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Old February 4th 18, 03:49 PM posted to rec.bicycles.misc
Frank Krygowski[_4_]
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Posts: 10,538
Default AG: Dead Right

On 2/3/2018 9:55 PM, John B. wrote:
On Sat, 03 Feb 2018 21:07:10 -0400, Joy Beeson
wrote:


(In appropriate jurisdictions, replace "right" with "left".)

There are various and sundry laws in different jurisdictions about
passing another vehicle on the right.

What the law says doesn't matter. What matters is that

WHEN YOU PASS A VEHICLE ON ITS RIGHT
YOU ARE BETTING YOUR LIFE THAT IT WON'T TURN RIGHT.

You don't want to make that bet unless you are sure that you will win.


Essentially you are talking about "Self Preservation:, described by
Google as "Self-preservation is a behavior that ensures the survival
of an organism. It is almost universal among living organisms.

The description goes on to say, The desire for self-preservation has
led to countless laws and regulations surrounding a culture of safety
in Western society.[10] Seat belt laws, speed limits, texting
regulations, and the "stranger danger" campaign should all be familiar
examples of societal guides and regulations to enhance survival, and
these laws are heavily supported due to the animal need we possess for
self-preservation.

" Self-preservation is also thought by some to be the basis of
rational and logical thought and behavior".


But there are complications. Rather frequently, I encounter people who
have deluded ideas about dangers. On one hand, the people Joy is
addressing have no idea that they are putting themselves at risk.

On the other hand, and ever more common, there are people who imagine
that certain safe or even beneficial activities are dangerous. Those
people will (for example) never ride a bicycle at all, because they
think bicycling is very, very dangerous. As a consequence, they are much
more likely to die of a variety of ailments triggered by being
sedentary. (Refusing to ride without a magic plastic hat is a variation
on this theme.)

I've come across a man - educated, recently elected judge - who said he
would never walk in a forest while wearing earplugs, because there is
such a high risk of a tree falling on a person. (Seriously!)

There are millions of kids who are told to NEVER talk to strangers. Or
never walk to school.

There are countless people who will never fly in a commercial airline.

And on the third hand, there are the clueless who's deluded
self-preservation leads them to do things that put them at much, much
greater risk. Every wrong-way bicyclist is convinced that he's far
safer than those riding properly. The same is true for sidewalk riders,
despite copious research proving them wrong. And of course, there are
plenty of bike lanes to the right of potential right-turning vehicles.
Those lanes actively delude people into thinking they're safe.

Ignorance is a tough opponent.

--
- Frank Krygowski
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