this post was submitted on 09 Oct 2024
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That's why you wait until you are right next the front of a semi and box them in.
Of course there are idiots that will then pass in the shoulder. (Known from experience)
My mother always said "let them have their own accident somewhere else."
If someone is driving unsafely around me, I absolutely feel offense and the desire to punish them in some way, but it seems best not to do so. Unsafe drivers probably won't learn anything good from other drivers no matter how the other drivers respond. If you try to create consequences, the other driver may well escalate - for example, as you described, passing on the shoulder and creating an unsafe situation for others; but also possibly by taking issue with you personally and acting to endanger you directly through various methods.
So in summary, if someone is driving unsafely around me, my goal very quickly becomes getting the lack of safety away from my passengers and myself as soon as possible.
It's not really about punishing someone, more of trying to get them to cool off.
You also have to realize that someone stupid/crazy enough to shoulder-pass at highway speed could easily be the same type to preemptively pass while you are mid lane change and make it look like it's your fault, either purposefully or after the fact. So, I prefer keeping an eye on someone riding my ass to be alert to them, waiting for them to back off.
You don't know why someone is speeding, and it's not your job to enforce traffic laws. There was a story I remember reading a while back of someone's friend having a chainsaw accident, and them watching their friend bleed out in their car because some dumb piece of shit figured they'd play traffic cop and blocked them in traffic. If you see someone driving aggressively, just assume they're driving that way because they're about to shit their pants, and let them go on their merry way. Report them if you want, but don't endanger yourself and others trying to be a "hero"
I'd rather not take my eyes off someone tailgating me to change lanes and get conned again
My jesus in fucking christ, your eyes should be on the road in front of you, apart from brief checks of your mirrors, and brief head checks while lane changing.
Okay
You might be the bad guy
Maybe...
Though, because a lot of details could be missing, passing judgment one way or the other could make one liable to something not unlike shaming a victim.
There may also be a possibility that I'm making the whole event up to create a laugh or just to rile people up, such as some people who may have a narrow idealistic views. This is a channel intended for entertainment on the internet after all.