Story originally printed in the La Crosse Tribune or online at www.lacrossetribune.com
Published - Tuesday, May 13, 2008
Be nice on and off the road
In response to Terry Hubert’s letter, which enlightened us as to the legalities of merging on highways, I wanted to point out that being courteous is not legally mandated. We teach preschool children to say please and thank you, as adults, we hold the door for someone who has their arms full, or leave our waitress a decent tip, not because the police are enforcing any of these behaviors, but because we value kindness and courtesy. Those simple, little gestures make life more pleasant.
Hubert complains about people who “just bull their way onto the roadway,” and I can sympathize. But how hard would it be for each of us in that situation to “be the bigger man” and let them in? Driving does not have to be a power struggle.
While Hubert has an admirable knowledge of the law, I cannot help but question his social skills when he seems to take such delight in having the choice to move over or not for merging traffic and makes light of earlier letter writer Matt Gaworski’s suggestion to “drive nice.” I am going to suggest we be nice, both on and off the road.
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