Entitled people of Washington State

[CaliHwyPatrol]

I've been a lot of places, I've lived in all 4 corners of the US, but never have I dealt with such sense of entitlement as I see here in Washington.

I get flipped off, honked at, or have brights flashed at me on a nearly daily basis. While I tend to be a more assertive driver, I am by no means an aggressive driver. I'm usually that guy who lets people in, the guy who gets over for those who want to drive faster than me, etc. However, I usually end up being the guy driving faster than everyone else.

What made me post this is the short experience that happened today. It happens on a very regular basis, I just felt like putting something up about it today.

I was driving along home from work on a 4 lane divided highway (2 lanes each side) and after merging on, I get over to the inside lane to pass a group of cars. I am doing 55 in a 50 to pass these cars, and the one at the rear of the pack is a blue Mini Cooper. As I pass the car, the female driver has her middle finger in the window motioning it as if flagging me forward and saying "Go! Go!". In other words, she was expressing her opinion about me passing the group. Previous to the passing, I had zero interaction with this vehicle. I used my signal to move into the left lane, she was already ahead of me when I entered the highway.

So, being the curious fellow that I am, I slow down to pace her for a while. She follows with another finger and another more lewd gesture. Not once did she look over after I passed her then slowed down to pace. I paced her for about a quarter mile then went on about my drive home.

I also get these reactions a lot for trailing someone who sits in the left lane. I don't like passing in the right, it's not safe. My solution is to stay behind them and stagger my car so the headlights are in their mirror. They aren't terribly bright, so it isn't blinding them, but it's enough to be an annoyance until they get over. Many times I will be flipped off or have brights flashed at me for inconveniencing them.

Things like this don't really make me mad. It's more entertaining than anything, and it totally blows me away that people here have such a sense of entitlement. I always think, "I'm glad they did this to me, and not someone else." Road rage is pretty commonplace these days, people should be careful, you never know who you're going to piss off.

I'm sorry for driving on your road.

 

[BoredSysAdmin]

The devil in the details....
On my recent trip from my home NY (trust me - We invented and patented rude drivers) to Maine - Somewhere in Connecticut I'm in left lane on 2 lane each way 65 Mph highway driving about 75 mph (since I'm driving faster than most)

It's a early morning so no headlights blinding, but where I was checking the mirror there I see blonde sitting right on my tail.

FFS - I'm doing 75 and she's barely couple feet away ! With my hands I gestured "wtf" signs... which she responded with angry face and sings for me to move over

As soon as physically possible I let her pass, but this really pissed me off BIG TIME.

 

[CaliHwyPatrol]

Yeah, tailgating is not the answer to slow left lane drivers. It isn't going to make them get over any faster, it's just going to piss them off and possibly even cause them to take the law into their own hands and punish you (brake checking).

In today's instance, I wasn't even behind the person, I was in the passing lane, simply driving faster than the other cars. This is a common occurrence since living in Washington.

 

[ACsGreens]

Man i hear ya.....People drive without any concern for others now, and generally drive like they are much more important or relevant than others. here in Omaha, we have a lot of roads that merge into 1 lane, but generally do so 10 feet after a stop light. There is always some idiot that feels his time is more important than everyone else and takes the right lane, where he will have to immediately merge. I have stopped letting these people merge in this situation, and I don't feel like I will care if they run off the road. It is even hard not to pull them out of the car and beat the crap out of them, but them were on there level. See, now I'm all upset.

 

[jonnythan]

You sound like a highly aggressive and confrontational driver to me.

 

[CaliHwyPatrol]

You sound like a highly aggressive and confrontational driver to me.

What specifically makes you say that?

 

[darien87]

People who don't get over when they're putzing along in the fast lane piss me off. I'll generally give the person about 5-10 seconds of me being behind them to get over before I get upset. I HATE it when there is no one to their right but they just refuse to get over. I guess some people either don't know about the fast lane code or are such douche bags that they don't give a crap.

I don't know if it's a known rule but here in Cali we've got carpool lanes that are for multiple person vehicles only during rush hour, (M-F 5am-9am, 3pm-7pm). So during these times the lane immediately to the right becomes the fast lane since only carpools can be in the carpool lane. But every day there's some shmuck driving hella slow because I assume he thinks the carpool lane is still the fast lane.

The one that really kills me though is that I often see women with kids in car seats or young children in the carpool lane. Sorry but I don't think that should count. The carpool lane is to help alleviate commute traffic and your kid doesn't have a job. Complete crap IMO.

I drive a Mustang so more often than not I'm the one that's driving faster than most people, but I get over when someone comes up behind me. But just this morning I had some jackass in a Mercedes SUV all on my *** in the middle of morning commute traffic. "Hey moron, there's nothing I can do when there's 20 cars in front of me going just as slow." I almost brake-checked the guy.

 

[jonnythan]

"I usually end up being the guy driving faster than everyone else. "

"My solution is to stay behind them and stagger my car so the headlights are in their mirror."

"I slow down to pace her for a while"

The common element here seems to be you. If you experience a lot of road rage, chances are you're doing something wrong.

 

[j_garcia]

Stupid people everywhere. Ca is no different. 90% of everyone out there thinks they own the road and I get tired of it. Not just the "entitled" but the morons too.

Last night we happened onto a motorcycle accident that pretty much happened right in front of us, but was too far for us to see what happened, just the guy tumbling across the street. This is a 4 lane expressway. I stopped and put on my hazzards and went to check on the guy and IDIOTS would drive right up to my car before getting a clue to MOVE OVER. There is over a MILE from which you can see my car and another car that had stopped (who apparently was either a witness or was involved, stopped in the left lane, idiot). The guy was semi-conscious when I got to him, but already able tp speak. He eventually stood up on his own and asked me what had happened. I told him I didn't know and advised that he should probably sit down and wait for paramedics to show up. He said he thought he was either cilpped or hit. A girl walked over from the opposite side of the road and she said she saw him go down too, but not what happened either. It was only him and that other car, and once we were on the scene, that other car drove away, which is why I am guessing they were involved. We waited for paramedics/police, gave a statement and left.

I AM an aggressive driver, but I tend to only get annoyed by other drivers who are doing STUPID things. ALSO last night, there is a light that is notorious for idiots pulling out without looking. This woman on a phone pulls out right in front of me and I am already at speed. I went around her and evil eyed her and she honked!! She had NO IDEA why I was mad because she clearly is the only person on the planet that matters I detest people like this. They are doing something wrong (talking on the phone while driving in CA is illegal and stupid), making an illegal turn (I watched her, she didn't even bother to look, just went), and then thinks that someone who is avoiding her oblivious actions is doing something wrong?

 

[CaliHwyPatrol]

"I usually end up being the guy driving faster than everyone else. "

"My solution is to stay behind them and stagger my car so the headlights are in their mirror."

"I slow down to pace her for a while"

The common element here seems to be you. If you experience a lot of road rage, chances are you're doing something wrong.

Driving faster than other people has nothing to do with aggression, I just like to drive faster than most people. Personal preference. I mostly try to stay out of people's way, my speed is none of their concern. I'm not flying down the freeway, I just like to drive faster (5-7mph over posted speed).

I don't put my headlights in their mirror out of anger, I do it to get their attention so they will know I am there and get over. I don't tailgate them or turn my brights on, I just make sure they can see my headlights. I don't think that is aggressive, maybe I'm wrong.

I didn't pace her until after she flipped me off, so how could that attribute to why people react to me the way they do?

Of course the common element is me, I'm always there when it happens.

 

[jonnythan]

I think those are aggressive behaviors. If you don't, that's fine. But, as you've discovered, many drivers will find them aggressive and respond in kind.

That's why you're experiencing a larger-than-average quantity of these responses. In my opinion.

 

[CaliHwyPatrol]

I think those are aggressive behaviors. If you don't, that's fine. But, as you've discovered, many drivers will find them aggressive and respond in kind.

That's why you're experiencing a larger-than-average quantity of these responses. In my opinion.

I guess, it's just never been like this anywhere I've ever driven. I've been to over 40 states, and I have lived in 4. Nowhere else is like that!

Why would someone flip me off for driving faster in the other lane? I did nothing to them, I had no previous encounter with this person. It seems like if they are mad that I am being aggressive, they are fighting fire with fire by flipping me off. What's more aggressive, driving faster than surrounding traffic, or flipping off other drivers? If it was just this one encounter, I would chalk it up to chance, but it's pretty common.

Like I said, I'm not mad about it, just baffled really.

 

[jinjuku]

You sound like a highly aggressive and confrontational driver to me.

What specifically makes you say that?

He likes wearing a wig and drives a mini

 

[jinjuku]

You sound like a highly aggressive and confrontational driver to me.

I dunno, sounds perfectly reasonable to me. Not sure what is aggressive about passing in the left most lane.

Those are simply the rules of the road. Like flashing your brights when you want to pass. I honor that request. I also flash brights if a truck wants to get over in my lane to let them know they are clear and if I just passed a LEO.

 

[markw]

Being from Jersey, I'm an expert on ashole drivers.

We get 'em from New York all the time.

I have several thoughts to offer. Obviously, you can take 'em or leave 'em.

1) If they won't pull over and the other lane is free, pass 'em on in the other lane and be done with it. Ignorance is curable. Stupidity is not.

2) Staying behind them to piss 'em off generally generally pisses you off more than them, and they know it. Besides, they can simply flip their rear-view mirror into the "up" position so the light doesn't bother them.

3) If they don't like it, fook em. They are behind you. As for that c**t in the mini, just smile and blow her a kiss as you pass.

2) My buddy, who was a cab driver out of EWR for many years gave me perhaps the best driving advice I've ever heard. IT goes: If someone doesn't know where they are going, you want them behind you.

 

[lsiberian]

Maybe in Washington they expect people to actually follow the posted speed limit. I suggest you consider doing so. I know in Texas you'd get killed, but different areas have different ways of doing things.

And yes you are an aggressive driver. You might try listening to more relaxing music to help sooth that urge to floor it and go 90 around a curve rated for 30. A man's gotta have his fun somehow.

 

[lsiberian]

3) If they don't like it, fook em. They are behind you. As for that c**t in the mini, just smile and blow her a kiss as you pass.

You do have a point I mean that finger does actually mean something.

 

[CaliHwyPatrol]

...I just like to drive faster (5-7mph over posted speed).

. You might try listening to more relaxing music to help sooth that urge to floor it and go 90 around a curve rated for 30.

 

[Irvrobinson]

I'm in Washington quite a bit, and I've never been honked at, flipped off, or flashed, and let's just say I treat the speed limit as merely a recommendation (generally set about 40-50 years ago, when the best performance cars on the road would be bested in every regard by a modern Lexus IS 350, especially braking performance). Are you sure you're not doing something offensive?

 

[its phillip]

Maybe in Washington they expect people to actually follow the posted speed limit. I suggest you consider doing so. I know in Texas you'd get killed, but different areas have different ways of doing things.

I dunno what you are talking about. Drivers in Texas are crazy. If you followed the posted speed limit, you'd get run over.