Home Features Is Drive 55 Going to Make a Comeback?

Is Drive 55 Going to Make a Comeback?

47
1997

One of the possible – perhaps even likely – results of this stupid, evil war Trump decided to start at the behest of the national socialist state that effectively controls the United States is the return of a federally mandated National Maximum Speed Limit (NMSL).

Some reading this are perhaps too young to remember, but there actually was such a thing. More finely, such a thing was imposed on us by the government in the name of “saving gas” – although it quickly got re-branded as a “safety” edict. The NMSL was less formally known as Drive 55, which became the law in 1974 and stayed that way for about the next 20 years. It was ginned up by the federal government in response to surging oil prices, caused by shortages that were caused by the oil-exporting states reducing the supply of oil to punish the United States for – wait for it – backing the national socialist state that effectively controls the United States.

Then – as now.

Overnight – literally – highway speed limits went from 65, 70, 75 to 55. Just like that. In other words, driving your car at speeds that had previously been not only within the law became – just like that – illegal “speeding” and grounds for a mulcting, first by a cop and then (later) by the insurance mafia, which cited this “speeding” as evidence of “unsafe” driving and “adjusted” what you were (and still are) forced to pay the mafia.

The corruption engendered by the NMSL does not get enough coverage.

American highways were designed to emulate the German Autobahns, where there were no speed limits at all. But at least American Interstate highway drivers were granted the grace of being allowed to drive at speeds congruent with the design of the Interstates, which were specifically designed to make high speed travel – wait for it – safe. Then – just like that – previously legal and presumably safe speeds became illegal.

There is an important difference there.

Cops used to have a much smaller pool of people to mulct because most drivers didn’t drive much faster than 75 on the highway when it was legal to do so – because that speed comports with a technical thing called the 85th percentile speed – which is just a way of saying the approximate speed most drivers on a given road will drive, if left to their own devices. Put even more simply, it is natural flow of traffic on a given road.

Meaning, most drivers aren’t “reckless” – but they do want to drive at a speed that feels right for the road. The 85th percentile speed correlates, by the way, with the speed that is safest – in terms of the measured incidence of accidents on that road. It is only when drivers are forced to drive at speed below the 85th percentile speed (by under-posted speed limits and the threat of being “pulled over”) that traffic bunches up, flows less smoothly and becomes more dangerous.

That’s what the NMSL did.

Cops became a threat to pretty much everyone now instead of just the few outliers who drove faster than 75. They were now “pulling over” people whom they knew weren’t driving in an “unsafe” (let alone “reckless”) manner. The pulled-over knew it also. It created this cringy and cynical interaction all of us have been a party to ever since where we pretend to be sorry, officer about our “speeding” and the officer pretends to believe he is “keeping us safe” by handing us an extortion note demanding money for our transgressions.

The courts, too, were immeasurably corrupted – as will happen when lots of money is on the table. Hundreds of millions – probably billions – were extracted from  drivers over those 20 years of the NMSL via the chain-letter grift of “pulling over” people for “speeding” and mulcting them for it.

The damage has never truly been undone, either – even though the NMSL was repealed in the mid-1990s. The Safety Cult it spawned remains.

Could the NMSL get a reboot? There is already “chatter” – as the saying goes – that it is being “considered” by lawmakers as way to deal with the spiking cost of oil that has led to the spiking cost of gas (and diesel) and the actual shortages that may be in our near future on account of Trump’s stupid, evil war on behalf of the national socialist state that hijacked the title “Israel” to shield itself from criticism by framing any criticism of itself as anti-Jewish. Which its leaders and apologists usually style “anti-Semitism.” This is an interesting thing given most – maybe all – of the state’s leading cadres hail from Eastern Europe and are thus not semitic people.

Anyhow, we might be having to Drive 55 again, as politicians do what they do best and come up with “solutions” for the problems they created.

. . .

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47 COMMENTS

  1. Some newer Ford truck 1/2 ton don’t know the exact year, stupid knob shifter, won’t go into gear without the seat belt on. I don’t understand anyone who would buy new especially spending a boat load to be treated like a child

    • Amen that, Mei –

      The parenting has become intolerable – and people pay top dollar for the privilege! It’s something like paying $500 a night to sleep in a prison cell.

      • I used to buy a lot of cars sight unseen. No more. Will have to drive all contenders first to see about how much ‘parenting’ they have. What a PITA.

  2. I think it is very possible the stock market could be approaching a selling panic. The war keeps escalating, more energy sites keep getting destroyed, and Iran has closed the straits, even China ships turned back. This information is going to finally sink into stock traders how bad the situation actually is. This is LITERALLY the Apocalypse escalating to Armageddon.

    Israel struck Iran’s nuclear electrical site (Busher) twice.

    Trump’s ground invasion is going to be a slaughter.

    Once that happens, the only option left is nukes.

    Iran will soon have nukes, the Ayatollah who issued the Fatwa against nuclear weapons has died – which means the Fatwa is also expired.

    The Dow made a new low in late Friday trading.

    US DJIA futures is -916, trading opens Sunday afternoon.

    Looks like to me Monday open could trigger circuit breakers: I asked Ai:

    For a market-wide trading suspension during regular U.S. trading hours (9:30 a.m. – 4:00 p.m. ET), the S&P 500 must drop by 7%, 13%, or 20% from the previous day’s close. These thresholds, known as Market-Wide Circuit Breakers (MWCB), are recalculated daily.

    Market-Wide Circuit Breaker Thresholds

    Level 1: 7% Decline
    Halt: 15 minutes.
    Timing: Only triggers if the drop occurs before 3:25 p.m. ET. After 3:25 p.m., trading continues unless Level 3 is reached.

    Level 2: 13% Decline
    Halt: 15 minutes.
    Timing: Only triggers if the drop occurs before 3:25 p.m. ET.

    Level 3: 20% Decline
    Halt: Trading is suspended for the remainder of the day.
    Timing: Can be triggered at any time during the trading session.

  3. With the driver monitoring system mandate they are trying to repeat the 1974 seat belt interlock debacle, so why not the 55mph NMSL one too?
    These control freaks never ever give up. We have to win every time and they only need to win once.

  4. Hasn’t the driving slower saves gas myth been debunked enough already?

    Sucks how “fast” they could get 55 (like overnight). But then take 20 years to repeal, and then decades more to finally get some speed limits back up? Why couldn’t the interstate be 80 the day after repeal?

    Now we have big cities like NYC lowering speed limits to mostly 20 and even as low as 5!

    On my way to work is a one of those stupid speed sign that tells you your speed, well not really.

    The speed limit is under-posted by a lot. Really, its a lot. It’s 30 on a road that should be 60-65 (It’s a two lane country road that has a few newish subdivision on it). Yeah, it’s that bad. Only the worst rule followers actually go 30 or below, with results you expect.

    So you go by this stupid thing (which thankfully cannot write tickets, at least not yet). It has a little message board on top, which when I drive by most of the time says “slow down”. It tells you the speed you are going if you are under 41. So if you are going in the 30’s it tells you. But hit that 41, nope, no longer says your speed. I guess too many people were trying to see how high they could get that thing to say. So of course they had to stop that…..

    • There are a few of those in these parts as well, Rich. The one, with my WRX, it cannot detect the speed at all. Not sure why? But yes, go “too fast” and it will flash “Slow Down” at you. In my other vehicle, it misrepresents my speed between 5 and 10 mph. So much for being accurate.

    • I’ll give this a viewing, Adi.

      In the meantime, there are some saying that Merkava tanks are dropping like flies. You know, as a fan of engineering prowess, I’ve been fascinated with tanks and other military equipment for much of my life. But the Merkava series have always been ugly, just like the intentions behind them, looking like giant ticks and serving the same purpose.

      • The Israeli’s built ’em for CREW SURVIVABILITY, at the expense of mobility. That is, they have much the same design philosophy as the German WWII-era Tiger tanks. But no AFV is truly “invincible”, especially if mal-deployed. IOW, sending tanks as a escort to armored bulldozers, IMO, is simply offering up more targets. Even if they can be recovered, and the Merkavas knocked out probably were, that’s still poor in terms of mission effectiveness. But it wouldn’t be the first time that Israeli arrogance was their undoing!

      • I asked Goolag Ai, I was surprised how many tanks destroyed, like 100 so far

        how many merkava tanks has hezbollah destroyed since 2 mar 2026

        Hezbollah claims to have destroyed or targeted nearly 100 Israeli Merkava tanks as of late March 2026, following their entry into the current confrontation on March 2, 2026.

        Summary of Reported Claims

        Because independent verification remains limited and the Israeli military typically does not disclose detailed armored vehicle loss figures, the following data is based on Hezbollah’s official statements and regional news reports as of March 28, 2026:

        Total Claims (Since March 2): Most recent reports cite the figure at 73 to 100 Merkava tanks hit or destroyed.

        Major Single-Day Engagement (March 25–26): Hezbollah reported a “Merkava massacre” between the towns of Taybeh and Al-Qantara, claiming to have hit 21 tanks in a single 24-hour period.
        Late March Escalation: By Thursday, March 26, the group reported striking an additional 20 tanks, bringing the then-total to at least 73.

        Most Recent Incidents: On March 28, 2026, Hezbollah announced targeting two more Merkava tanks near a reservoir in the town of Qantara with guided missiles.

        • Sounds tantalizing, actually! How’s that for demonstrating your 2nd Amendment rights? You never know when you’ll have to scrap a tank or pesky aircraft, after all.

  5. Changing the speed limits happened while I was stationed in Europe in the Air Force. Coming back to the US in 76 was a big change. I was stationed in Montana at the time and was going up I-15 north of Great Falls in my new 76 Chevelle and got pulled over for doing 70 in a 55. The state trooper actually apologized for giving me a ticket. It was for “wasting a natural resource”, paid the five dollar fine on the spot and didn’t go against my license. Oh’ the good old days.

  6. Americans are used to driving 65 MPH and up on highways. There are not enough LEO’s anywhere to force such compliance. I surmise that is the reason for the Flock cameras, speed limiters in vehicles, etc. One day, they will not have to fine you into compliance, they will simply slow down the vehicle for you, to the ‘appropriate’ speed. All other vehicles not containing such technology will be banned and seized when found to not have said “saaaafety” technology. One way or the other, they will force their will on Americans, because they have learned few fight back when it was less painful to do so.

  7. Somehow I doubt a reduction in the speed limit would work now. With average excess speeds over 80+ on the local roads and people routinely running red lights they’d need to add a whole lot more officers.

    • The government is perfectly able to ramp up enforcement to oppress, it’s only unable to do so when it’s asked to protect & serve.

      • Exactly! Ask to use the flock cameras to like solve actual crimes (or at least figure out who is actually at fault in a traffic accident)? Yeah, good luck to that, forget about it.

        But yep, it’s used to track political opponents all the time. Plenty of time for that.

  8. I’ve seen speculation that the powers who implemented universal lockdowns during COVID may try to implement them again over fuel shortages. Governments who’ve gone ALL IN with the demented cliiiiiiiiiiiiiiiimate change agenda would undoubtedly LOVE to foist “Climate lockdowns” on the masses under guise of “Stopping cliiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiimate change”, even though such lockdowns are likely to have the same results that COVID lockdowns had. COVID lockdowns were framed as “Flattening the curve”, but all they did was flatten the economy, caused numerous small businesses to close permanently, and cause MASSIVE damage to society we’re STILL feeling 6 years later.

    And Pharma captured “Health” bureaucracies, in addition to corporate media, are once again engaging in fear mongering over COVID, this time over a variant called CICADA. PSAs are blaring seemingly all over the place, imploring people to “Get the latest COVID booster jab & wear a mask! It’s your best protection against the latest variant!”

    • Two things about lowering the speed limit:

      1. how many animals get killed by vehicles each year in the usa

      “Estimates suggest that approximately 365 million vertebrate animals are killed by vehicles each year in the United States. This averages out to roughly one million animals every day dying on U.S. roads and highways.”

      Lowering the speed limit saves animals and human lives. Humans, being an insane genetically created abomination, a product of genetic engineering of the so-called “gods”, could care less about “lives” of their specie or any other.

      2. Elliott Wave Socionomics viewpoint:

      The 55 mph national speed limit, enacted in 1974, can be analyzed through the lens of socionomics and the Elliott Wave Principle as a corrective, societal response to a period of intense negativity (the “bear market” of mood), specifically the 1973-1974 oil crisis and economic downturn. Socionomics posits that social mood, which moves in wave patterns, drives social actions—such as legislation—rather than news causing mood.

      Socionomic Analysis of the 55 MPH Limit
      The Bear Market Trigger (1973–1974): Following a period of expansion, the U.S. entered a severe “bear market” in social mood characterized by the OPEC oil embargo, high inflation, and economic panic.

      Regulatory “Correction” (55 MPH): In response to this negative mood (fear, scarcity), the government passed the Emergency Highway Energy Conservation Act. This was a “corrective” action intended to ration energy, reflecting a collective, restrictive mindset, rather than an optimistic, expansive one.
      Social Mood vs. Policy: While the law was officially to save fuel, from a socionomic perspective, it was a physical manifestation of a “3-wave” or corrective sentiment (lower energy, restriction).

      The Shift back (1995): When the 55 mph limit was repealed in 1995, it corresponded with a long-term “bull market” in social mood (economic optimism), where society wanted less restriction and faster pace (55 mph became perceived as absurd, leading to “I Can’t Drive 55” sentiment).

    • It is highly probable that the USA stock market is in the beginning stages of a large bear market. Over at Daneric Elliott Wave, he published the likely wave counts after close on Friday:

      https://danericselliottwaves.org/2026/03/elliott-wave-update-27-march-2026

      Daneric posts his counts for free online. The Elliott Wave Theorist is available for a fee. Once the new bear market is plunging to new lows, their analysis is highly accurate for the blips, etc.

      • As a fully “black pilled” Neo-Luddite, I am the ultimate bear for the United States pedo-rape-cannibal “epstein class” empire of hell on earth. How this ends is anyone’s guess, my guess it ends very badly for us.

        If the United States is not destroyed, then God should issue an apology to Soddom and Gommorah.

        I read yesterday that Australia is out of diesel and the supermarkets have empty shelves. It is obvious that Trump has unleashed real hell on planet earth.

        IMO every single rational loving human should do something to remove DJT from power ASAP.

  9. The renewed interest in 55 MPG as the speed limit by Federal policy is not about safety as much as it is about changing the EPA MPG testing methodology to make current barely-possible CAFE standards impossible for any vehicle except EVs and small hybrids.

    All of the money the manufacturers invested in developing and paying warranty repair costs of the otherwise needlessly complex overdrive transmissions will be for naught, particularly in the half ton truck class, and the politically-influenced “fudge factor” will return.

  10. Turds on the run:

    ‘The number of Republicans departing the House this cycle [36] is one of the highest since 1930. This cycle’s Republican departures are surpassed only by [44 in] 2018, the midterm election year during President Trump’s first term when his party was also bracing for big losses. (The G.O.P. lost 40 House seats, and the majority, that year.)’

    https://archive.ph/MnioK#selection-605.0-609.290

    Iran routed the Party of Lincoln without even firing a shot: R-party retards blew their own webbed feet off.

    Kick ’em when they’re down. 🙂

  11. ‘this stupid, evil war Trump decided to start at the behest of [insert name of a small west Asian apartheid colony]’ — eric

    Houthis have entered the chat:

    ‘The Houthis, an Iranian-backed militant group in Yemen, announced on Saturday that they had launched a ballistic missile attack on Israel, appearing to open another front in the spiraling war in the Middle East.’ — NYT

    Death to the IDF.

  12. Modern Americans are stupid. We don’t learn from the past, and will be forced to repeat it. They will surrender freedom for safety, and are too stupid to realize that they will get neither. This country deserves Donald Trump and worst.

  13. I still remember the first time I drove 70 MPH. I was driving under my learner’s permit (maybe just after I got my license) on the way to a ham radio event in a Washington DC suburb. We had to take the beltway during rush hour. Dad’s only advice was to keep up with traffic, so I did. Looking down and seeing something other than 55 was quite exhilarating. Looking over at some guy reading the paper while driving was a little shocking. There were plenty of cops in the breakdown lane, but they weren’t pulling anyone over.

    Then there’s the “will I get pulled over” game. Most cops won’t bother with a few MPH over the limit just because you can claim your speedometer isn’t calibrated to NIST standards (it isn’t). Or they won’t bother unless they can get you for “reckless driving” too. So you push to where you think you can get away with speeding.

    We all pretend to obey the law, they all pretend to enforce it.

  14. A couple of days ago, Mike from Boston expressed hope that owing to the Iran war’s impact on food prices, the insane use of distilled corn ethanol to fuel vehicles would end. But no — think like a criminal, Mike:

    ‘Today, EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin, in consultation with U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) and in accordance with the Clean Air Act (CAA), issued a temporary emergency fuel waiver to allow nationwide sales of E15, gasoline blended with 15 percent ethanol, and to remove all federal impediments to selling E10, gasoline blended with 10 percent ethanol, across the country.

    ‘Through the waiver, EPA is fortifying the domestic gasoline supply chain and providing Americans relief at the pumps ahead of the summer driving season.’

    https://www.epa.gov/newsreleases/epa-fortifies-domestic-fuel-supply-provides-americans-relief-pump-approving-nationwide

    Relief at the pump? I’m paying $4.39 a gallon, including a Judensteuer of $1.40 tacked onto the mid-February price.

    In other news, choco ration’s been increased to 20 grams. And if we continue winning [sic] on the Iranian front, we may look forward to the fuel ration being increased to 50 liters a week. 🙂

    I’ve got to admit it’s getting better (better)
    A little better all the time (it can’t get no worse)
    I have to admit it’s getting better (better)
    It’s getting better now we’re ruled by swine

    Getting so much better all the time!

    — The Beatles, Getting Better (1967)

  15. The energy shortage of 73-74 was aggravated by price controls on oil and gasoline at the time. Talk of lowering limits first surfaced by the Nixon administration in the spring of 1973. The mid east war was the catalyst to get it going.

    The IEA is encouraging countries to lower limits as part of a package to conserve gas. They we encouraged the same thingnin 2008 when gas prices went to $4 a gallon when oil hit 150 a barrel.

    I doubt any country is going to budge right now. Support for the mid east war is so low, that anything done in its name wont likely last long.

    This is worth keeping an eye on though.

  16. It’s worth remembering that the “energy crisis” and spiking gas prices of the 1970s leading to the 55 mph limit were also caused by our subservience to Israel. The oil-producing Arab states embargoed oil shipments to the U.S. because it supported Israel during the “Yom Kippur” war. Nixon even put the military on DEFCON III, possible deployment and confrontation with the Soviet Union.

    “Our” country has been cucked to Israel for over fifty years.

  17. I would contend that the NMSL was the moment when cops became hated. Then the MADD crowd showed up and made the loathing exponentially worse.

    Cops wonder why people hate their guts? It’s because you are no longer “Peace Officers” but “Law EnFORCErs”.

    • Fully agreed. I began hating cops at 10 as a result of my dad being stopped for going 72 in what had used to be a 65 mph zone.

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