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Quote:

Originally Posted by jaybee from UK

I really don't see where this conversation is going. As far as 'admit' goes, I'm PROUD that I get from A to B quickly, and SAFELY. Maybe not legally, but SAFELY. We have ABS, Airbags, sports suspension and excellent road-holding. Oh, I'm not safe? Well, neither is living, let alone driving. My policy of risk-minimisation has worked BRILLIANTLY since the 80's, fulfilling two often conflicting priorities - arriving at my destination safely, and punctually. My accident rate is far below the average for the general population. I've read no case here to change it, even slightly. I'm an open-minded guy.

If anyone has a salient, RELEVANT point to make, I'll reply to it. I'm not sure what I'm doing here fending off these nebulous, and increasingly emotional charges.

Aside from that, I think it's best to leave the matter here, guys. Next topic.

Jaybee.

Even if you are as skilled a driver as you say you are (in which case you probably should, as others have alluded to, be driving at the local racetrack), the probability increases with time that someday your skill will fail you. Mistakes at 100 MPH will very likely kill someone, maybe you, or worse yet, maybe innocents. Mistakes at the posted speed limit have a decreased likelihood of causing fatality, I'd have thought. Consider the fact that your skill has not failed you since the '80s may very likely be a reflection of extremely good fortune, at least in part.

Speed limits are not completely arbitrary, at least not in this country. They are based on scientific research into reaction times, stopping distances, and so forth. The technological advancements that result in a decreased road toll are not reasons to counteract this decrease by permitting, legally, or socially, drivers to exceed the posted speed limit because in their own opinions, they are safe drivers. Do not forget that public roads are filled with drivers who have no reasonable expectation that a car is going to fly past them at frightening speed. Are they supposed to trust your superior skill, having never so much as seen you for more than a split second? I don't like sounding like a sanctimonious arsehole, but fuck it: Your behaviour likely causes terror and confusion in the minds of other drivers. This is not a healthy state in which to drive, and it is not a healthy situation for anyone sharing the road with a driver in this state. How do you know that your driving has not and will not cause accidents due to the road rage it causes in others?

Why are the goals of punctuality and safety in competition, for you? Most people simply leave earlier in order to meet both.