I was talking to a coworker about the insanity I think I'm seeing on the highway on my commutes back and forth to work these days. He said it got to the point where he quit riding his bikes (seriously nice bikes) because of it. I thought that significant because he's a serious good rider, extremely smart, and highly skilled. He said he thought the reason, though I can't articulate it well because I didn't dive into it with him, was due to the stress of the covid mess and the democrats increasing the general stress level on the citizenry with all their cumulative bullshit. When I think about it I can believe it, as my own stress level has been up for a long time now, beginning with my company firing many employees for refusing the covid vaccine under the previous CEO.

So what do you guys think about that theory, and if there's something to it, how do you think it's affecting other aspects of life besides the generalized highway insanity I and my coworker are perceiving ? Do you buy it, that this anxiety and anger perpeutuated by the Democrats is causing drivers already on the edge to start crossing the line in their daily cummutes ?

quote:

Originally posted by wrightd:
I was talking to a coworker about the insanity I think I'm seeing on the highway on my commutes back and forth to work these days. He said it got to the point where he quit riding his bikes (seriously nice bikes) because of it. I thought that significant because he's a serious good rider, extremely smart, and highly skilled. He said he thought the reason, though I can't articulate it well because I didn't dive into it with him, was due to the stress of the covid mess and the democrats increasing the general stress level on the citizenry with all their cumulative bullshit. When I think about it I can believe it, as my own stress level has been up for a long time now, beginning with my company firing many employees for refusing the covid vaccine under the previous CEO.

So what do you guys think about that theory, and if there's something to it, how do you think it's affecting other aspects of life besides the generalized highway insanity I and my coworker are perceiving ? Do you buy it, that this anxiety and anger perpeutuated by the Democrats is causing drivers already on the edge to start crossing the line in their daily cummutes ?

Sounds ridiculous to me. I think people have become slaves to their phones which has destroyed attention spans so no one can focus on any task at hand, much less driving.

Covid definitely messed with people, and I think there is a bunch of stuff going on. Boston area drivers were never great. But now... there seems to be a really bad mix of absolute psychos, and then people who are petrified to be driving. Both of these sets of people are nearly equally dangerous, and the mixture is no fun at all. Overall stress? It could very well be, combined with a disregard for others that comes from all kinds of places.
Tesla drivers have surpassed the BMW and Mercedes crowd for that general stripe of bs driving, but the psychos can drive almost anything. Then you've got people wearing masks alone in the car, driving 20...

Do I blame the democrats? No, I blame the shitbag behind the wheel, they are responsible for their actions. How we got here? Covid and the political climate sure didn't help.

As others have eluded I see it as more of a societal progression. Social media and the like has people self absorbed and has had a detrimental effect on how they interact with others.
The Covid isolation pushed many further into a narcissistic mentality.

I believe that our species is stampeding. Absolutely no thought to anyone else during a stampede, or rational examination of a path. It manifests itself as “I must survive “ even if the mindless action is , in reality, counter to that goal.
Distracted driving is extremely dangerous and under reported as a causative factor. “I can wield several thousand pounds of hurtling iron in an uncontrolled environment while taking my attention away for the phone.” Me-ism.
For a lot of the herd, ideology has become the new morality, despite the fact that the new morality is bereft of any spiritual underpinnings.
The current state of being goes against the flow of nature. Invariably leading to bad outcomes.

I live in central Florida just south west of Disney off of Inter State 4. That puts me almost in between Tampa and Daytona.
In the past that stretch of highway was listed as one of the most dangerous stretches of highway in America.
I have read in the past that the stretch between Lakeland and Orlando is the most dangerous, I am not sure how true this is however I live right in the middle of this section.

Last year while talking to a Florida Highway patrol trooper I said "some day cell phone use while driving was going to be responsible for more deaths than drunk drivers", he said "they already are".

My wife travels every day on this road for work. It is a 23 mile drive and it takes her 1 hour to get to work and 1 1/2 to 2 hours to come home. This is because of the shear volume of people using the highway who have moved here and use the roads every day roads.

With that said things I see are mostly people just not paying attention while driving because they are to busy using their cell phones.
I see thing like people going way under the speed limit in the left and middle lane, drifting on and off the shoulder, while on their cell phone.

last year I watched a commercial van driver drive off the road onto the shoulder several times before I was able to get around him, he was on his cell phone.
People weaving in and out of their lanes, while on their cell phones.

The next is people just not giving a fuck about the other drivers around them. The latest is people using the shoulders as their own private lane of traffic.
While everybody else is creeping along they pass you on the shoulder going what appears to be a very high rate of speed then they cut people off to get back in traffic because the shoulder is blocked. Two weeks ago I watched a semi tractor trailer do this.


The worst part, it is like this Monday through Friday from 6 in the morning and some days till 9 at night. On the weekend it is she same it just starts a little later in the morning, and it is not going to get any better any time soon.

I blame "us".
Looking back it appears as each generation has gotten more lax on teaching their offspring to be safety conscious and just downright reasonable thinkers. Bit by bit, generation after generation, manners have just denigrated.
And yes, I am one of the masses that failed to do my job properly as a parent.

quote:

Originally posted by gjgalligan:
I blame "us".
Looking back it appears as each generation has gotten more lax on teaching their offspring to be safety conscious...

This is certainly a real issue, related to the OP's point or not. I deal with this all day long, hundreds of times a day here at work (college campus). The university/state certainly hasn't helped. I'm at an utter loss (all day long) watching young people walk out in front of moving vehicles without even looking. "I have the right of way, the car's have to stop." It's an entitlement thing, as well as a stupid thing. How can you literally gamble your life in order to save 3 seconds making sure they car will stop? The ultimate risk, for no reward.

I have seen things since COVID driving in Michigan that I haven't seen before. Sure there are always those bad drivers. Lately it's significantly worse.

The best way I've been able to some it up is a simple mentality of "I'm getting where I'm going and you all better get out of my way" or "I'm doing what I want and screw all of you" The latter of course relates to those texting, video chatting, watching movies or YouTube, day dreaming, etc while driving.

Which brings me to the topic of this thread. That seems to be a thought I keep coming back to in general. This notion of "I'm doing whatever I want and you better mind your business and get out of my way". Selfishness like I've never seen before coupled with a very short fuse.

Look at how quickly things escalate these days, typically over someone being selfish and demanding their wants be satisfied now. If they don't get their way, they lose it. It's one thing when they lose it in a restaurant or a business but entirely different when you're in a 2800lb vehicle doing any speed over idle.

As far as I'm concerned this can be summed up in 1 word

SELFISH

quote:

Originally posted by Rightwire:
The best way I've been able to some it up is a simple mentality of "I'm getting where I'm going and you all better get out of my way" or "I'm doing what I want and screw all of you" The latter of course relates to those texting, video chatting, watching movies or YouTube, day dreaming, etc while driving.

Which brings me to the topic of this thread. That seems to be a thought I keep coming back to in general. This notion of "I'm doing whatever I want and you better mind your business and get out of my way". Selfishness like I've never seen before coupled with a very short fuse.

This ^^^^^, IMO.

I think there are 3 factors.

One is simply increased population density. Stress goes up and tempers flare with increased crowding.

Second is people's attitude about driving is different. Driving used to be a skill and an activity. Driving required attention and it required active participation. There was a code as it were of not causing problems. Today, cars are viewed by many as an appliance. Driving is an interruption. So much is automated, from navigation to adaptive cruise control to lane departure warning to back up cameras to emergency braking if an obstacle appears to antilock brakes to stability control. So the driver feels free to look at their phone.

Third is the hyper politicization of everything, which has increased the general anger level. People are quick to identify someone else as the enemy. There is a general aggressiveness towards others. A lack of sense of community.

I do blame Democrats for politicizing everything in general over the past 20 years, and hyper politicizing during Covid. They have intentionally been creating groups and pitting them against each other.

The idiocy factor went up about 1000% when the police stopped pulling people over around here.
Once one dipshit sees a guy hauling ass past a cop and nothing is done about it, it's game on.

It's not just the highways (where people feel they are incognito), but in stores, in schools, sporting events, movie theaters, etc. Society in this country is more rude, more self-entitled, and seemingly dumber, and IMO, cyberspace, social media and smartphones in particular, are mostly to blame.

My theory, people are crazy, many are assholes, lots have no filter, Covid, no filter, political divide, price of milk, who knows, just let them go, don't engage.

Just say it with me....

quote:

The idiocy factor went up about 1000% when the police stopped pulling people over around here.
Once one dipshit sees a guy hauling ass past a cop and nothing is done about it, it's game on.

Yep. the Police stopped Policing. It is noticeable in the town where I work, the police are everywhere and there are a whole lot less shenanigans going on

It's like they expect people to do the right thing.

I honestly believe that the people who will do the right thing when nobody is looking is few and far between as it is.
And if they do the right thing they will broadcast it far and wide for all to see and commend them on it as the sole reason for doing so.

Take off the restraints and the animals will run the zoo.

If anything, less traffic than before COVID. Perhaps more work at home.People here are generally easy going. Partly because it is the South.

To be very un PC - at least in Miami, its a lot of "No license, No Insurance, No English" people who cause problems - none of my friends who've been hit, have been hit by someone w. a license and insurance.

The 3rd world BS has overrun SoFlo.