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Originally Posted by Ronbert
I've observed that passing lane behavior is entirely different from slow lane behavior. It's almost like two completely different roadways.
Passing lane is tailgating, pushing, cellphoning, texting, drafting, simultaneous throttle & brake .... and generally kneecaps and elbows pushing and shoving to go just a teeny bit faster.
I don't participate in that. I hang in the slow lane and watch the festivities :-)
My gas mileage is much better too.
Don't get involved in it.
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Well said, Ronbert.
Oddly, this is something I've been thinking about lately, as it relates to self-defense... not so much from the standpoint of being attacked or harassed or threatened by another driver, but as a matter of overall probabilities. Here are some
risk data for people in the United States:
Lifetime risk of being murdered by a handgun: about 1:360.
Lifetime risk of being murdered by any means: about 1:200.
Lifetime risk of dying in a car accident: about 1:80.
These are averages, and don't take into account that people's risk factors vary, but I think the message is fairly clear: defensive driving is as at least as important as any other self-defense measure we can take -- perhaps more so.
It's a skill like any other. Defensive driving can be practiced at the basic level of paying attention, avoiding trouble before it develops, and obeying traffic laws: boring stuff like signaling lane changes, maintaining a proper following distance, and so forth.
And there's another level: there are plenty of courses out there to improve one's skills, ranging from day-long "reminder" classes to hands-on workshops in emergency and evasive driving techniques.
If you're serious about self-defense and focus only on threats posed by violent crime, you're wearing blinders. You're in more danger from the guy with a cell phone in the car next to you than you are from hypothetical "bad guys."
(In before the lock, and all that -- it's a worthy topic, but pretty minimally firearms-related... not that I'm letting that stop me.
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