How to think like an asshole

Seattle Hill Road is a street that we often use to travel to and from our house. As you are heading away from Mill Creek and toward the house, it has two lanes in each direction. Very quickly after you pass through an intersection with a stoplight, the right lane disappears and you need to merge left. People who are familiar with the road will usually get in the left lane as they approach the intersection as the merge can often require that you get rather close to other cars.

Today, on the way home, we were approaching the intersection. We were in the left lane and there were two vehicles in front of us: a mini-van and a Lexus. The Lexus was in front and, shortly before he arrived at the intersection where the light was currently red, he moved over to the right lane and then stopped to wait for the light. I wondered why he did that when he would just have to move back over to the left again after he passed through the intersection. Then I remembered that Lexus dealers (Lexus of Fife excepted) won't sell you a Lexus until you pass the asshole test.

Knowing that the driver of the Lexus was, therefore, likely an asshole, I made myself think like an asshole and the answer was obvious. The Lexus driver had moved into the right lane to ensure that nobody else behind him could do so. You see, if he had stayed in the left lane, someone could have pulled up next to him, potentially beat him through the intersection, and thus be in front of him after merging to the left. He knew he could beat the mini-van through so, by moving to the right lane he ensured that nobody had a chance to get in front of him.