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How did you not see who you were cutting in front of, but know that the hole was big enough and manage to notice that he didn't hit his breaks? I'd think after the first confrontation you'd remember the guys car.
I would have slowed down and let him pass after the first time he got all up upset. Mouthing "sorry" usually goes a long way too.
And I do find it a little worrisome that being yelled at in traffic made you decide you need to be more heavily armed. You didn't need your .38, you wouldn't have needed a riot gun either. Careful driving and some conflict avoidance (talk to your wife about when waving is appropriate) would do much more to avoid repeats of the situation than a bigger gun would.
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You people are doing a good job of trying to put words in my mouth. I did not say he didn't hit his brakes. What I said was he didn't need to. He could have. Since I was in front of him I couldn't see his tail lights. I sped up when I moved over to prevent any such necessity.
After the left turn I observed him for a few seconds in my rear view mirror. Since I was in a strange large city, I then focused my attention on the traffic in front of me and on watching for route signs. I figured the incident was over.
And mouthing sorry to him? To do that I would have had to stick my head and shoulders out the window and look back. Do you seriously think I am going to do that while driving in heavy traffic?
And when I saw that I was going to have to make a right turn, I began just watching for a break in traffic large enough for me to safely move from the left lane into the right lane. I wasn't trying to identify cars. I had to make a quick decision because the intersection was less than a block away.
I assure you that is in no way the only reason I go move heavily armed now. I will have my .38 or .380 on me with my 9 mm or .45 in the vehicle. And no I don't carry a riot gun around with me. (Although I did while a police officer.)
Conflict avoidance? Have you ever faced another man with a gun? Have you ever looked down the wrong end of a double barreled shotgun? I have. But I was able to get him to put the gun down without shooting him. If I had shot him it would have a justifiable shooting.