Eight years ago I was driving on a genuinely empty back road in a rural part of America, speed limit 55mph. I failed to notice that, for one mile, the speed limit went down to 45mph. The character of the road didn’t change, we weren’t passing through a populated area. I don’t know why it changed. For miles in either direction it was 55. I kept going 55 and put absolutely zero people at risk of anything. That oversight cost me $400, and the cop was a huge asshole about it. So I bought a radar detector.

There are various layers of dysfunction at play in American road design and policing that I’d happily advocate we address. In the meantime I’m doing what I can to avoid any interactions with power drunk people who have the ability to decide my fate on a whim.