And "I'm pro-choice. And I vote." But that one belongs to his wife.

    And "Get out of Viet Nam." But that one belongs to his grandmother.
     
  5. b4cz28

    b4cz28 Active Member

    Now that you date a poc you need to just automatically assume that everything anyone ever does is now racially motivated. You really need to watch out for white males, as noted already, if there is a Trump sticker or even an American Flag I would go ahead and prepare for the racial attacks.
     
  6. BrandeX

    BrandeX New Member

  7. TomE

    TomE New Member

    It has to do with this

    Not this
     
  8. Kizmet

    Kizmet Moderator

    I'm guessing that you're probably right but I also think that there are people walking around like powder kegs, just begging someone to light the fuse. And if no one lights the fuse they will create a situation that gets the fuse lit. In this case Gabe was the unfortunate person who was in the wrong place at the wrong time but this should not be construed to mean that Gabe was any way at fault. People like this are dangerous.
     
  9. b4cz28

    b4cz28 Active Member


    I see going 90 mph as dangerous
     
  10. Kizmet

    Kizmet Moderator

    I'm sorry but I don't understand what point you're trying to make.
     
  11. me again

    me again Well-Known Member

    Two points can be drawn from b4cz28's comment. First, breaking the law by speeding up to 90 mph is not an appropriate way to address a discourteous driver (assuming there are no exigent circumstances). Second, illegally speeding up to 90 mph could be dangerous for public safety, depending on traffic conditions, weather conditions, roadway conditions and drivers' training (plural).

    In most cases, the best way to handle a discourteous driver in a non-exigent situation is to "create distance" by:
    - slowing down and letting him pass ahead
    - move into a lane away from him (if traffic permits)
    - temporarily exit the interstate, while he continues on
    - make a right or a left on a roadway, while he goes straight

    Intentional avoidance can reduce heartburn, keep blood pressure low and can preclude a possible physical confrontation with a stranger who may be emotionally ill.
     
  12. Bruce

    Bruce Moderator

    My very unscientific opinion is that road rage is a form of brief, temporary mental illness. The overwhelming majority of road ragers I've dealt with as a police officer have been totally rational people once they calmed down, and can't even explain why they turned into raving, sometimes violent lunatics.

    I always abide by me again's advice when I'm driving my personal car; absolutely nothing good can come from any sort of roadside confrontation.
     
  13. LearningAddict

    LearningAddict Well-Known Member

    Makes a lot of sense. I'm sure if one were monitored while driving they'd find elevated levels to begin with. You know you're moving really fast in a multi-ton vehicle and all kinds of things can go wrong, so you're right on the edge even if you don't consciously realize it.
     
  14. TomE

    TomE New Member

    I agree with you, although I can see the powder keg going both ways, except, that at times, people can be looking for some time of boogeyman as opposed to simply acknowledging that there are a lot of jerks out there, and A LOT of jerks who feel empowered and crazed behind the wheel!
     
  15. me again

    me again Well-Known Member

    Everyone has stories about road rage. However, can anyone here provide an example of how they:
    (a) intentionally "created distance" between them-self and a road rager
    (b) by intentionally yielding to them
    (c) or by driving away from them

    What happened?
     
  16. perrymk

    perrymk Member

    I don't know that I've ever succumbed to road rage, but I do know one thing that has improve my driving. I have a dash cam. Actually, I have a dashcam app on my iPhone that records video, speed, and location. I can even display a map of the route I took. Monitoring my own driving has real helped me keep my driving in check.

    As an aside, an inexpensive standalone dashcam typically only records video. A dashcam capable of recording one's speed and displaying a route requires a built in GPS and typically costs over $100 (last time I checked). A smartphone dashcam app is under $10. At first it was inconvenient to always plug in the phone for driving bit I'm use to it now and it's no big deal. It's like getting use to always clicking on the seat belt. It helps I rigged a convenient mount that my phone slides into.
     
  17. me again

    me again Well-Known Member

    Excellent ideas! The iphone is the perfect device.

    A clever entrepreneur could design and manufacture a specialized holding device for the iphone to fit in the front window of a car (to properly angle the video while driving).

    Some cases are impossible to win without video evidence.
     
  18. Kizmet

    Kizmet Moderator

    someday everyone will wear a video device that will direct feed to their own personal youtube reality show and we can watch each other's lives in real time (another nice crossover to the Conspiracy Theory thread.):cool3:
     
  19. TomE

    TomE New Member

    Sounds great! And only one step away from...

    [​IMG]
     
  20. Kizmet

    Kizmet Moderator

    But, back to reality, I'm assuming that dash cams will become standard equipment on cars in the near future. After all, lots of cars already have back-up cams. Until then the idea of using a phone mount sounds pretty effective. As a side note, I once new a guy who mounter a bull horn speaker on his car so he could yell at other drivers. As you might guess, it didn't take too long before he was forced to dismantle it
     

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