LOL..like on Wednesdays!

Amen

Tim, why would you "suspect many of you"?

You made fun of "liberty" on another thread and I asked you how much you are willing to give up but I didn't see an answer. Why do you not like liberty?

I noticed how we all think the other drivers are bad but we are fine.

Kelly, here's what you mean.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hkxaF5Pq5D8

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yZUwNXfG2ys&feature=related

to echo I have been saying the drivers here are horrible I 'm very defensive and think ahead of the worst possible maneuver that driver can make, and sadly I see it a lot

Joe: Because I drive these roads everyday. Baltimore County drivers are awful. They drive distracted, constantly.
No one uses turn signals, everyone tailgates like a champ. They also seem to be oblivious of turn lanes, and 3 or 4 way stops. Things like causing gridlock in our area - for example, on Honeygo road near Campbell. It happens, every day.
Fundamentals that are supposedly being taught in our "private, overpriced driving schools".

Liberty without responsibility is dangerous.
You'd have to give me the context of my 'not liking liberty' comment in whatever other thread you are pulling this from. We both know this is, on face value, a gross distortion of reality.

"Tim 3:53 pm on Tuesday, August 28, 2012
Those days ended with corporate greed and "Trickle Down" economics implemented in the 80's. Of course, hindsight is 20/20, but it doesn't seem to stop some folks from willfully ignoring these facts.

The only thing that's trickled down is the quality of our society. Yet, so many want to keep it going, in the name of 'liberty'."

There is your post. It sure sounds like you have some disdain for liberty.

Joe: OK. Thanks for grabbing that for me.

You know the ol' saying "your right to swing your fist ends where the other man's nose begins?" It's a quote from Oliver Wendell Holmes.

I believe it applies here, economically speaking.
The middle class has been bled dry over the past 30 years through this economic theory of 'trickle down', which has proven out to be nothing more then 'trickle up' just packaged by those in the elite class as "hey give us more money and we'll give you more jobs". They are still doing it today, and yet middle to lower middle class people are still being brainwashed into it.

Really though, the bigger offense is towards our tax code, which needs dramatic reform on all levels.

I actually think if we talked you'd find we agree on more things then you think from a conceptual standpoint.
I just have different starting points, and take more of a multi-faceted approach to resolving them. It's something neither party has the will to do.

The left hand lane isn't just a passing lane, in many states it's the fast lane. I guess it's what you grew up with.

I agree 100% with you Kym on the passing lane comment. Maryland drivers are supposed to follow the "Keep Right" laws (see provided link) but many do not and often what ensues is road rage. I've driven in many parts of the US and overseas and this area is without a doubt one of the worst regarding this matter. I think this is one area that needs to be enforced more diligently by state troopers.

I say pull over the slow poke bottleneckers!

http://mlis.state.md.us/2006rs/billfile/sb0701.htm

@Ryan - looks like that bill was never adopted. Best I can tell, under normal conditions, the only law about using the left lane is that you can NOT be going slower than 10MPH lower than the limit.

Maryland is one of only a few states without a "move over for passing traffic" laws

Dave, thanks for pointing that out, I stand corrected. But still, should just be common sense/courtesy to get out of the left lane and let people behind you pass. I find most of the time it's someone on their cell phone not paying attention to anyone around them.

In most European countries, the failure to yield the fast lane to oncoming traffic will land you a very large fine.

if the speed limit is being adhered to do you really need to pass?

Tom: European drivers are held to much higher standards then American drivers. They also have to re-test to keep their license, extensively.

We had a guy who lived in Germany for many years explain all this to me and others here on Patch several months ago.

Perhaps we should take some lessons from the Europeans.

I think a lot of the problem is that people don't view driving as a responsibility, it's just a privilege to them. Personally, I'd like to see it be harder to get a drivers license as I am tired of people hitting me. I've been involved in two accidents in the last year and neither of them were my fault. People running stop signs and people rear ending me while I'm stopped at a stop sign... it's made me even more paranoid of what people are going to do while driving.

Ashley: "I think a lot of the problem is that people don't view driving as a responsibility, it's just a privilege to them."

Completely agree!

@fred - Even if they are going the speed limit, if the person in the left lane is able to get over into the right lane, they should, when someone behind them approaches at a faster rate of speed. It is not up to you to police the other car's speed. That action usually brings upon road rage from the driver behind you or their zipping fastly into the right hand lane and back into the left lane in front of you, sometimes at a close distance. Too me, it is not worth the risk. I just get over in the right lane and let them continue on their merry way and sometimes hope there is a cop ahead who pulls them over for their speeding :-)

That's funny. I remember my late Dad always tell me when driving in the city NEVER your turn signals. When I asked why he said because that will tell the people behind you what you want to do and they will try to prevent you from doing it!

I really don't do city driving much, you should always have merging space between you and the car in front of you, so there isn't a real reason to thank you on that account. As for tailgaters, I slow down, just let off the gas pedal, I want to be going slow enough that if they get a chance to go around they have it. Even if it is 20 under the speed limit....

may I add in a parking lot door open to have a conversation blocking all cars In A Parking Lot .... just park the car and talk all you want

Yep, it's not just the city though.

LOL - You are spot on! If it weren't for those prices I would never go near that place.

Is that like Wal-mart on seniors day?

I made my daughter drive through it from Geipe to the other end where Starbucks and Sweet Frog are located before she could get her license!

I was driving there a couple weeks ago and a woman was walking down the center of the driving lane in front of the stores pushing her cart because she apparently had no idea where she had parked her car and was glancing down all the aisles to find it. After she passed the third parking lane and kept going straight in the middle of the lane I beeped my horn and she turned around, gesturing and yelling, although she did eventually move. Hey, lady, not my fault that you aren't smart enough to remember where you parked your car!

Do YOU know what "yield" means? Because it's a two-way responsibility. You can't just sit in the right lane and refuse to let people merge: you need to move left. A lot of times, I see people trying to merge and the folks in the right lane refusing to let them out of some false sense of lane entitlement. If you don't want to be cut off, drive proactively, anticipate the merge, and create space for the driver coming onto the freeway. Is a lot nicer than ramming people.

Cheers,
-d-

also it must be said that the state did a terrible design on the on/off ramp exits. another problem area rt 40 east at 695.

What I find fascinating about maryland drivers on this, is that people don't seem to understand the concept of trading lanes.

If I'm looking to get off, and the car behind me is looking to get on...then it's not hard to facilitate that transition. Yet it's also not surprising for me to be behind smoeone looking to get off the ramp - while I'm trying to get on the ramp - and my turnsignal is blinking for several sections while oblivious Maryland driver on the ramp doesn't see it (or understand what to do).

Amen. Once you hit the middle east your eyes really open. Many first timers always assume the burned out shells of cars along Iraq's highways are IED attacks. Mainly, they are regular traffic accidents. The accepted understanding is you are allowed to fly at your whim but if you mess up you are on your own - no help.

I think Americans can use a lesson from the Indians when it comes to driving. They manage to do so in complete chaos (lights don't matter, direction of traffic doesn't matter, cutting folks off doesn't matter), most cars don't have their side view mirrors out, for fear that it will be ripped off by another vehical... but somehow their nerves of steal prevail and allows them to drive with relatively little incident.

Kind of like this?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RjrEQaG5jPM
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PsZKPnvlx44

Mark, those are hysterical! I especially like the car sitting in the middle on film #2, people getting in and out, chatting. A big difference is, about half the traffic is bicycles. But it is amazing all the cars still have square corners!

Anyone over 65 should be retested every 5 years as their license expires.

everyone should be tested.

Everyone should be tested every 5 years, and every time they get a moving violation of any kind.

I don't think most people could pass the current test no matter what their age. The testing parameters are very strictly enforced and it has a high failure rate for first-time takers, as I noted below. Experienced drivers are sloppy in their habits and I think their eyes would be opened a lot if they were tested now.

Notice the lack of horns blowing. If this was in Baltimore people would be dead form road rage.

true for the autobahn which has no speed limit. it'll also cost $2000 dollars for the privilege to drive there, so they take it a little more serious.

Yup!

Absolutely true....

Maryland drivers have forgotten what a turn signal is used for.

Right of way ? Proper Merging techniques ? Unheard of in Maryland.

MOST time they do that they are on a phone!

hey Joe, look we agree on something :)

I ride a motorcycle and that issue is more apparent when you don't have 3000 pounds of steel around you.

Yeah, but the crotch rocket riders do the rest of you any favors. I probably don't need to tell you this, though.

I ride a cruiser since I can't bend over a gas tank that long! I let the crotch rockets blow by us and then sometimes we read about them in the papers as a statistic.

Yep, those guys are even tougher to predict because they'll just arbitrarily cut in between two cars - places a full size motorcycle or a normal vehicle couldn't possibly go.

Typically, I just slow down and get myself as far away from those guys as I can. I'd rather not be the one that cripples or kills them, even if it's their fault.

Oh Ya... I see the pet lovers driving with their dogs on their laps, blocking their view thru the windshield.

My God.... can't you wait to share a moment with your pet when you get home ?

I sometimes think the Pet would probably be a better driver than the human.

I will admit I'm guilty of "putting on the turn signal and changing lanes at the same time". My ex-husband used to yell at me all the time for that, yet he's the one with all the tickets and crashed cars. I chalk that up to my NY roots. You see a gap, you go for it.

I have bluetooth in my car, and I still rarely use my phone. Even on bluetooth I find it way too distracting.

Gomer: Don't you realize that using your turn signal creates an invisible force field around your vehicle, thereby allowing you to change lanes withot checking . .

Aggressive driving is not only ignored by the police, but judges go very easy on those who DO get tickets. I was in court once with a relative. There were about 5 drivers who had received aggressive driving citations. ALL were let off - Reason: late for work, late to daycare, late for an appointment, yadda, yadda. It's no wonder the police don't want to issue a ticket. It's a waste of their time.

"Aggressive driving is not only ignored by the police" Nope, it is practiced by many I see.

Joe's correct here. I see police driving aggressively all the time on 695.

Got your siren on for a legit reason? By all means, here I'll gladly move to the right for you. Otherwise? Just as bad as the rest of them.

What Bart says is just sad. Everyone's entitled to drive like idiots, breaking the law and the courts enable them. This is a problem.

Tim, we agree on a few things??!! OMG! Now what?

I live across the street from a teenager who just got his license. He basically has little interest in driving right now, I asked him why and he said it stresses him out.

oh man, if I were a big rig driver, I'd never make it. These guys get abused on the road.

Pretty much what I taught my daughter and what I try to practice, Dennis.

New York drivers, it's funny, they are good drivers but they also aren't.

The best way I can explain it is like this: The reason New York isn't #1 is because the natives all understand how to 'drive' up there.

The problem is when New Yorkers leave the state, or tourists come into New York.

As far as the guy who backed/pushed into cars parallel parking, I hate to say it, but that's probably the fault of the parallel parkers around him.

When you parallel park a vehicle, you are supposed to give yourself 3 feet distance between the cars around you. Now, there can be fault of the guy "in the middle" if he chose to wedge himself into that spot to begin with. Additionally, partial fault goes to anyone who leaves himself space on one side but not the other. I obviously can't tell you what that guy's situation was.

What I can tell you, is if you don't want your bumper colored up, parallel park intelligently or don't do it at all. Anyone who parallel parks up on someone else's car is just ASKING to be dinged. User error.

The Insurance Companies know. They're the ones who pay the claims. They calculate, examine and predict where every dime will be paid in the future. They must be very accurate, or they will fail.
They must also provide their figures every year to the State Insurance Commissioner of every State where they do business so their rates can be examined, verified and enacted.

racist much?

Thats not racist. Look at the list here of open warrants in Montgomery County alone where many illegal live and drive. Look at all the thousands of FTA and driving with no license or insurance. What happens when these people hit you and have no license or insurance?
http://www6.montgomerycountymd.gov/content/POL/districts/ISB/majorcrimes/Warrants/warrant.htm

SOMETHING must be done in MoCo to keep these people off the roads.

There is nothing there that says if the person with the open warrant is "illegal" or not.

Joe, assuming poor drivers are illegals and Black folks is quite racist.

Noting there to the blind racists like Steve who lives in a glass house.
We all are well aware that MoCo is an illegal alien paradise where some even vote in local elections. We all are well aware MoCo is a sanctuary county like Baltimore city.
When you see that list of thousands and thousands of names one can safely assume given the facts that many many are illegal aliens. If you can't see that.......

Laura, it is not racist given the facts and long time driving experience.

The aassumption many are illegal is backed up by the FTA's. If you are here legally and abiding by the law generally, you would appear. If you are here illegally you see no point since MoCo will do nothing about it and let this list grow and grow and grow to the size you see. If they were legal there would not be so many driving without licenses and no insurance.

1. There is not one instance of any "illegal" voting in a Montgomery County elect.
2. MoCo isn't a sanctuary city
3. You can't tell if someone is illegal or not by their last name or the way they drive

Steve, are you sure you want to go there? One day son you will be better informed.

"Takoma Park stands by non-U.S. citizen voting law.
A state delegate last week challenged Takoma Park’s non-U.S. citizen voting law, 20 years after the city enacted the policy that allows all noncitizens who live in Takoma Park to vote in city elections."
http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/takoma-park-stands-by-non-us-citizen-voting-law/2012/03/13/gIQAVBcgBS_story.html

Montgomery County is a top place for illegal immigrants to live
July 01, 2011

http://articles.baltimoresun.com/2011-07-01/news/bs-ed-0630-illegals-maryland-best-let20110630_1_illegal-aliens-legal-status-sanctuary-state

"An Illegal Alien's Guide to the Top Five Best Places to Live In America"
By Bob Dane Published June 30, 2011
"2. Montgomery Country, Maryland

If jobs are what attract you, then this upscale community close to our nation's capital offers the mother of all magnets.

The first step to getting a job is to visit a Casa De Maryland (CASA) Welcome Center. Their employment specialists help you find a job and don’t give a hoot about your legal status. They will even help you acquire an IRS-issued taxpayer identification number because, of course, you’re here illegally and not eligible for a real Social Security number. This powerful organization is truly the illegal alien Welcome Wagon with $16 million in assets, $4.9M of it acquired in 2010 from government contracts!

Don’t worry about Secure Communities because the County recently opposed its implementation. And for college-bound illegal aliens, take advantage of in-state-tuition now that the state passed the Maryland Dream Act."

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/01/10/AR2009011002149_pf.html

"Attitudes Shift on Illegal Residents January 11, 2009 "
"For years, mainstream Montgomery County has been generally accepting of illegal immigrants, and county leaders followed suit, pledging not to enforce immigration laws even as police agencies elsewhere in the region began to do so. "

Educate yourself Steve and never debate a topic you have no education in.

Sorry, but I don't agree. I work in a 'not so nice' area in southern Baltimore, and I live in Perry Hall.
The drivers around Perry Hall are worse. It's not close.

Big deal. It's only a local i.e. Takoma Park election. It doesn't affect me.

Steve, you have been again shown to be uninformed. You were wrong and can't seem to be a man and face it.

Not only does it hold up traffic in the passing lane, but it forces drivers to pass on the RIGHT, which is a hazard.
Not to mention folks in the middle lane on the highway who pass on the right for NO REASON other than they are completely ignorant of the fact that one is supposed to pass on the LEFT for safety.

yeah. not a liberal, just a reasonable individual. i drive 95 every day and do you know who i tend to see pulled over the most? white males.

nope, don't want that guy in office, thanks. didn't want him in the first time around, don't want him in after this year. but hey, keep on making assumptions. :) i'm about as far from a liberal as one can get, but i'm not a brainless Republican, either.

You obviously are not the problem. It's the ones who put their signal on AS they are changing lanes (not before) to squeeze between two cars. Maybe the two cars that driver is squeezing between are too close together, but that does not seem to bother the idiots who do it. Too many people today seem to feel everyone must get out of their way.
Also, too many people don't seem to understand the concept of yielding coming on to a highway. If a driver coming onto a highway forces a car already on the highway to have to hit the brakes, he or she has created a hazard. Sometimes in life, you just have to wait your turn!