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First, people definitely drive 80 in a 65. Not so much here in the SF Bay Area, but in southern California, on some roads if I’m doing 75 I am the slowest poke on the road. Passed by everybody.
So, “most” drivers, USA-wide? Maybe not but it’s a localized behavior. People definitely do drive 80 MPH. Even higher.
LOL, OK Dobie.
Maybe there are some desert highways out west where you can go 80 or even 100 and not get a ticket. I admit I responded to the OP's "most people" hyperbole with hyperbole of my own.
In any case, the OP seems to think there is a national speed limit. There isn't. Each state is free to set their limit at whatever their voters will tolerate. Usually urban speed limits are lower than rural ones, for good reason.
Just because you 'want to' or just because 'you can' does not give you the right to demand that you SHOULD BE ABLE TO, because it messes things up for ANYONE else who DOES'NT want (or need) to.
I agree. My mere expression of personal desire, is not sufficient basis for society to accede to my demands. But the onus isn't on me, to prove that my desire is worthy or legitimate. The onus is on society, to prove that my desire is deleterious and baleful. Only then is my behavior to be restricted.
In other words, we begin with the assumption that anything goes, and then assess what happens. If what happens is a grievous harm, then we restrict the underlying behavior.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Coldjensens
Correct. No one "NEEDs" to drive faster than 15 MPH. For that matter, no one actually "NEEDS" to drive at all. It has always been a question of what people want. ...
Indeed. Most modern conveniences are a matter of wants, not “needs”. I don’t “need” internet access. Come to think of it, I don’t really “need” to be able to read or write. What if, after all, my writing leads to offensive or dangerous things?
There’s always a tradeoff between safety and convenience. And yes, there’s such a thing as too much safety. It’s called timorousness and cowardice. The Apollo mission was dangerous, but we did it, even if the safe thing was to remain on earth. Transatlantic voyages to settle what became the United States were dangerous, as it was safer to remain in Europe. There was no “need” to find a better life, to own private land and so forth… it was a “want”. Rome didn’t need to expand all through Italy and the Mediterranean. And Neolithic hunters did not “need” to become herdsmen or farmers.
Human history is suffused with examples of people doing what intrigues them, what amuses them, what strokes their ego and even placates their insecurities. The whole point of civil rights, really, is to move beyond mere needs, and to indulge in wants.
Alright folks, with all the bell and whistles modern cars have what do you think the speed limit should be. I vote for 130KM/h or 80 miles per hour. Most people travel that speed anyways
Maybe there are some desert highways out west where you can go 80 or even 100 and not get a ticket. I admit I responded to the OP's "most people" hyperbole with hyperbole of my own.
Not just desert highways. In California it's common for the flow of traffic on urban freeways to be 80 mph or even higher. From what I hear Texas drivers are even faster. 80 mph is not fast for today's drivers, at least not west of the Mississippi River.
You are SO right...and at the increasing-rate at which the 'enviro-weenies' (special-interest groups) are infiltrating the ranks of the 'lawmakers/rain-makers & Captains of Industry', it is only a matter of time before ALL of us are subject to the limp-wristed, milque-toast 'nanny-state' mentality.
Can you imagine, back in the day when car radios were invented, restrictions on their use by drivers? Yet I got a ticket for "texting" when changing a song on my phone.
i wish they would lower the speed limit to 55, today we got 70 and they drive 90-105, so maybe by lowering to 55 they would drive 70-80
That wouldn't work. The trend is that people are driving faster, not slower. The vast majority will laugh at that speed limit. I personally think going 55mph on the freeway is unnecessarily slow.
It scary how fast people want to drive now and how impatient they are. I just did a trip from Southern Cal up to Northern Cal over the holiday and if I kept it at 75 I'm being passed up like I'm standing still. Occasionally I got up 80 and even then I was only keeping up with half the cars out there.
Then there are the impatient ones too. I got highbeam'ed by one while passing a big rig. It took me no more than 10 sec to pass it. I usually give a car's length gap before I move over but the moment it fit his car through he tried to pass me on the right as I was moving over for him.
Another I commonly see on the 4 lane stretches (2 going, 2 coming) is when a group of cars are queued in the left lane behind a big rig trying to pass. There's always 1 or 2 in the group that will get out and pass as many as they can on the right. Not wanting to get stuck behind the slow vehicle on the right they'll force their way back at the last moment and cause everyone behind to have to slam on their brakes. Really? Just so you can be up 3 or 4 cars?
i wish they would lower the speed limit to 55, today we got 70 and they drive 90-105, so maybe by lowering to 55 they would drive 70-80
Agreed.
I wish people would just go 60-65.
Plenty fast, leaves enough time to react, and most people can handle it... unlike all the highly-distracted tin cans on doughnut spares currently doing 85. It's just weird that people think that's sensible. Even more stable vehicles can be pretty squirrelly at those speeds.
Perhaps people haven't caught on to the fact that highway death rates are increasing.
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