Welcome to NJ, dear readers! It’s the state where three consecutive governors have suffered broken legs while in office! Given that our state’s biggest cultural export is the Sopranos, this is starting to get a little suspicious. . .
Our most recent gubernatorial leg-breaking occurred when Jon Corzine’s SUV wiped out while traveling 91 mph up the Parkway. The guv was on his way to a Lady Knights/Imus summit, and this was important enough for his driver to blow 26 mph over the speed limit and chase cars out of the left lane. Not a smart idea, given how terrible the drivers are in NJ. You’d think he at least would’ve worn a seatbelt. (Fortunately, I wasn’t on the road with them, because I probably would’ve stayed in the lane and pretended not to see the lights.)
Anyway, the Agitator has a nice piece about the story, and the phenomenon of politicians using “official business” as an excuse to push people out of their way:
When you live in the D.C. area, this kind of thing happens all the time (not the accident, the VIPs taking over the road), and just from personal observation, I’d say it’s happening more frequently. There seems to be an increasing feeling among many politicians that their meetings, their business, and their appointments are somehow more important than everyone else’s. Therefore, they can fly down highways, ignore red lights, and purge everyone else to the side of the roadway. If they can get their own police escort or caravan, even better.