Keep your Fallacies Off the Road!

Keep Your Fallacies Off the Road!

Subject: Re: When will you cretins LEARN? Date: 18 Feb 1998 00:00:00 GMT From: Chris Organization: EKC Newsgroups: rec.autos.driving References: 1 C.T. wrote: > > After watching FOX's latest round of car-crash shows, most notably > "Surviving The Moment Of Impact," I was reminded once again how > annoying speeders and tailgaters can be. I am tired of your B.S. > logic which you use to rationalize your selfish urges. Here are a few > common fallacies that get repeated all the time: > > FALLACY #1: "It's not raw speed, but *relative* speed that causes > accidents, so if everyone drove the same speed (aka 80 mph) there > would be fewer accidents." WRONG: Countless crashes occur > when vehicles try to stop or swerve to avoid *stationary* objects like > stalled cars. The faster you go, the harder it is to stop and the > graver the injuries become. It's simple physics you morons. > > FALLACY #2: "I like speed because speed is cool, therefore I have > a right to push it to the limit when I feel like it." WRONG: Not > everyone shares your junior-high fantasies. You have no right to > drive like an idiot just to satisfy your ego. Shut up and show some > courtesy. If you want to speed, take it way out in the country where > you're least likely to kill someone. > > FALLACY #3: "I am more skilled than most drivers, therefore I can get > away with riskier maneuvers." WRONG: This is your ego speaking > again. Driving a car (outside of an Indy race) is not as difficult as > you think. You have delusions of grandeur. Any idiot can floor a gas > pedal and weave through traffic, especially with today's agile cars. > Truly skilled drivers know when to slow the hell down. > > I fully expect a pack of losers to take offense to the above. > > C.T. I have no problem "playing" in my car. But, like you said, I do it on lonely twisties and when there's no one else around to get killed. I do like speed because it's cool, but I definitely don't exercise my car's "talents" in traffic. I run with the pack, maybe a scooch faster or slower. I think one of the major problems that drivers in general have is that they don't look ahead. I often catch myself concentrating on the road immediately in front of me, instead of a mile or 2 down. Obviously, in stop and go traffic, your focus should change. Alot of those collisions they showed(I watched the whole show as well, came away quite frightened. Afterwords, I went to the ATM, shifting at 2000rpm in every gear ;-) ) It appeared were caused by lack of attention. The Mercedes e class in the bank window was a classic, I swear I saw that in driver's ed back in high school. I'll admit that A** H*** driving does cause alot of accidents, but I think also alot are caused by lack of concentration as well. I've been rear ended a few times in the last 10mo. or so, and the people that hit me weren't driving aggressive, they just weren't paying attention, and they admitted it(not an insurance savvy move, to be sure). That's what worries me on the highways. The local highways here seem to run between 65 and 75mph. What if these same people that hit me have a lack of attention at THAT speed. Instead of taking out a chunk of my car's bumper, they take out my CAR, along with 3 or 4 other people's. That's when things get tragic. Maybe the answer is in improved driving schools. I hear in Europe, they take driver's ed MUCH MUCH more seriously than we do here(not only that, but thier laws are tighter as well). heck in high school, my Bio teacher taught me to drive(of course, along with my parents)!!! Maybe some of our friends on the other side of the big pond can tell us more. I think we should all get rid of our cars and mountain bike everywhere ;-) But I agree save your aggression for a sparring ring, not the roads. Chris

My Comments

The writers here talk about some fallacies that are portrayed through television shows, which influence many viewers. I agree in that these fallacies are totally wrong and the corrections which are given after each fallacy. My favorite would probably have to be Fallacy #3. I know of so many folks who let their egos take the wheel and drive. They view themselves as such "ultimate, talented humans" that they think they can do various tactics with their vehicles, and get away with it. I have yet to experience a family member or friend (or even myself) being involved in a serious accident. I dread the thought of that, but rationally thinking, being on the roads is so risky because you are putting your lives in the hands of complete strangers.
I am also not a fan of "speed racers", although I hate to be a hippocrit because I have to admit, I do speed occassionally. In my opinion, excessive speeding increases one's chances of being involved in an accident; it could be thought of as a risk factor for injury. I have always had this thought in my mind, but wouldn't it be cool if there was a vehicle that informed you of when you are driving too fast and automatically "stops" at the speed limit (somewhat like a "cruise control" feature)? But, then again, we also have to take into consideration, as one of the writers mentioned, the attention capacity of the driver.



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