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I would like to thank Comfort 2 Growth for giving me an opportunity to share my thoughts with his audience.

This is my first attempt at communicating my thoughts in such a way. I am not very articulate and have terrible writing skills, so please forgive my poor grammar.  As engineering major there was never much fuss over bad grammar.

Today, I will be discussing driving.  I recently took a job that requires me to commute roughly 150 miles per day.  Spending all this time on the road, I have developed some techniques to drive safely, effectively, and efficiently. Furthermore, I have also listed some of the many behaviors of other drivers that are dangerous or annoying.

Becoming an effective driver is important. A lack of road awareness and safety can land you, or others, in the hospital or the morgue. It’s easy for us to become comfortable while driving.

Follow these tips to grow your driving ability!

5 Techniques to Improve Your Driving

1.         Keep an eye on things that are happening down the road.  Not only should you pay attention to what is happening directly in front of you, but also what is happening 300-1000ft in front of you.  When I am driving and see break lights I immediately take my foot off the gas pedal.  This is common-sense driving tactic, but many people will continue to accelerate and have to hit their breaks when they could have coasted and saved some gas.

2.       Use your turn signal.  This is also one of my top pet peeves.  Not using the turn signal is illegal and inconsiderate.  Sure, not many cops are going to pull you over and ticket you for not using your turn signal, but it is always good to let other people know what you are about to do.

3.       When passing, make the pass quickly. Often I see people who go for a pass and take the next 5 miles just to get around someone.  If you are passing someone and there are others passing as well make the pass quickly and get out of the way.

4.       When going down a large hill shift into neutral.  By shifting into neutral the engine will not hold back the speed of the vehicle thus saving you gas.  Make sure to put the car back in drive before you depress the accelerator or you will only rev the engine.

5.       Always check your mirrors.  By keeping an eye on what is going on behind you, you can eliminate accidentally cutting people off.  Also, don’t forget to turn and look when changing lanes as well as using your turn signal before making the lane change.  I think I just put three things into one technique.  Oh well.

Now it is time for the pet peeves.  If you do these things to me there is a chance you will look in your rear view mirror and see some sort of Tasmanian devil behind the wheel.

My 5 Biggest Driving Pet Peeves

1.       Failing to merge. If your lane is ending, put on your turn signal and slow down or speed up, then move into the other lane without inconveniencing other drivers.  While I am on the interstate, where there is a double-lane entrance ramp that drops a lane,   someone will ride to the end of their lane, use no turn signal, and not look at all while entering the correct lane. This maneuver is dangerous. Since your lane is ending it is your responsibility to enter and merge safely.

2.      Not using the turn signal.  The turn signal lets other drivers know of your intentions. When you are at a stop sign waiting to turn, you should always communicate your path. This will prevent wasted time and road accidents.

3.       Talking on cell phones. Cell phone use while driving is distracting and dangerous. When I’m driving, I limit my time on the phone and generally tell my callers that I will call them once I am off the road.  Sometimes you need to take important phone calls.  If they are that important you should pull over so that you can pay more attention to the conversation.

4.       Going ridiculously slow in the rain.  Every time I am on the interstate while it is raining there will be countless people who will turn on their flashers and slow to 35mph and drive in the left lane beside someone who is doing the same speed.  Just because I drive a heavy truck with good tires does not mean I should be punished because you don’t know how to drive in the rain.  Move to the right lane and go your own speed.

5.       Failing to maintain speed.  95% of the time I am driving I have the cruise control set.  This serves two purposes.  First it keeps my speed low enough to not get a ticket and it also helps keep good gas mileage as you will have less engine revving by maintaining a constant speed.  It is very irritating to pass someone then have them pass you back and to continue to do a do-si-do down the road.

I know I am not a perfect driver, I don’t claim to be. We all should strive to grow and improve our skills; especially when these skills can threaten or save lives.

If there is anything you take from this article, I hope that it makes you more considerate when you are on the road.  Remember that other people have places to be too.  While driving, you’re not only taking your life into your own hands but others as well.

Please share any of your pet peeves; rubbernecking, failing to yield for emergency vehicles, no lights with wipers on, etc.  These are all bad habits but for brevity’s sake I will call it quits.

The examples and rhetoric he uses make it very hard for anyone to disconnect with. He tells stories that force you to agree with in fear of being labeled heartless and uncaring towards suffering people

Obama’s ability to market his ideas and message has rarely been seen before in a President. All marketeers should take lesson in how Obama orchestrated his path to the white house. It was pure marketing and persuasive genius.

These skillful tactics that Obama employs make it easy for people to rally emotion behind. Unfortunately, Obama’s messages seem to be more fantasy than truth. More idealistic than feasible. It seems that more and more people are beginning to discover that there may not be much substance behind his powerful rhetoric, as seen in his tanking public opinion poll numbers.

His promises and plans all seem great when he talks of them. Not once did he explain how his plans will actually work. He only stated his intended outcomes; not the necessary leg work, sacrifices, and risks involved.

Proper health care reform is critical for this country. Unfortunately reform can either take us in two directions. Either to a more efficient and effective method to support our citizens; or towards a more bloated, debt-ridden, corrupt system that burdens our future.

I personally do not know the answer or plan to solve this country’s health care crisis. However, I do recognize that people must learn to pull the wool off their eyes and examine the facts and concrete plans that lie underneath the rhetoric.

I found the GOP response by Rep. Boustany quite interesting and I encourage you to check it out. You can find the video here.

Here is another essay on the Obama’s address last night that examines the promises he made in more detail.