Sensitive ass SUV drivers

[Stuffy]

I was reading and added my thoughts to a thread over in IMHO, and you know what, I think a lot of these drivers are overly sensitive pricks, here’s the thread:
http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?threadid=35549

You know what? I found the thought hysterical. About the only thing I think I’d find funnier is Godzilla and King Kong using them for hackey sacks.

Or even better, would be seeing my local SUV dealership sitting on the bottom of the Pacific Ocean.

What really pissed me off is the envy arguments.

Yeah that’s it, I really wish I could be ruining the envoirment and making myself a pain in the ass to other drivers :rolleyes: . Oh yeah and I really like to make sure I’ll totally destroy any vehicle I happen to hit.

The safety argument:

Oh, but it must be such a fucking comfort to drivers in smaller cars that at least you came out of the accident all right. Im sure it must help with the pain :rolleyes:
Oh and to the “I deserve it argument, it my money”.

Well it’s my fucking planet too asshole. I help pay for the fucking roads too, and if it’s not too much fucking trouble I’d really like to see where the fuck Im going. I can afford an SUV too, but prefer to put all the moeny Im saving driving my escort into something useful, not a fucking yuppie showpiece.

And you know what really makes my fucking day (actually every other week since I get great mileage) Is watching you morons fill those tanks. Oh joy!

[oldscratch]

Thank you stuffinb. Living in SF I take great joy in watching those morons who have SUV’s (yes you have to be a moron to drive an SUV in SF) try and park those oversized arks.

[tiggeril]

*Originally posted by oldscratch *
**Thank you stuffinb. Living in SF I take great joy in watching those morons who have SUV’s (yes you have to be a moron to drive an SUV in SF) try and park those oversized arks. **

SUVs fit in SF streets? Sheez. And here I was thinking that they’re ludicrous in Chicago.

[Stuffy]

Thank you stuffinb. Living in SF I take great joy in watching those morons who have SUV’s (yes you have to be a moron to drive an SUV in SF) try and park those oversized arks.

Hey maybe they think Lombard is the Andes.

[Mr.Cynical]

:rolleyes:

[Mockingbird]

Ok… I live in Oregon. Bad enough that Californians have come up and bought as much land as they could which has driven up prices and property taxes. Bad enough that they are lousy neighbors who don’t want to get to know you but will spy on you and call the cops in a heartbeat if they THINK you have an infraction as minor as your garbage can in the wrong area… but the SUV thing just pisses me off.

I drive a Geo Metro, because it is what I can afford. I’ve almost been crushed by SUVs backing out of the driveway at 25 MPH without looking or… BIG PEEVE… asshole SUV drivers changing lanes without signaling as I am turning into that lane. Then they scream at ME like I did something wrong. One of them followed me because I flipped him off… until he realized a 6’4" man limboed into a Geo Metro and would limbo out and get out a monstrous can of WhupAss™ if he continued to be stupid. SUVs are pretentious, wasteful, UGLY crap.

[Ishi_Pishi]

Hey asshole, do you stereotype everything like you do SUV drivers? Sure, of course, we’re all the same, every one of us. Right. What a fucking moron you must be!

I drive a 1986 Toyota 4Runner (one of the original SUV’s) with 33inch tires and a 4inch suspension lift and all kinds of other goodies. Not a big vehicle by truck standards, but big nonetheless. I’ve put maybe ten grand total into my truck. I off-road it quite a bit (on land set aside for off-roading, mind you, lest I be accused of ruining your environment, too), and enjoy having the extra room that a truck provides. And I get about 24 miles to the gallon, thankyouverymuch. Do I drive like an asshole? Nope, not in the slightest. I drive like any other responsible person on the road, regardless of the vehicle being driven. But I don’t expect thick-headed pricks like yourself to understand or believe any of this.

BTW, I can (and do on a regular basis) park all over San Francisco with no problems. It’s called driving skill, something else I don’t expect you to understand or believe.

And I love the way you all are so scared about getting hit by an SUV, but never complain about possibly getting nailed by a semi, or a bus, or a minivan, or even by a large Caddy or Lincoln, which weigh a lot more than many SUV’s. But it’s so much easier to hop on the bandwagon and blame the SUV’s.

Whatever.

[Dawg144]

Boo-Hoo.

[Mockingbird]

*Originally posted by Ishi Pishi *

**Hey asshole, do you stereotype everything like you do SUV drivers? Sure, of course, we’re all the same, every one of us. Right. What a fucking moron you must be!

Gee, as you’ve failed to make a point, I’d suggest you look in a mirror. Stupidity is catching and you have it.

[/QUOTE]
I drive a 1986 Toyota 4Runner (one of the original SUV’s) with 33inch tires and a 4inch suspension lift and all kinds of other goodies. Not a big vehicle by truck standards, but big nonetheless. I’ve put maybe ten grand total into my truck. I off-road it quite a bit (on land set aside for off-roading, mind you, lest I be accused of ruining your environment, too), and enjoy having the extra room that a truck provides. And I get about 24 miles to the gallon, thankyouverymuch. Do I drive like an asshole? Nope, not in the slightest. I drive like any other responsible person on the road, regardless of the vehicle being driven. But I don’t expect thick-headed pricks like yourself to understand or believe any of this.
[/QUOTE]

Sublime. Nice to know you have your vehicle specs memorized. Just because you don’t drive like a putz doesn’t mean many don’t.

[/QUOTE]
And I love the way you all are so scared about getting hit by an SUV, but never complain about possibly getting nailed by a semi, or a bus, or a minivan, or even by a large Caddy or Lincoln, which weigh a lot more than many SUV’s. But it’s so much easier to hop on the bandwagon and blame the SUV’s.
[/QUOTE]

Because they are more prevalent than almost any type of vehicle, and as I’ve been almost plowed into many times, mostly by SUV drivers who were not paying attention or did not seem to care about other people on the road, I think it is completely valid.

Whatever.

Oh, a witty and pithy retort was yours. I shall place that in my ‘I Don’t Give A Shit About Others’ hall of fame.

[tiggeril]

Why are you so defensive about a mode of transportation? It gets from A to B… it’s not an extension of your personality, your body, or your soul. HOWEVER. An SUV (like a bus, or semi, or Cadillac) is dangerous to drivers without a behemoth vehicle, damaging to the environment, and a nuisance to short people like me.

I have to suck it up and deal when it comes to my life on the roads every day. Amazing how you can get bent out of shape over words on a screen.

[Stuffy]

Hey asshole, do you stereotype everything like you do SUV drivers? Sure, of course, we’re all the same, every one of us. Right. What a fucking moron you must be!

Actually i was talking about particular driver but now that you mention it…

---

I drive a 1986 Toyota 4Runner (one of the original SUV’s) with 33inch tires and a 4inch suspension lift and all kinds of other goodies. Not a big vehicle by truck standards, but big nonetheless. I’ve put maybe ten grand total into my truck. I off-road it quite a bit (on land set aside for off-roading, mind you, lest I be accused of ruining your environment, too), and enjoy having the extra room that a truck provides. And I get about 24 miles to the gallon, thankyouverymuch. Do I drive like an asshole? Nope, not in the slightest. I drive like any other responsible person on the road, regardless of the vehicle being driven. But I don’t expect thick-headed pricks like yourself to understand or believe any of this.

Ooh I think Ive offended someone’s sensibilities, where are my hankies. But glad to know you drive your for your intended purpose. And what’s that a whole 24 miles to the gallon? Somebody call Ripleys.

---

BTW, I can (and do on a regular basis) park all over San Francisco with no problems. It’s called driving skill, something else I don’t expect you to understand or believe.

Well congradufuckinlations, glad at least you show some mental ability.

And I love the way you all are so scared about getting hit by an SUV, but never complain about possibly getting nailed by a semi, or a bus, or a minivan, or even by a large Caddy or Lincoln, which weigh a lot more than many SUV’s. But it’s so much easier to hop on the bandwagon and blame the SUV’s.

Oh yeah that’s it, sure… :rolleyes: Then again maybe Im just considerate of other drivers and mother nature :eek:
Whatever.

[Mockingbird]

*Originally posted by tiggeril *

**Why are you so defensive about a mode of transportation? It gets from A to B… it’s not an extension of your personality, your body, or your soul. HOWEVER. An SUV (like a bus, or semi, or Cadillac) is dangerous to drivers without a behemoth vehicle, damaging to the environment, and a nuisance to short people like me.

Often, the buyers of these vehicles treat it just like that: an extention of their personality. And, with the way they often endanger me by acting like they have a right to the road rather than sharing the road… well, it infuriates me. This isn’t a once in a while proposal… it is frequent.

I have to suck it up and deal when it comes to my life on the roads every day. Amazing how you can get bent out of shape over words on a screen.

It is more than words on a screen, it is people reinforcing the stupid selfishness which endangers others and causes accidents and death. Call it being too serious, but with all the other drivers who are altered on drugs or alcohol, we don’t need more dangers out there.**

[oldscratch]

Contrary to public-service announcements and public-school civics teachers, you can hardly ever make a difference by yourself. A single vote has never swayed an election of any importance, putting on a happy face has never stopped war, and sorting your trash for recycling hasn’t done squat for cutting back pollution. Each of us amounts to less than 0.0000004 percent of the population, which in a democracy means you’re worth something less than jack and very little more than zero.
A rare exception is the 7 percent of Americans who choose to drive those laughably named sports utility vehicles. Their decision to ride high is having an enormously disproportionate impact on the American economy, environment and quality of life, not to mention the issue of life and death.
The 93 percent of drivers who are either too considerate or too poor to buy an SUV are well aware of the fact that they’re three times more likely to die in a car crash if they’re hit by an SUV rather than a regular car – hell, terrorizing other motorists is half the fun of owning an Expedition. Now researchers for the National Transportation Research Board (part of the National Academy of Sciences) have found that drivers’ tendency to follow SUVs at greater distances is causing traffic jams in suburban towns that never experienced them before. And as anyone who drives regularly can attest, SUVs accelerate much more slowly – partly because they weigh three to four times more than cars, partly because their drivers are worried (justifiably) about SUVs’ tendency to roll over in turns.
Considering all of these factors, researchers calculated that a large SUV takes up as much space in traffic as 1.41 cars. At intersections with short signal cycles, says Hugh Greechan of the Westchester (N.Y.) County Department of Public Works, “If you have three cars in front of you, you’ll get through; if you have two sports utility vehicles in front of you, you’ll get through. But if you have three sports utility vehicles in front of you, you won’t get through.”
Each incremental delay builds exponentially. It doesn’t take long for a seemingly trivial additional delay per 45-second cycle to cascade into a colossal traffic jam, even in suburbia. Sprawl’s not the problem – since population density remains the same in most suburbs, it’s clear that SUVs are the culprit.
Adding to the smog is a federal loophole that allows SUVs to spew five times more pollution and one-third more carbon dioxide into the air than cars. And with SUVs getting as little as nine miles per gallon, your decision to go the screw-the-planet route has the same impact as driving 10 cars at the same time. Ever doubted that you can make a difference? That 7 percent of SUV owners is the sole reason the United States can’t meet its targets for air pollution reduction under the Kyoto Accords.
“We sell a lot of SUVs because that is what the customer wants,” Ford spokesman Terry Bresnihan says. “We’ve got to build a vehicle that someone will want to buy. Don’t you think if we could build a 40-mile-per-gallon Explorer we would?” The trouble with this puerile free-market reasoning is its reliance on a basic assumption – that Americans are entitled to buy anything they want, regardless of how dangerous and harmful it is. Of course, our society doesn’t really believe that; we ban heroin, nukes and kiddie porn despite the fact that they’re all viable products with eager markets. SUVs kill far more Americans every year than smack. In a few decades, we’ll all look back and wonder what the hell we were thinking when we put up with this madness. Why wait? Let’s ban SUVs now.
Americans with large families and those who live in rugged rural areas make a case for SUVs. How else would they get around? The question ought to be: How did they get around pre-SUV? Vans and station wagons, and jeeps, respectively. In any case, inconveniencing the tiny percentage of the country that drives unpaved roads and produces more than three kids seems like a tiny price to pay for eliminating these gas-guzzling, smoke-belching deathmobiles.
Finally, if saving bunny rabbits and little kids doesn’t make the case for junking SUVs, try saving your 401(k). As the price of gas hits $2 per gallon around the country, the economic impact – mainly from higher transportation costs being added to consumer prices – threatens to unravel the current economic boom. For instance, FedEx just added a 3 percent fuel surcharge for package deliveries, and airlines are passing $4.4 billion in expected jet fuel price hikes this year to passengers. With the labor market tighter than ever, inflation can’t be far behind. Since SUV drivers consume 43 percent of all gasoline in the United States, putting them back into cars would reduce consumption by more than a third – and that would have a huge impact on the current OPEC-induced squeeze.
Why should 93 percent of the population suffer increased air pollution and risk of death, not to mention another recession, for a tiny minority of selfish jerks who don’t give a damn about anyone but themselves? Think about it the next time you’re stuck in traffic.

[iampunha]

I drive an SUV. And a Suburban and (until recently) a minivan, and a Saturn.

My gas tank holds something like 21 gallons. I get something like 20 mpg. Not bad when it’s holding vacation stuff for four people, plus two large dogs.

I don’t off-road mine. If I did I would see no problem with people getting pissed at me for doing that.

And if you don’t like to imagine getting crashed into or crashing into an SUV, think about a bus or a semi or any other larger-than-thou vehicle. And yes, if I can guarantee my safety by spending a bit more money, I don’t see a problem with that. I also don’t drive a car with the intent of “If I get into an accident, I don’t care how much the other people get hurt. Here in my cozy SUV I am safe from all but the wrath of Kaan.”

There are going to be nuisances in everything you do . . . the trick is how you overcome them, if you do.

[tiggeril]

Amazing how you can get bent outof shape over words on a screen.

It is more than words on a screen, it is people reinforcing the stupid selfishness which endangers others and causes accidents and death. Call it being too serious, but with all the other drivers who are altered on drugs or alcohol, we don’t need more dangers out there.

I know that… the “words on a screen” bit was aimed at the touchy SUV apologists who seem to be more concerned with their images and their precious cars than the lives of others on the road.

[SPOOFE]

Yeah that’s it, I really wish I could be ruining the envoirment and making myself a pain in the ass to other drivers .

This is debatable, dickhead, in which case you should start a thread in GD (or, better yet, search for existing threads on the matter before you open your ignorant mouth). When you refer to such SUVs that “ruin the environment”, I’d like to know exactly how. Sure, they use more fuel… pollution, smog, yeah, I know. So how do you mean? Oil slicks? Destroying the ozone layer? Or is your mind only capable of fixating on simplistic buzzwords and phrases to get people to nod their heads at what you say? Dumbass.

Oh yeah and I really like to make sure I’ll totally destroy any vehicle I happen to hit.

So it’s my responsiblity to make sure that someone else doesn’t crash into me. Again, your teensy-weensy brain is oversimplifying the issue. How many accidents are caused simply because one car is big and the other is small? A tiny minority of them. Ever handle an SUV? Probably not. I can tell you that our Expedition (which, incidently, was purchased because we need the space… big family, don’tcha know… and no sedan would ever hope to compare to that) handles better than many smaller, cheaper cars I’ve seen (except maybe my friends’ Mustang…).

So, in short, you’re making assholic arguments about an assholic topic stemming from an assholic thread started by an assholic person with an assholic sense of humor. What does that make you? Asshole.

(Here’s a hint… next time, don’t be a simpleton).

[Dawg144]

Wow some considerate sole posted an official damnation of SUV’s…

Well I don’t know about the rest of you BIG SUV owning people but I’m gonna go right out and sell and it and buy a nice quaint Geo Metro…

bwahahahahahaha

Did I mention Boo-Hoo?

[Ishi_Pishi]

*Originally posted by tiggeril *
Amazing how you can get bent out of shape over words on a screen.

You’re right. No reason to get bent out of shape. You brought it up (in the Pit) and insinuated that SUV drivers are idiots, assholes and otherwise shitty human beings. I commented on that assertion. Not all SUV drivers are like that. And a lot of small-car drivers ARE idiots, assholes, and otherwise shitty human beings. Maybe it has more to do with the individual person than it has to do with the vehicle they’re driving. Why not be a little more careful when you stereotype an entire group of people? 99 times out of 100 it isn’t true.

And Huster, they way you stereotype Californians, I don’t expect you to get any of this, anyway. But thanks for playing.

[Mr.Cynical]

So, what’s your opinion on Station Wagons? They’re short SUV’s, basically. Knock off a couple style points, and there you go. How about Minivans, too?

Here’s what I’ll do to make you all happy. I’ll sell my truck, which I actually use for its intended purpose, and get a Geo Metro.

That way, I’ll save the extra 30 MPG. Granted, I’ll have to make about 50 more trips to carry the same load, or hire out a highly ineffecient, polluting rental truck, but you’ll be happier.

Hastur, I also take this opportunity to present you with a whole box full of “**”. Please use them wisely.

[tiggeril]

*Originally posted by Mr. Cynical *
**So, what’s your opinion on Station Wagons? They’re short SUV’s, basically. Knock off a couple style points, and there you go. How about Minivans, too?

Here’s what I’ll do to make you all happy. I’ll sell my truck, which I actually use for its intended purpose, and get a Geo Metro.

That way, I’ll save the extra 30 MPG. Granted, I’ll have to make about 50 more trips to carry the same load, or hire out a highly ineffecient, polluting rental truck, but you’ll be happier.

Hastur, I also take this opportunity to present you with a whole box full of “**”. Please use them wisely. **

I don’t have an issue with people using large vehicles to haul stuff. It’s another thing to see a fluffed suburbanite houswife heading to her weekly acupressure appointment in a Lexus SUV with kid leather seats. THOSE are the people I have a problem with.