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Imagine a 40 percent tax on food – or some other essential. People would be out in the streets. Such a tax would be two things that Americans generally don’t like – disproportionate and regressive. A tax that is both obnoxiously high – and hits those least able to absorb the blow (middle and...
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Why can’t all states have turnout lanes? Well, they can of course – but most don’t. Somehow, the simple solution of providing extra room on the shoulder of a two-lane road to let faster-moving cars safely and courteously get by slower-moving cars is not high on the To Do list of state highway authorities....
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Living by a few basic rules of roadway etiquette can make all the difference between safe, courteous driving – and driving everyone else on the road crazy. Do your part to ease road rage by avoiding these common driving errors: * Left lane hogging – Driver’s ed courses used to hammer home the point...
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Seasonal riding is a fact of life for many motorcyclists. Come fall – and cold weather – many riders hang up their leathers and park their bikes for the duration. It might be three or even four months before it’s time to throw a leg over again. But we’re required to carry year-round insurance,...
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There it is up ahead. A Ford Crown Victoria. Better get on the brakes! But is it really a cop? Or just an old coot? There are – mostly – only two kinds of people who drive the Crown Vic: Old people – and cops. Knowing which one’s behind the wheel can save you...
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That old nag Dr. Joyce Brothers says that during a road rage confrontation, “men are at the same mental level as an ape,” a being who “… protects his space, at all costs and without logical thought as to the consequences.” Well, yeah. It’s not hard to see how dealing with a driving environment...
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In the ’70s, when cars were slow, you could drive fast and mostly get away with it. Yeah, you’d get a ticket if you got caught, but speeding was just that – not “reckless driving” – and there was an element of good humor in the cat and mouse game that has always existed...
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Teen drivers have lately been in the crosshairs of ranting moms and rat-faced politicians looking for an easy issue to ride into office on. There’s some legitimacy to it, admittedly. Teen drivers are inexperienced and often (but not always) immature. That can and does result in mistakes behind the wheel. But the same is...
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In the ’80s, it was tinny electronic recordings advising you that “the door is ajar.” In the ’90s, it was auto-strangulating seatbelts that assaulted you as soon as you closed the door. But is anything more cement-headed than the current obsession with overlarge wheels – “rims” (ree-uhms, if pronounced in High Ebonics)? The sight...
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You can avoid being felt-up or scanned (for now) if you avoid flying, but that doesn’t mean you’re not subject to similarly random – and just as intimidating – random stops out on the road. As the holidays approach, your local police will likely be stepping up the use of “sobriety checkpoints” – and...
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