Yesterday morning we piled in the car to run a few errands. Now anyone who's from a reasonably northern section of this country would scoff at the dusting of snow we had out there. In fact, to arrive at my ancestral home, you have to drive approximately three hours northwest of here, yet it seems that those three hours make all the difference. Apparently anyone born or raised below the Mason-Dixon has no idea how to drive in the snow.
And I don't give a shit if you happen to drive some German engineering marvel: if you can't drive in the snow you are simply a more dangerous idiot when behind the wheel of that car, or worse yet, SUV. Fortunately most people are scared stiff to drive and stay at home, which is where the hell most of them belong anyway, but you have an adventurous few who through their cluelessness endanger every pedestrian, driver, and parked car out there.
Not two blocks from our house, we get the green on 18th Street. I'm pulling into the intersection when coming down 18th Street with no apparent ability to stop at the red light is a Maryland-tagged Audi. The driver flashed a sheepish grin as she slid through the intersection as if the rules were suspended because she's too much of a fucking idiot to realize she can't drive 40 MPH down 18th Street with snow all over the road and have any sense of control over her car.
I would like to propose a licensing system whereby you have to pass a snow-driving test in order to be able to move your car around in the snow. The first test would be to see what you do when your car is stuck, because I am goddamned tired of watching people stuck in icy patches flooring their gas as if spinning the wheels faster is going to do anything other than create more slick ice.
Oh, and I'm not giving the new mayor any high marks for the city's snow plowing efforts this time.
4 comments:
I'm behind you 100%. As someone from a colder climate, I have to bite my tongue to contain my scorn at how this area and its residents handle snow (note: I usually fail). It's not like I'm some perfect driver, but at least I know to go slowly and not tailgate people when it's unclear how well I'll be able to stop.
The plowing was awful. And when I drove all of the time, I was very careful about the snow. I'm from Maryland and I know that we can be idiots about driving in the snow. I lived 20 miles from the PA border so I was warned time and time again about being careful. If I didn't have to drive, I wouldn't.
And the plowing seemed a little...well...ineffective.
It's so weird...we get at least a foot or two of snow here every winter, usually lasting from late November to February...yet every single year it's like the entire area forgot how to drive on snow. Seriously? It's exactly like last time...and the time before that...and the time before that....
I don't know if you guys have noticed, but drivers in DC suck no matter what the weather is like. I saw a documentary about flash flooding (OK it was a slow week for me socially) in which they said people feel really safe inside their cars which is why they think they can drive through roiling rivers of flash flooding, or cruise through a red light at 18th street. I think that's why people are so crazy driving on the beltway, changing lanes without signaling (or looking), running red lights, ignoring we pedestrians (even aiming for we pedestrians).
Giving up my car three years ago is one of the smartest things I've ever done. Driving in DC? I don't miss it!
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