The eternal question...

Does the guy going 61.1 mph passing a guy going 61 mph on the freeway know that he is causing a backup, or is he just oblivious? I’d think you’d notice that there are 23 cars (I counted) behind you, waiting to go AT LEAST the speed limit.

More importantly, does the guy that’s going 10 under on a curvy country road know that he is causing me to grow grey hairs at the tender age of 18?

Are these people just oblivious, uncaring, dickheads, or some combination of the 3? Help me out dopers.

What I’d like to know is if the guy who posts a rant in Great Debates know that there is already a forum where kvetching, griping, and bitching is generally started?

Imagine all the grey hairs on the mods from having to move threads around.

As for the OP, they drive me nuts, too. But only if they are in the fast lane. Then I’ll pass them on the right, get in front of them, and make a gesture indicating that they should move their turtle-poke ass into the slow lane. And no, the gesture does not involve the middle finger, since some would find that too vague.

Quote:

I’d think you’d notice that there are 23 cars (I counted) behind you, waiting to go AT LEAST the speed limit.

Well they should be waiting to go EXACTLY the speed limit. That’s why it’s called the speed LIMIT instead of the speed MINIMUM.

I’m with serack on this one; the speed limit is exactly that, a limit, it isn’t the compulsory minimum speed.

but you’re 18, you’ll learn.

Mod, if you want to you could move this to the rants… or not. Whatever.

I believe that he means this is on an Interstate, where the speed limit is 70 mph. And what he is saying is that there is a car in the left lane going 60.00/60.02 mph passing a car going 60.00/60.01 mph and no one behind them can pass.

I realize that all dopers drive at or below the speed limit and it would not be politically correct to think of exceeding the limit, but in this case chekmate was well under the limit.

[Moderator Hat ON]

Moving to the BBQ Pit.

[Moderator Hat OFF]

And suggestions: check out this thread and tell me if you don’t like the idea of Gawk-snipers.

I also like the idea of carrying paintball guns. See a car in the left lane doing 35, hit it with a paintball. Cop sees a car with 300 paintball hits, he pulls the offender over and shoots him/her dead.

b.

I like you, Billy :smiley:

Thanks. That’s the nicest thing anyone’s said to me today. Well, it’s at least the first thing anyone’s said that didn’t involve restraining orders or personal threats of physical violence. I’ll take anything I can get, and from you, it’s high praise.

b.
[sub]who has three thin lesbians inside being sedated by chocolate, ice cream, and Mom’s roast beef.[/sub]

You know, the topic of this thread reminds me of a moral dilemma I sometimes find myself in.

There are times when, for whatever series of reasons, I’ll find myself in the left lane going the maximum speed (65 MPH in most of California) with a car right beside me in the #2 lane who’s also going the speed limit. Then, from out of nowhere, some jerk who thinks it’s his God-given right to drive 90 MPH zips up behind me in my lane.

Now, in California, if you are in the left lane and somebody behind you wants to go faster than you, you are required to let him go by. Even if you’re already driving the speed limit, and in order to drive faster than you the car behind you would have to break the speed limit. Okay, fair enough. I will pull over and let him pass … woops! Except I can’t! There’s a car in the lane next to me who’s right beside me, going the same speed I am! I have no room to change lanes!

The way I see it, I could do one of 3 things:[ul][li]I could accelerate, get in front of the car to my right, and then change lanes to let the car behind me pass;[/li][li]I could decelerate, get behind the car to my right, and then change lanes to let the car behind me pass; or[/li][li]I could just stay there and block the left lane[/ul]If I stay there and block the lane, I’m violating California’s don’t-block-the-left-lane law. But if I accelerate, I’m violating California’s maximum-speed law! And if I decelerate, I’ll piss off the driver behind me so badly that he’ll take out his rocket-propelled grenade launcher and shoot it at my gas tank.[/li]
So … what should I do here?! Help!!

Definitely accelerating. You shouldn’t be in the left lane in the first place because the code (I don’t live in the US so it could be different there) says drive in the most right lane possible at all times. So if the lane to your right is doing the speed limit that is where you should be. And decelerating is dangerous. And staying there means you are the spawn of satan.

You should also turn on your right blinker right away, even if you are side by side with a car, so that the other driver can now you are trying to move out of the way.

I drive above the limit most of the time and when I see people make an effort to move out of the way (=drive sensibly) I just wait (120km/h is slow!).

Then there are those assholes that feel they don’t have to move, the nerve a driver must have to flash his lights to this fucker going the speed limit on the left lane and all the others empty. I have seen such morons post here but don’t even get me started on that.

Also, here there is a 20 km/h tolerance. So if the limit is 120 km/h on the highway no one will bust you for doing 140 km/h.

Also I can’t count the number of times I have seen the police exceed the speed limit with the emergency lights off.

Mind you also that portuguese roads are considered the most dangerous in Europe and on par with some third world countries.

You’ve obviously never driven in Connecticut. If you’re driving the speed limit, they’ll follow behind you, waiting for a tailwind.

–sublight.

I’m in favor of requiring people with cell phones to post their phone numbers on their rear bumpers. That way, you can just call and ask them politely to move over.

Yeah, that’d work.

You know this is likely caused by some guy using his cruise control, right?