February 26, 2001 (page 59)

     The main part of this page is that aggression among women is on the rise.  I feel that this may be due to the surge is women driver numbers and the women's movement.  It has been my own observations that women are becoming more outspoken through this idea of empowerment.  The bad side to this empowerment is the hostility that can easily be manifested through the acquisition of this power.  There is also the idea that women have more destinations to go to during the day and that means that women do more driving than men.  We must realize that the act of driving is not the purpose of the trip.  The destination is.  Driving is only a process by which the driver arrives at this destination and can be a stressful process.  Thus the more exposure to this stressful process will lead to increased rates of aggression and road rage.
     My friend Traci is the perfect example of this.  She is the mother of a 7 year old son who must go to school, soccer practice, after-school programs and other various experiences.  She must also go to and from work, the mall, among many other places.  I have had the opportunity to ride with her on many occasions and have seen just about the worst driving from anyone I know.  She tailgates horribly and speeds but refuses to pass anyone whom she is tailing. I know that she has gotten into at least two accidents, one of which left her car undrivable.  Both o the accidents were due to her poor judgment.

March 5, 2001  (page 71)

      One of the things that was mentioned on this page was that six billion gallons of gas are wasted due to traffic congestion.  Not only is this a waste of money and time but is a tax on the environment.   Just this past year there has been a lot of talk about OPEC releasing an additional 2 to 3 million barrels of oil per day.  People throw this figure around during discussions like it is pocket change.  I feel that this is a substantial amount of oil and there is only a limited amount of oil left in the Earth.  I have heard from various sources that in 20 to 30 years the world's oil supply will be gone.  I don't think that people realize how soon that is and what the consequences will be.  I can also mention that there is the growing problem in California and it will only get bigger due to the summer months.  I have also heard that the US makes up some 15 percent of the world's population but we use 30 to 40 percent of the world's energy. 
     Americans have become the spoiled rich kids of the world and our poor spending habits will catch up to us.  I think that it will happen very soon and that is why I have begun to research other forms of energy and the companies that will manufacture these alternative sources such as fuel cells which fuse oxygen and hydrogen to make heat and water.  I believe that this form of energy will be used in homes within the next 10 years is development continues as planned.

March 19, 2001  (pages 117-120)

     The main subject of these pages is that there are basically three types of drivers.  There is the oppositional driver which is called level one.  This driver is the most common type of driver and uses irrational thought processes.  This driver acts in a selfish, hostile, impulsive and reckless manner.  He is quick to express criticism and feels insulted and insecure when receiving criticism.  The next level is the defensive driver and at first this driver may seem like a good driver, but this driver can become suspicious of other drivers and may feel that others are out to get him.  This level of suspicion does have a negative impact on the driver's abilities after a certain point.  The Third level of driving is the supportive driver.  This driver is a prosocial style of driving and gives others the benefit of the doubt.  The ability for someone to make excuses for another person is one of the hardest things to do.  It is much easier for a person to extend blame and fault with other people.
     I have likened these three stages to Freud's id, ego, and superego.  The oppositional driver can be represented by the id.  This is the part of the human psyche that is functioning on animal instincts and reactions.  It is the selfish side of humans and may react poorly to threats against the well being of the person.  The ego can describe the second level of drivers.  The ego is the first level of awareness just as the defensive driver is aware of his surroundings and is suspicious of the other drivers but is not yet using any higher order thought processes to analyze the situation.  The ability for higher thought processes comes from the superego which can describe the third level of drivers.  The prosocial driver must use this thought process if he is going to make excuses for other drivers and give tem the benefit of the doubt.  This demonstrates a sense of empathy.