Snow! *CRASH*

This says it all: 

 

 Except that I'm not sure it's just Maryland drivers who feel this way. I don't have a lot of experience driving outside of Maryland or Delaware, but from what I can tell, people are just fucking stupid.

I said in a post a while ago that there should be a mandatory driver's test to renew your license. I think it should be every 5 years, when you renew, until you hit age 50, at which point it should be every other year. Or maybe every year.

But even leaving aside old people, who are just dangerous most of the time they're behind the wheel, almost ALL drivers are idiots. I've seen this more and more being near DC, although I had a sense of it before: people have NO idea how to drive in any sort of inclement weather. I clearly remember being in Delaware (a hotbed for truly awful drivers) and watching cars literally slide through intersections- in the rain. Not snow and ice, just steady rain.

Now, me, I can tolerate dangerously-fast driving if the driver knows what they're doing. Knowing what is going on around you and being mindful of other traffic is vital at any speed, in any situation. Driving intelligently is paramount to driving safely- for all parties involved, both the driver and other drivers around them. If you're doing 85 down a small road, but I'm confident in your abilities and if you're comfortable, I'm usually OK. However, too many people *think* that they're okay, and that everyone else on the road is an idiot, and they're right. (no matter what they're doing) I have been in a car several times while someone yells about some idiot driver pulling some stupid maneuver in front of them, and then watched them do the same thing- or something similar, or much more dangerous- without batting an eye.

Yes, you're probably thinking I'm being very hypocritical. However, I know that I'm not perfect. I pay attention. I try to keep out of the way of other drivers, stick to what I know, and get through every drive without having a horn blown at me. I don't always succeed, but we're human (i.e. horribly flawed) and things happen. I try very, very hard not to be dangerous on the road, to make allowances for weather and especially for other drivers and their horrific habits.

So now, back to everyone else:

Simple things which would make the road so much safer are just ignored. Turn signals make everything so much simpler and safer. If you signal your intent to everyone who can see you before moving, and you don't leave the signal on for an unnecessary amount of time, then people *know* what you're trying to do, and they can give you space.

That's another thing: I say I make allowances for others. That means that when someone is in an unexpected "Exit Only" or "Turn Only" lane and they're trying to merge into your lane, let them. If people stopped thinking of ways that *they* can feel like they're moving faster, and instead focused on making the *traffic* move smoothly, they would end up getting to their destination more easily. When the signs say, "Lane ends, 500 feet", MERGE. It's not that complicated! It's telling you ahead of time that you HAVE to get into the other lane- so DO IT. But no; everyone stays in the lane until it ends, and then they jam themselves into the moving traffic, causing people to tap their brakes, which causes the people behind them to press their brakes, and suddenly traffic isn't moving. Do things you're supposed to do; there is a reason why they are thus.

And weather, to get back to the beginning of this post: When it's raining, all you have to do is start braking earlier; don't cut turns so sharply; slow down and smooth things out. That's all. You don't need to be paranoid and act like there are sheets of ice all over the blacktop. Calm the fuck down, and drive intelligently.

Maybe it's just asking too much for people to be smart. You don't have to be a fucking Nobel Laureate; just don't be so goddamned stupid! It's not hard; just THINK before you do things.