What happen to “be nice to your fellow man (or to be politically correct – fellow person)?” For the most part, Americans are very giving. They will not think twice before giving money to victims of catastrophes, adopt orphaned puppies (and children), and jump up for a cause.
So what happen to the crazy drivers in the Valley? I have been driving twice as much this year as I did last year. Some people on our streets have that selfish, me-me-me attitude. I can’t say it’s only during rush hour. No! It’s all the time, every day, on local streets and freeways.
The other day I needed to switch lanes so I could get in the turn lane and go on my merry way. I put my blinker on, and had plenty of room to make my move. An SUV sped up to close the gap so I couldn’t get into the space as I planned. Because I had no choice, I cut into the lane anyway. Her reaction was to give me her flying finger. Yes, it was a “lady” driver who couldn’t just let me in. Oh, no, she had to make that extra effort to show what an idiot she was.
I have ranted several times over the years about some of the experiences I have had on our roads. New York City has a reputation for crazy drivers but Phoenix and the Metro area has them beat. I learned how to drive in New York, so I do speak from experience.
We are a melting pot of various drivers from all over the country who generally are courteous and thoughtful, but there are those few jerks who act like they own the roads. Typically, these drivers own the trucks or large cars so they can bully other drivers. Obviously the owners of Minis, smart cars, bugs, etc, can’t afford to be obnoxious.
I can honestly say that I will never run out of experiences on our roads. I just hope I live a long time to share them.
Nancy,
I think the hotter it gets here the hotter people are they do things they would never think of doing. I don’t like to drive behind truck, suvs or surburbans because you can see around and you don’t know what is coming up and at times they think they own the road.