About Breaking Rules

Henry Racette
Henry Racette
95172169
 

The people who set the legal speed limits on our highways and byways are, presumably, experts. They are familiar with the various correlations between traffic speed, traffic density, accident rates, and accident fatalities. They have a wealth of data to draw upon, since Americans drive literally trillions of miles each year and we’ve been monitoring traffic fatalities for decades. So, assuming they aren’t simply diversity hires, our traffic engineers probably know a thing or two about speed limits and safety.

Despite all that, some significant number of my fellow Americans seem quite willing to exceed the legally posted speed limits. I’ve seen them do it, so I know this is true. I’ve watched drivers run just a couple of miles over. I’ve watched drivers set their cruise controls a full nine miles over the speed the experts have determined to be right and proper.

To be perfectly honest, there have been times, in my 45 years of driving, when even I have exceeded the legal speed limit — but never by more than 85 miles per hour, and that only on a motorcycle and not in a very, very long time.

I no longer exceed the speed limit. For the past twenty years, I’ve been the guy in the big vehicle plodding along at the legal speed limit, always in the right lane, passed at every opportunity by people who live their lives more urgently, apparently, than I live mine.

The people who impose mask mandates are power-obsessed politicians presumably informed by a political calculus that includes, somewhere deep in its Machiavellian equations, a variable representing the contributions mask mandates make to public safety. That variable is a bit problematic, as The Science (and no, that isn’t a pseudonym for the pompously mendacious little guy on TV) really hasn’t established so much as the sign of mask mandate efficacy, let alone its magnitude. Unlike, say, speed limits, we don’t really know if mask mandates contribute to public safety.

I was in a convenience store last night, unmasked. As usual, no one said a word; only once, so far, has anyone in this mask-obsessed state commented negatively on my ruggedly handsome and totally uncovered visage. The next time someone does, I’ll be tempted to respond that “I never exceed the legal speed limit, but I don’t wear a mask. Just think of it as me going nine over. Now give me my change, and have a nice day.”

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  1. kedavis Coolidge
    kedavis
    @kedavis
    5:38 PM EST ⋅ Dec 21, 2021

    Phil Turmel (View Comment):

    kedavis (View Comment):

    Randy Webster (View Comment):

    Phil Turmel (View Comment):

    kedavis (View Comment):
    Automatic stop/start takes care of that, as well as using electric cars of course.

    No, automatic start/stop doesn’t help with idle energy losses, except for a short time in spring and fall when neither heat nor AC is needed. No, you don’t get back all of the braking energy even in electric/hybrid cars, because chemical batteries are only 70-80% efficient.

    Another environmental benefit is the avoidance of other road-building (including adding lanes), because the round-about raises the capacity of the existing road. A few acres in a round-about typically saves thousands of acres elsewhere. Not to mention all of the environmental damage avoided by not laying down miles and miles of concrete and asphalt.

    Seriously, there’s no legitimate downside to round-abouts. Technically.

    Now, you can have the opinion that round-abouts are ugly and annoying. I don’t agree with that either, but it is a valid point. The rest, not so much.

    The local roundabouts can’t be more than a quarter of an acre.

    Also, roundabouts slow down traffic all the time, even when there’s no need to. Such as, late at night.

    Extra protection for the drunks wandering down the center of the highway late at night.

    Ok, your turn.

    You want roundabouts on highways too?  Great.

    • #91
  2. Miffed White Male Member
    Miffed White Male
    @MiffedWhiteMale
    5:41 PM EST ⋅ Dec 21, 2021

    Phil Turmel (View Comment):

    kedavis (View Comment):

    Randy Webster (View Comment):

    Phil Turmel (View Comment):

    kedavis (View Comment):
    Automatic stop/start takes care of that, as well as using electric cars of course.

    No, automatic start/stop doesn’t help with idle energy losses, except for a short time in spring and fall when neither heat nor AC is needed. No, you don’t get back all of the braking energy even in electric/hybrid cars, because chemical batteries are only 70-80% efficient.

    Another environmental benefit is the avoidance of other road-building (including adding lanes), because the round-about raises the capacity of the existing road. A few acres in a round-about typically saves thousands of acres elsewhere. Not to mention all of the environmental damage avoided by not laying down miles and miles of concrete and asphalt.

    Seriously, there’s no legitimate downside to round-abouts. Technically.

    Now, you can have the opinion that round-abouts are ugly and annoying. I don’t agree with that either, but it is a valid point. The rest, not so much.

    The local roundabouts can’t be more than a quarter of an acre.

    Also, roundabouts slow down traffic all the time, even when there’s no need to. Such as, late at night.

    Extra protection for the drunks wandering down the center of the highway late at night.

    Ok, your turn.

    Take a look at those videos I posted a couple comments back…most of them appear to be drunks.

    • #92
  3. Randy Weivoda Moderator
    Randy Weivoda
    @RandyWeivoda
    11:02 PM EST ⋅ Dec 21, 2021

    Bob Thompson (View Comment):
    IIRC states were bullied into compliance on the 55 mph limit with threats to withhold federal funds since this was a Washington initiative.

    Although Congress dropped this extortion regarding speed limits, they still use this coercion on the states for the purposes of mandatory seat belt laws, the drinking age, and the blood alcohol level that defines drunk driving.  Because naturally, if you work in Washington you must be much smarter than those rubes in the various state legislatures.  We can’t have states making their own laws.

    • #93
  4. The Reticulator Member
    The Reticulator
    @TheReticulator
    11:08 PM EST ⋅ Dec 21, 2021

    DoubleDare (View Comment):
    The first time I saw one was in Massachusetts and I’d already been driving elsewhere for years.  Went around it backwards, much to the delight of the drivers already in it.  I was mostly paying attention and being careful – just painfully ignorant.

    That would be a cool  trick. But where did you turn around before putting your car into reverse? 

    • #94
  5. DoubleDare Inactive
    DoubleDare
    @DoubleDare
    3:36 AM EST ⋅ Dec 22, 2021

    The Reticulator (View Comment):

    DoubleDare (View Comment):
    The first time I saw one was in Massachusetts and I’d already been driving elsewhere for years. Went around it backwards, much to the delight of the drivers already in it. I was mostly paying attention and being careful – just painfully ignorant.

    That would be a cool trick. But where did you turn around before putting your car into reverse?

    Bootleg turn

    • #95
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