Part 2: SUV Drivers are JERKS

"Yo, Mike, what you got against SUVs?" he began. I gave a quick look like, "You got to be kidding me" and then almost began to list a bevy of reasons, but stopped before I began. Instead, I put it like this: SUVs hurt people.

I'm not going to really get into the environmental problems with SUVs here; instead Im going to write about the tangible dangers caused by these trucks.

Did you know that the majority of traffic fatalities involve SUVs hitting smaller vehicles? In frontal collissions between SUVs and cars, the car driver is 4.3 times as likely to die as the SUV driver. Did you know that SUVs clog up roads and highways? Did you know that SUVs block other peoples ability to look at the entire road?

SUV drivers are also prone to be more aggressive on the road. It's like a 7'1" center in basketball being guarded by a 6'0" guard - the center is going to get his way whether or not the guard likes it. Honestly, look at the road and pay attention to SUV drivers. Just notice how aggressive they are on the road. It's not just me who believes this, experts say that "SUVs are inherently aggressive." In fact, it's believed that the biggest danger to others from SUV drivers IS that aggressive attitude - that attitude of risk. "If drivers realized that they are no safer (in fact somewhat less safe) in an SUV than in a subcompact, their concentration and driving behaviour would compensate, SUV accidents would fall, and millions of ruined lives would be spared the consequences of this unwitting recklessness. Unfortunately, as long as SUVs convey the illusion of control and safety, that's not likely to happen," said a blog on Salon.com.

I won't lie, if I'm not visibly flipping off every SUV driver I see, I'm flipping him or her off in the inside. I believe you can tell a lot about a person by what car he or she drives. And if a person drives an SUV, it tells me that he or she is either a) ignorant and believes that an SUV is actually safer than a passenger car, or b) selfish and doesn't care about anyone else. Whether it's a or b, SUV drivers are a danger to themselves, but more importantly, they are a danger to everyone else.