# Libras are bad drivers. **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [December 14, 2006, 7:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/libras-are-bad-drivers/384092 "2006-12-14T07:37:12Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![sturmhauke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e47c2d/32.png) [@sturmhauke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sturmhauke)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2006, 7:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/libras-are-bad-drivers/384092/1 "2006-12-14T07:37:12Z")
Yes, that’s right. The configuration of the heavens at the moment of your birth determines your ability to operate a motor vehicle. They did a [study](http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20061214/sc_nm/astrology_driving_dc_1) and everything! > [@](#): > > According to a study by [InsuranceHotline.com](http://InsuranceHotline.com), a Web site that quotes drivers on insurance rates, astrological signs are a significant factor in predicting car accidents… “I was absolutely shocked by the results,” said Lee Romanov, president of Toronto-based [InsuranceHotline.com](http://InsuranceHotline.com), who also wrote the book “Car Carma” which touches on the correlation between astrological signs and driving ability while doing the study. Here’s an idea for your, Mr. Romanov. Why don’t you take a statistics class? I mean, I guess it feels good fucking yourself in the ass with your head, since it’s pointy and all, but perhaps you might stop to consider that some of your customers might actually believe your bullshit and make poor desicions based on it. Let’s say it together now: “Correlation does not equal causation.” ---
**Author:** ![Rushgeekgirl](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rushgeekgirl/32/3715_2.png) [@Rushgeekgirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rushgeekgirl)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2006, 7:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/libras-are-bad-drivers/384092/2 "2006-12-14T07:50:28Z")
From the link in the article: _Sagittarius: They’re risk-takers, but they’re experienced risk takers, and know that stunt driving should be left to the professionals. This is a talkative group, and they should consider putting their cell phone down and just driving._ Pffft! Never had a cellphone, not a big talker, definitely not a risk taker. I like your little rant! Good job! ---
**Author:** ![Nava](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/da6949/32.png) [@Nava](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nava)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2006, 7:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/libras-are-bad-drivers/384092/3 "2006-12-14T07:54:46Z")
[QUOTE=Rushgeekgirl] From the link in the article: _Sagittarius: They’re risk-takers, but they’re experienced risk takers, and know that stunt driving should be left to the professionals. This is a talkative group, and they should consider putting their cell phone down and just driving._ [/QUOTE] OK… so during that time when they’re risk-takers but still haven’t figured out the relationship between “speed of car”, “radius of turn” and “distance to approaching car”, Sags are a different sign? Are Pisces and Aquarius better drivers in the rain? 😛 ---
**Author:** ![matt\_mcl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7ab992/32.png) [@matt\_mcl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/matt_mcl)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2006, 11:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/libras-are-bad-drivers/384092/4 "2006-12-14T11:02:34Z")
Hey, it’s true. I’m a double Libra (Taurus rising) and I can’t drive at _all!_ ---
**Author:** ![Pullet](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/edb3f5/32.png) [@Pullet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pullet)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2006, 12:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/libras-are-bad-drivers/384092/5 "2006-12-14T12:40:23Z")
[QUOTE=sturmhauke] I guess it feels good fucking yourself in the ass with your head, since it’s pointy and all [/QUOTE] Request permission to use this on the next Fuckwit who happens by ---
**Author:** ![The\_King\_of\_Soup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/a87d85/32.png) [@The\_King\_of\_Soup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_King_of_Soup)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2006, 12:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/libras-are-bad-drivers/384092/6 "2006-12-14T12:59:21Z")
I forget – in which constellation is NavStar, gain? ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2006, 1:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/libras-are-bad-drivers/384092/7 "2006-12-14T13:05:28Z")
Most significant phrase in article: > [@](#): > > …who also wrote the book “Car Carma”… “I am not a fraudulent charlatan. My book is not expensive” ---
**Author:** ![Chez\_Guevara](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/aeb1de/32.png) [@Chez\_Guevara](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chez_Guevara)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2006, 2:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/libras-are-bad-drivers/384092/8 "2006-12-14T14:17:33Z")
[QUOTE=matt\_mcl] Hey, it’s true. I’m a double Libra (Taurus rising) and I can’t drive at _all!_ [/QUOTE] I am also Libran. You will be as interested in balance as I am so I’m here to tell you I’m a fantastic driver. ---
**Author:** ![ultrafilter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/3d9bf3/32.png) [@ultrafilter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ultrafilter)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2006, 2:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/libras-are-bad-drivers/384092/9 "2006-12-14T14:35:07Z")
[QUOTE=sturmhauke] Let’s say it together now: “Correlation does not equal causation.” [/QUOTE] It’s not an issue of correlation vs. causation so much as it is a fundamental defect in the method of hypothesis testing. To wit: > [@](#): > > The study, which looked at 100,000 North American drivers’ records from the past six years… Here’s the problem: with a large enough sample size, every single difference between any two groups is going to be found statistically significant. With that many data points, they could’ve found a significant relationship between driving records and any other variable you like, be it race, religion or the driver’s favorite football team. ---
**Author:** ![tdn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/94ad74/32.png) [@tdn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tdn)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2006, 2:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/libras-are-bad-drivers/384092/10 "2006-12-14T14:38:49Z")
[QUOTE=matt\_mcl] Hey, it’s true. I’m a double Libra (Taurus rising) and I can’t drive at _all!_ [/QUOTE] Do what I do. Before driving, sacrifice a goat and throw salt over your shoulder. Then pray to Thor and off you go. ---
**Author:** ![Spoons](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spoons/32/3141_2.png) [@Spoons](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoons)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2006, 2:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/libras-are-bad-drivers/384092/11 "2006-12-14T14:40:58Z")
[QUOTE=sturmhauke] Here’s an idea for your, Mr. Romanov. [/QUOTE] Actually, that’s _Ms._ Romanov. She was just now on a morning news and talk show (CTV’s [Canada AM](http://www.ctv.ca/canadaam)), plugging her book. I didn’t really watch the interview (I was getting coffee from the kitchen, but I could hear it from the other room), and it didn’t sound to me like the host was taking it seriously. More like “here’s something from the whodathunkit file.” And indeed, the Canadian Press wire calls it a “tongue-in-cheek” study in [this link](http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/20061214/driving_sign_061214/20061214?hub=CanadaAM) from the Canada AM website: > [@Canadian Press](#): > > TORONTO – As if drivers didn’t have enough to worry about when shopping for insurance, a new **tongue-in-cheek** study suggests predicting good or bad driving habits could be as simple as reading one’s horoscope. > > The study, based on data gathered by Toronto-based [InsuranceHotline.com](http://InsuranceHotline.com), was supposed to help illustrate the point that insurance companies vary widely in how they determine what premiums to charge. [Bolding mine.] So there was a point to it, but not the one you might think. And further down in the story, an insurance industry spokesperson says the industry likely will not pay any attention to Romanov’s findings. ---
**Author:** ![brendon\_small](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/brendon_small/32/17101_2.png) [@brendon\_small](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/brendon_small)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2006, 3:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/libras-are-bad-drivers/384092/12 "2006-12-14T15:15:25Z")
Well, obviously this guy doesn’t know too much…heh… [QUOTE=article guy] Geminis (May 21-June 20) were found to be the best overall. [/QUOTE] I’m a Gemini! I have had 4 tickets - three before I was 18, which in Ohio means 1 fine, 1 90-day suspension, and 1 6-month suspension. I wrecked my Toyota, my Suzuki, and my Hyundai! I even wrecked the Hyundai twice! Brendon ---
**Author:** ![Count\_Blucher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/c5a1d2/32.png) [@Count\_Blucher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Count_Blucher)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2006, 3:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/libras-are-bad-drivers/384092/13 "2006-12-14T15:25:21Z")
> [@](#): > > “I wasn’t believing in it before,” said Romanov, “but I would think twice before getting into a car with an Aries.” Not even with a quarter so you could call your Mommy in case I didn’t act like a gentleman…? 😃 (Well, there goes my shot at kicking him out the passenger door at 75mph… ) ---
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2006, 3:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/libras-are-bad-drivers/384092/14 "2006-12-14T15:30:49Z")
Not that anyone actually asked, or anything… An astrologer would not find this interesting. The position of the sun at birth, the “sun sign”, is the most single important iindicator, but only one of many. And if one were pressed to offer a predictive factor for driving skills, it would probably be the position of, and influences on, Mercury, which governs mental processes. To oversimplify, one with Mercury in Libra _thinks_ “like a Libra”, with a strong aesthetic bent and an “on the other hand…” approach to things. Upside: always considers the opposing view, downside, indecisive and favors the “pretty” over the “smart”. Note to **Matt**. 'Fraid not. You are a “double” if your sun sign and your rising sign are the same, which is to say, born at sunrise or thereabouts. “Doubles” tend to evoke their sun signs in a much more dominant and immediate fashion: a double Aries is aggressive and risky, double Taurus is stubborn but industrious, double Gemini simply will _not_ shut up but has a talent for language…so on and so forth. ---
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2006, 3:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/libras-are-bad-drivers/384092/15 "2006-12-14T15:31:57Z")
Romanov, eh? I hear she comes from a good family… ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2006, 3:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/libras-are-bad-drivers/384092/16 "2006-12-14T15:51:59Z")
[QUOTE=ultrafilter] With that many data points, they could’ve found a significant relationship between driving records and any other variable you like, be it race, religion or the _driver’s favorite football team_. [/QUOTE] Well, it’s true that Raiders fans can’t drive worth shit. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Siege](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/dbc845/32.png) [@Siege](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siege)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2006, 5:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/libras-are-bad-drivers/384092/17 "2006-12-14T17:19:37Z")
[QUOTE=matt\_mcl] Hey, it’s true. I’m a double Libra (Taurus rising) and I can’t drive at _all!_ [/QUOTE] Ah, but do you _drive_ a Taurus? Or are you just BSing us? 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Eve](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Eve](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eve)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2006, 5:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/libras-are-bad-drivers/384092/18 "2006-12-14T17:45:00Z")
[QUOTE=elucidator] Romanov, eh? I hear she comes from a good family… [/QUOTE] Well, there’s her problem: she should have called the book C **z** ar Carma. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2006, 5:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/libras-are-bad-drivers/384092/19 "2006-12-14T17:52:03Z")
Car [Carma](http://www.carmainc.org/)? What do automoblies have to do with malware? ---
**Author:** ![Icarus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/icarus/32/72_2.png) [@Icarus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Icarus)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2006, 5:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/libras-are-bad-drivers/384092/20 "2006-12-14T17:54:18Z")
I am a Libra and I am a very good driver. On the other hand, I can see where someone defines “good driver” differently than I do and would accept that their assessment is based on their definition. But, I would also reserve the right to identify myself as a good driver based on my definition. “To each their own.” (The Libra motto) 😃 [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/libras-are-bad-drivers/384092.md?page=2)