July 23, 2004

• Also: an excellent New Yorker article by Malcolm Gladwell.
• What it comes down to is that the vast majority of drivers -- and all people -- are idiots. I'm not being flip when I say that; I mean it. For them, the best defense is good offense: big, heavy trucks that will crush anything they hit, because they will hit things. When you're eating McNuggets and talking on your cell phone, you are simply unable to respond appropriately to your environment. I haven't driven in years -- I haven't needed to -- but lately I spend a lot of time riding around in a nimble, sporty little import with a very aggressive (and attentive) driver. Yet I feel much safer than I generally feel in larger cars with other drivers -- because I know that, whatever danger there is, we are equipped to avoid it. Active safety. Of course, a properly attentive driver could do just as well in a truck or SUV by knowing the vehicle's limits. The problem is that most people are simply unwilling to give driving the attention it requires, putting themselves and others at risk. SUVs aren't the problem. Idiots are.
• *gives uncleozzy a standing ovation* That really was great, uncleozzy. You've hit the nail on the head when it comes to safety. As an aside, I always get queasy when I see a big old honkin' SUV with ONE person inside, which is wayyy too often. Or a big truck that looks as though it could handle an entire construction site's needs all by itself, all gleaming and pretty, with chrome rims, street tires & nary a scratch on the paint. Those drive me nuts, too.
• very aggressive + attentive = still unsafe
• uncleozzy makes a good point about inattentive driving being a real problem, and yet... ...lately I spend a lot of time riding around in a nimble, sporty little import with a very aggressive (and attentive) driver. Yet I feel much safer than I generally feel in larger cars with other drivers... And how safe do you suppose the other drivers sharing the road with this "aggressive" driver feel? Wouldn't considerate and attentive feel even safer, for you and for everyone else? Wouldn't that be just plain old good manners, to boot?
• I don't know, maybe my definition of aggressive is different from yours. Maybe aggressive wasn't the right word. I don't mean "tailgating jackass" or "lane-switching speed demon." Those people can rot with the rest of the morons. I mean "gets out of your way if you're doing something stupid" rather than "waits for you to finish being dumb." Yes, waiting around might be a hair safer, but much less fun.
• nimble, sporty little import with a very aggressive (and attentive) driver Oh yeah, that's safe. One of my main complaints about drivers on the road (I commute 40 miles each way on I-94 in Detroit) is that people drive their cars like fighter pilots instead of grasping the reality of the situation - they are driving a metal box that likely could get them killed if they are not careful. I'm not suggesting that everyone should drive like a bluehair. But what I am suggesting is that if you are a very aggressive driver, you're only making it a shorter trip to the graveyard. More
• The New York State Police define an Aggressive Driver as one who: Operates a motor vehicle in a selfish, bold or pushy manner, without regard for the rights or safety of the other users of the streets and highways. Okay, yeah, definitely not what I meant.
• No, no, uncleozzy, the NYPD says so -- that must be exactly what you meant. Don't make me go all Oxford English Dictionary on yo' ass... "Aggressive driving" seems to have gotten morphed into "angry driving". My style (and the style of your friend) is probably better described as "actively engaged driving": minimize distractions, pay attention to the road and especially to other (zombie) drivers, telegraph your moves so as not to surprise the other (zombie) drivers, etc. As to the term "aggressive", I would say I "aggressively" interpret and respond to the world around me. I certainly drive faster than most -- hell, a timid passenger would probably describe my driving as "insane" -- but in 18 years of driving public roads, I've never once had an accident (knock wood) because I PAY ATTENTION. Too bad we can't pass a law that says you "must pay attention" -- or we could, but it'd be impossible to enforce, whereas speed laws are easily enforced. FWIW, I would rather share the road with a drunk, but active, driver than a sober, zombie driver who is blissfully unaware of the world outside their metal box. At least one of 'em is *trying* to avoid accidents, if a bit impaired. Unfortunately, most drunk drivers are zombies as well, so they've just made a bad situation worse... Driver courtesy just helps the whole system work better -- work with merging traffic so that traffic jams don't occur, use your turn signals (correctly!) so other drivers know what you're about to do, etc.
• Sorry, back on topic: What pisses me off about SUV owners is that they generally buy their behemoths because they're "safe". By "safe", they implicitly mean that if they get in a 2+ car accident, they want to *utterly destroy* the other guy. Sounds like premeditated vehicular assault/homicide to me... Disclaimer: I drive a turbo Miata. SUVs can't catch me, hehe As to whether SUVs get good gas mileage -- meh, free country, you'll pay for your stupidity at the pump. As to whether they're suitable for highway driving -- meh, you'll pay with lousy handling, loud tires, and generally poorer road manners. Have fun with that. Most SUV drivers would be better served with a station wagon or minivan, but intelligence often takes a back seat to style.
• intelligence often takes a back seat to style. What does intelligence have to do with choosing a vehicle? It's a matter of personal choice...what you like. I don't think your Miata purchase was based on intelligence, and neither was my last vehicle purchase. We get what fits our needs, budget, and taste (mostly taste). I have a problem with bad drivers - no matter what they drive. And they're no more likely to be in SUVs than in sports cars, pickups, 18-wheelers, Camrys, Sunfires or on motorbikes.
• Also some excellent New Yorker cartoons. I've always wanted to print up bumper stickers to put on Hummers that say "Compensating for something" or "As a matter of fact, I would like a larger penis!"
• Well, maybe we could come to an agreement, mecurious. I've always wanted to catch the cheeky lads who vandalized my truck and give them a demonstration of exactly. how. I'm. compensating.
• RENO, Nevada (AP) -- Conservationists sued the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service on Thursday seeking protection for a rare butterfly they say is threatened by off-road vehicles at one of the largest sand dunes in the West. Environmentalists want the agency to declare the Sand Mountain blue butterfly an endangered species because, they say, its habitat is being destroyed at the only place it is known to live -- the Sand Mountain Recreation Area in western Nevada. beautiful butterfly
• That butterfly is right up there with cute pandas, except it doesn't live nearly as long. It's patriotic, too - white, blue and red. And,I'm, um, unfond of off-roaders. I apologise to any of you who is one for my attitude, but you really should try the back country on a horse.
• Giddyap!