Dealing with Road Rage

[Perpetual Change]

So coming back from lunch today while stopped at an unfamiliar light, I realized that I didn’t catch whether it was “no turn on red” or not. So, instead of taking any chances, I decided to sit tight.

Someone behind me started honking away. While I hate being honked at regardless, the fact that I didn’t just get one “courtesy” honk but three or four “rage” honks bothered me. I figured the driver was trying to tell me that I can turn on red… but, at that point, I just didn’t care. I continued to sit another 2-3 minutes while waiting for the light to turn green, the other driver continued sporadically rage-honking as we sat there. Eventually, the light did turn green, so I gently accelerated forward.

The car behind me passed me as soon as the street opened up to two lanes, and the driver summarily yelled something and flipped me off from her window.

Though I don’t mind driving in busy traffic, I really dislike aggressive driving, especially when people are aggressive for no reason. As I commute back and forth between home and work everyday, I notice lots of drivers doing stupid things, from the all-out idiotic (texting while driving), or simply lazy (not using turn signals). I’m not a perfect driver—I’ve taken calls while on the road before, too—but I like to think that I’m, at least, a safe driver, and I really don’t understand why other drivers can’t just relax while behind the wheel. 

[wasteland]

Are you into Kevin Moore solo works? Because it would be just great if you threw inside those people's car throgh the window a CD with this song inside:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cw0YcR9BUu8

 

[eric42434224]

Not condoning the other drivers behavoir, but You did just as much to escalate the situation when you decided to purposefully sit at the red light for 2-3 minutes after realizing your error, and then accelerating slower than usual.  You were passive-agressive and contributed to the road rage.

[KevShmev]

  I really don’t understand why other drivers can’t just relax while behind the wheel.

Because a lot of people are morons, have anger/temper issues, etc. 

And I am with ya when it comes to road rage and whatnot.  Anyone who uses their horn regularly or flips people off in traffic is someone who has major issues.

[KevShmev]

You did just as much to escalate the situation when you decided to purposefully sit at the red light for 2-3 minutes after realizing your error, and then accelerating slower than usual.  You were passive-agressive and contributed to the road rage.

Give me a damn break.

First off, he said that he didn't know if he could make a right on red, and in those cases, it is better to be safe than sorry and not risk getting a ticket and/or causing an accident.

Second, going slower than usual?  So what?  Is there a law that says you have to take off like a bat out of hell the second you get a green light?  Hell no.  Shoot, I often pause for a second just to make sure some idiot is not running the red (had I not done that once, I would probably be dead, as someone ran a red at full speed going about 50 and had I gone as soon as I got the green, they would have crushed me on the driver's side), so I see nothing wrong with what PC did.  Not everyone drives around all day like they are in a big hurry.

[eric42434224]

You did just as much to escalate the situation when you decided to purposefully sit at the red light for 2-3 minutes after realizing your error, and then accelerating slower than usual.  You were passive-agressive and contributed to the road rage.

Give me a damn break.

First off, he said that he didn't know if he could make a right on red, and in those cases, it is better to be safe than sorry and not risk getting a ticket and/or causing an accident.

Second, going slower than usual?  So what?  Is there a law that says you have to take off like a bat out of hell the second you get a green light?  Hell no.  Shoot, I often pause for a second just to make sure some idiot is not running the red (had I not done that once, I would probably be dead, as someone ran a red at full speed going about 50 and had I gone as soon as I got the green, they would have crushed me on the driver's side), so I see nothing wrong with what PC did.

Give ME a break.  He didnt know you could turn ROR, but as soon as the other person honked, he realized you can.  Simply look up and see if there is a sign prohibiting a ROR....dont see one?  Then accept that you were not fully aware of your surroundings..as a good driver should be, and make the turn.  Situation diffused.

But to escalate the situation by sitting at the light for 2-3 more minutes, for the SOLE purpose of pissing off the person behind you, is textbook passive aggressive driving.  It escalated the situation.  He was lucky it was just a woman who only flipped him off instead of some crazy person packing heat.

And yes, by pulling away in a purposefully slower manner than one would in any normal and safe manner is contributing to the situation.  If you want to say I am advocating "taking off like a bat out of hell", then I guess you just arent interested in a rational discussion.

My point was that PC purposefully acted in a way to escalate what could be a volatile situation. 

[KevShmev]

Give ME a break.  He didnt know you could turn ROR, but as soon as the other person honked, he realized you can.  Simply look up and see if there is a sign prohibiting a ROR....dont see one?  Then accept that you were not fully aware of your surroundings, and make the turn.  Situation diffused.

But to escalate the situation by sitting at the light for 2-3 more minutes, for the SOLE purpose of pissing off the person behind you, is textbook passive aggressive driving.  It escalated the situation.  He was lucky it was just a woman who only flipped him off instead of some crazy person packing heat.

Wrong.  A person honking at you does not mean you can do what they think you should be doing, especially since the honking of a horn is usually an irrational, immature and/or impatient act.  Jeez, where did you go to driver's school?

As for the road rage of the lady, that says way more about her than it did about PC.  She needs to calm the hell down and not act like an idiot on the road.

And yes, by pulling away in a purposefully slower manner than one would in any normal and safe manner is contributing to the situation. If you want to say I am advocating "taking off like a bat out of hell", then I guess you just arent interested in a rational discussion.
 

No it's not. 

The fact that you are basically taking the side of the road rager - nitpicking what PC did instead of focusing on the anger of the road rager and basically give her a pass by saying, "if PC hadn't done this or that, she wouldn't have reacted" - tells me that you are probably someone who frequently has road rage.

[Perpetual Change]

But to escalate the situation by sitting at the light for 2-3 more minutes, for the SOLE purpose of pissing off the person behind you, is textbook passive aggressive driving.

That's not true. I didn't turn because I didn't appreciate the way I was being asked (bullied) into moving, and I'm not gonna rush around on the roads just because someone else thinks I need to resume their frantic pace. I sat at the red because the person behind me was being obnoxious.

And, BTW, it's not like there was no oncoming traffic. There was oncoming traffic. Not too much, but I tend to wait longer than most before turning onto busy streets anyway. Sure, it takes me a couple of extra minutes to get where I'm going, but I've never ever been in a car accident or fender bender, despite having a pretty busy 45-minute commute to and from work every day. I'd like to keep it that way.

[Sir GuitarCozmo]

I'm willing to bet the chick was wearing a Tapout shirt.

[KevShmev]

And, BTW, it's not like there was no oncoming traffic. There was oncoming traffic. Not too much, but I tend to wait longer than most before turning onto busy streets anyway.

I do, too.  Often times, it might look like you have time to make the turn, but all it takes is underestimating how fast someone is going (like if you are turning on to a street where the speed limit is 45, but some idiot is going 65 and you couldn't tell cause they seemed far away to your left to make you think you could turn) for you to cause a bad accident.  It is better to be safe than sorry, especially given the number of idiotic drivers on the road.

[jingle.boy]

I'm with Eric on this.  Not taking a shot at you PC, but you did intentionally try to piss off/annoy another driver.  That's your choice, but I don't think you have a right to get bothered when they show you just how pissed they were.  You don't know what the other driver's situation is.  Could be nothing; could be something extremely urgent they were in a rush for; could be something in between.

Bottom line is we live in an impatient society.  Does anyone here wait longer than 10 seconds for a webpage to load before going 'back' or hitting refresh?  How many of us DVR our TV shows exclusively so we can skip commercials?  Who gets frustrated when download speeds feel like a 56k modem?  I know I get annoyed when driver's in front of me exhibit some of what you said you did.  Maybe not to the point of 'rage honking', and it does certainly sound like this chick was over-the-top. 

However, while you may not have instigated her behaviour, it certainly sounds like you provoked it intentionally.

And I'm not sure what driving school you went to Kev, but I always believed the purpose of a horn was to make other driver's aware of their situation/surrounding when they clearly aren't.  Sure, this chick was over the top, but that doesn't mean that use of a horn is "usually an irrational, immature and/or impatient act."  If a person is distracted and about to pull out of a parking garage and hit you, don't you bump the horn to make them aware?

Puh-leezz.  Your argument on horn usage is weak.

I'm willing to bet the chick was wearing a Tapout shirt.

That's two internet victories you have today.

[eric42434224]

Give ME a break.  He didnt know you could turn ROR, but as soon as the other person honked, he realized you can.  Simply look up and see if there is a sign prohibiting a ROR....dont see one?  Then accept that you were not fully aware of your surroundings, and make the turn.  Situation diffused.

But to escalate the situation by sitting at the light for 2-3 more minutes, for the SOLE purpose of pissing off the person behind you, is textbook passive aggressive driving.  It escalated the situation.  He was lucky it was just a woman who only flipped him off instead of some crazy person packing heat.

Wrong.  A person honking at you does not mean you can do what they think you should be doing, especially since the honking of a horn is usually an irrational, immature and/or impatient act.  Jeez, where did you go to driver's school?

As for the road rage of the lady, that says way more about her than it did about PC.  She needs to calm the hell down and not act like an idiot on the road.

Correct.  A person honking behind me does not mean I can do what they think I should be doing. 

But that isnt what happened here from PC's story.


He comes to a red light and needs to turn right.  He is not paying attention and doesnt realize you can do a ROR.  All it takes is a quick look to see any postings not allowing a ROR.  The person behind honks because you CAN do a ROR.  Once you realize your error, you should proceed to check for traffic and pedestrians, and then proceed to do the ROR.  That is the way a responsible, safe, and courteous driver should have handled the situation.

Purposefully waiting the 2-3 minutes is a douchebag move and escalated the situation.  Just because the driver behind you acts like a douchebag, doesnt mean you should act like a douchebag. 
Road rage can be passive aggressive as well, and there was fault on both parties here.

[KevShmev]

And I'm not sure what driving school you went to Kev, but I always believed the purpose of a horn was to make other driver's aware of their situation/surrounding when they clearly aren't.  Sure, this chick was over the top, but that doesn't mean that use of a horn is "usually an irrational, immature and/or impatient act."  If a person is distracted and about to pull out of a parking garage and hit you, don't you bump the horn to make them aware?

I do.  That is why I used the word "usually," in regards to horn honkage being unnecessary.  The only time I EVER use my horn is if someone is, for example, about to change lanes and crash into me, or something like that (and that adds up to probably a handful of times a year).  I NEVER use my horn if someone cuts me off, doesn't go quick enough at a light, etc.  That is just stupid. 

[Perpetual Change]

He comes to a red light and needs to turn right.  He is not paying attention and doesnt realize you can do a ROR. 

So what, actually? The fact that you can turn on red does not mean that you need to, period. You turn when you feel it's safe to turn. Always.

All it takes is a quick look to see any postings not allowing a ROR.  The person behind honks because you CAN do a ROR.

Er, no. Not all the time. Frequently they're back a bit from the line where you actually stop. 

Purposefully waiting the 2-3 minutes is a douchebag move and escalated the situation.  Just because the driver behind you acts like a douchebag, doesnt mean you should act like a douchebag. 

Wow, nice. So I'm a "douche" because you disagree with how I handled a situation?

I'm through listening to your advice on this then. I don't listen to people who call me a "douche", just like I don't move for people who honk like assholes at me for not driving the speed they want me to drive.

[KevShmev]

Give ME a break.  He didnt know you could turn ROR, but as soon as the other person honked, he realized you can.  Simply look up and see if there is a sign prohibiting a ROR....dont see one?  Then accept that you were not fully aware of your surroundings, and make the turn.  Situation diffused.

But to escalate the situation by sitting at the light for 2-3 more minutes, for the SOLE purpose of pissing off the person behind you, is textbook passive aggressive driving.  It escalated the situation.  He was lucky it was just a woman who only flipped him off instead of some crazy person packing heat.

Wrong.  A person honking at you does not mean you can do what they think you should be doing, especially since the honking of a horn is usually an irrational, immature and/or impatient act.  Jeez, where did you go to driver's school?

As for the road rage of the lady, that says way more about her than it did about PC.  She needs to calm the hell down and not act like an idiot on the road.

Correct.  A person honking behind me does not mean I can do what they think I should be doing. 

But that isnt what happened here from PC's story.


He comes to a red light and needs to turn right.  He is not paying attention and doesnt realize you can do a ROR.  All it takes is a quick look to see any postings not allowing a ROR.  The person behind honks because you CAN do a ROR.  Once you realize your error, you should proceed to check for traffic and pedestrians, and then proceed to do the ROR.  That is the way a responsible, safe, and courteous driver should have handled the situation.

Purposefully waiting the 2-3 minutes is a douchebag move and escalated the situation.  Just because the driver behind you acts like a douchebag, doesnt mean you should act like a douchebag. 
Road rage can be passive aggressive as well, and there was fault on both parties here.

Did you not read PC's update where he said there was a lot of traffic, so making the right on red would have been difficult anyway?  But now, according to you, he committed a douchebag move by not making the right on red into busy traffic and possibly causing a pile-up?  Okay.

And resorting to saying PC acted like a d-bag is not cool.

[eric42434224]

The point is that neither driver acted as they should have.

The other driver should have honked in a less over the top manner.
PC should have been more aware of his surroundings, and made the ROR at the first reasonabl opportunity.

I would have added the "Im sorry I wasnt paying attention" wave to the driver behind me as I realized my error.
Then we both go about our day less angry and frustrated.

Who started it?  Who cares.  One could easily say the entire situation could have been avoided if PC was paying proper attention.  One could say the other driver started the douchebaggery.  The one thing for sure is both acted poorly.  The irony is one is here bitching about poor driving behavoir when their actions were less than stellar.

Bottom line, both drivers handled the situation poorly, and both acted in childish ways that escalated it uneccesarily.

[eric42434224]

He comes to a red light and needs to turn right.  He is not paying attention and doesnt realize you can do a ROR. 

So what, actually? The fact that you can turn on red does not mean that you need to, period. You turn when you feel it's safe to turn. Always.

All it takes is a quick look to see any postings not allowing a ROR.  The person behind honks because you CAN do a ROR.

Er, no. Not all the time. Frequently they're back a bit from the line where you actually stop. 

Purposefully waiting the 2-3 minutes is a douchebag move and escalated the situation.  Just because the driver behind you acts like a douchebag, doesnt mean you should act like a douchebag. 

Wow, nice. So I'm a "douche" because you disagree with how I handled a situation?

I'm through listening to your advice on this then. I don't listen to people who call me a "douche", just like I don't move for people who honk like assholes at me for not driving the speed they want me to drive.

If you are going to do a ROR, then do it...waiting on purpose to piss someone off is being a douchebag and a passive agressive road rager.
And if you didnt see the sign before you got to the intersection, you were not paying proper attention.

[KevShmev]

Here is another scenario (which I have seen happen before):

You are waiting to make a right on red, and there is no one approaching in the right lane where you want to turn, but as you go to turn, the person approaching in the left lane decides to change lanes to the right lane in the middle of the intersection (which is illegal, but that doesn't stop the average idiot), and boom, CRASH. 

That is why it is better to be safe than sorry, especially with right on reds at busy intersections.

[eric42434224]

Give ME a break.  He didnt know you could turn ROR, but as soon as the other person honked, he realized you can.  Simply look up and see if there is a sign prohibiting a ROR....dont see one?  Then accept that you were not fully aware of your surroundings, and make the turn.  Situation diffused.

But to escalate the situation by sitting at the light for 2-3 more minutes, for the SOLE purpose of pissing off the person behind you, is textbook passive aggressive driving.  It escalated the situation.  He was lucky it was just a woman who only flipped him off instead of some crazy person packing heat.

Wrong.  A person honking at you does not mean you can do what they think you should be doing, especially since the honking of a horn is usually an irrational, immature and/or impatient act.  Jeez, where did you go to driver's school?

As for the road rage of the lady, that says way more about her than it did about PC.  She needs to calm the hell down and not act like an idiot on the road.

Correct.  A person honking behind me does not mean I can do what they think I should be doing. 

But that isnt what happened here from PC's story.


He comes to a red light and needs to turn right.  He is not paying attention and doesnt realize you can do a ROR.  All it takes is a quick look to see any postings not allowing a ROR.  The person behind honks because you CAN do a ROR.  Once you realize your error, you should proceed to check for traffic and pedestrians, and then proceed to do the ROR.  That is the way a responsible, safe, and courteous driver should have handled the situation.

Purposefully waiting the 2-3 minutes is a douchebag move and escalated the situation.  Just because the driver behind you acts like a douchebag, doesnt mean you should act like a douchebag. 
Road rage can be passive aggressive as well, and there was fault on both parties here.

Did you not read PC's update where he said there was a lot of traffic, so making the right on red would have been difficult anyway?  But now, according to you, he committed a douchebag move by not making the right on red into busy traffic and possibly causing a pile-up?  Okay.

And resorting to saying PC acted like a d-bag is not cool.

He said he waited the 2-3 minutes (and said there were opportunities to go) just to piss the person off.  Yes....douchebaggery.

[Ħ]

KevShmev is correct.

Regardless, PC should have parked his car in the right hand lane, got out, and sat on the trunk of his car.

[eric42434224]

Here is another scenario (which I have seen happen before):

You are waiting to make a right on red, and there is no one approaching in the right lane where you want to turn, but as you go to turn, the person approaching in the left lane decides to change lanes to the right lane in the middle of the intersection (which is illegal, but that doesn't stop the average idiot), and boom, CRASH. 

That is why it is better to be safe than sorry, especially with right on reds at busy intersections.

Strawman

[Ħ]

WTF? Eric, do you even know what a strawman is? You're spewing out nonsense. Kev gave a great example of why it's better to be safe than sorry, without letting your decisions be governed by another person's road rage.

[KevShmev]

KevShmev is correct.

Regardless, PC should have parked his car in the right hand lane, got out, and sat on the trunk of his car.

Exactly.

As for the "my bad" wave, I had to do that one a few weeks ago.  When waiting to make a left on to the highway, it always goes from a red to a green with a green left arrow, but this time, it did not, and I instinctively went even though I only had a green (which meant I had to yield to oncoming traffic while attempting to make the left).  I realized as I was rolling through it that I had goofed, but fortunately it was not a busy intersection, and the one car I cut in front of, honked and threw up their hands like WTF, I immediately put both hands up (like you would if someone was pointing a gun at you) and mouthed, "Sorry!", and they immediately smiled and waved back since they could tell I knew I had goofed.  That was nice to see, that some people are still cool even when you goof like that.

[KevShmev]

Here is another scenario (which I have seen happen before):

You are waiting to make a right on red, and there is no one approaching in the right lane where you want to turn, but as you go to turn, the person approaching in the left lane decides to change lanes to the right lane in the middle of the intersection (which is illegal, but that doesn't stop the average idiot), and boom, CRASH. 

That is why it is better to be safe than sorry, especially with right on reds at busy intersections.

Strawman

 

[eric42434224]

WTF? Eric, do you even know what a strawman is? You're spewing out nonsense. Kev gave a great example of why it's better to be safe than sorry, without letting your decisions be governed by another person's road rage.

It is a strawman because the reason he didnt turn ROR was to piss the other person off, not for safety.
You should base your desicions on proper ettiquette, safety, and rules of the road.
As soon as it was safe and appropriate to make the ROR, you do so.
To stay at the light with the sole intent to piss an already pissed off driver is textbook passive aggressive road rage in and of itself.

[Ħ]

I realized that I didn’t catch whether it was “no turn on red” or not. So, instead of taking any chances, I decided to sit tight.

[KevShmev]

I realized that I didn’t catch whether it was “no turn on red” or not. So, instead of taking any chances, I decided to sit tight.

And this:

And, BTW, it's not like there was no oncoming traffic. There was oncoming traffic. Not too much, but I tend to wait longer than most before turning onto busy streets anyway. Sure, it takes me a couple of extra minutes to get where I'm going, but I've never ever been in a car accident or fender bender, despite having a pretty busy 45-minute commute to and from work every day. I'd like to keep it that way.

[eric42434224]

I didn't turn because I didn't appreciate the way I was being asked (bullied) into moving, and I'm not gonna rush around on the roads just because someone else thinks I need to resume their frantic pace. I sat at the red because the person behind me was being obnoxious.

and

I figured the driver was trying to tell me that I can turn on red… but, at that point, I just didn’t care.

[black_biff_stadler]

Maybe it ain't like this everywhere, but I've never seen a situation where a "No Right Turn On Red" sign was posted in a manner where it wasn't completely visible to the first person in line at the red light. If this is the case, then it's totally clear that the ROR was legal.

Beyond this, if there were any cars besides PC and the chick behind him at that red light, he needlessly cost them time just to settle a score despite them having nothing to do with it. Not cool.

[Perpetual Change]

Eric, it was a bit of both. Yes, I was annoyed at behind honked at half a dozen times, and I'm not gonna drive for anyone when they're treating me like that? But I was also just trying to remain calm and be careful.

Why? Yes, part of it is "ego", but part of it also is that it's very difficult to drive safely when someone is essentially bullying you with their horn. How am I supposed to be calm enough to check for oncoming traffic both to the left and across from the street when someone essentially is screaming at me from behind? I can't. Realistically, I couldn't even make a safe check of the roads because I was so distracted by the episode going on. Chilling at the light was, IMO, a much better decision than driving off with my nerves all wound-up thanks to the aggressive asshole honking at me.

Furthermore, I'm sorry, but considering those automatic ticket-issuing cameras they have hovered over so many intersections these days, I am frankly not ever going to assume it's OK to turn on a red or yellow just because some meathead is honking at me to drive more aggressively. Not happening. Not now, not ever.

[lonestar]

Moments like this I am so fucking happy I take public transportation.

[KevShmev]

Eric, it was a bit of both. Yes, I was annoyed at behind honked at half a dozen times, and I'm not gonna drive for anyone when they're treating me like that? But I was also just trying to remain calm and be careful.

Why? Yes, part of it is "ego", but part of it also is that it's very difficult to drive safely when someone is essentially bullying you with their horn. How am I supposed to be calm enough to check for oncoming traffic both to the left and across from the street when someone essentially is screaming at me from behind? I can't. Realistically, I couldn't even make a safe check of the roads because I was so distracted by the episode going on. Chilling at the light was, IMO, a much better decision than driving off with my nerves all wound-up thanks to the aggressive asshole honking at me.

Furthermore, I'm sorry, but considering those automatic ticket-issuing cameras they have hovered over so many intersections these days, I am frankly not ever going to assume it's OK to turn on a red or yellow just because some meathead is honking at me to drive more aggressively. Not happening. Not now, not ever.

This is a great explanation.

[black_biff_stadler]

three or four “rage” honks

honked at half a dozen times

Exaggeration to rationalize a flimsy arguing point?

Eric, it was a bit of both. Yes, I was annoyed at behind honked at half a dozen times, and I'm not gonna drive for anyone when they're treating me like that?

Why? Yes, part of it is "ego"

I think this tells a lot more truth about the situation than the portion I snipped out of this post. Seems like the rest was just a really weak attempt to justify spite.

[eric42434224]

Eric, it was a bit of both. Yes, I was annoyed at behind honked at half a dozen times, and I'm not gonna drive for anyone when they're treating me like that? But I was also just trying to remain calm and be careful.

Why? Yes, part of it is "ego", but part of it also is that it's very difficult to drive safely when someone is essentially bullying you with their horn. How am I supposed to be calm enough to check for oncoming traffic both to the left and across from the street when someone essentially is screaming at me from behind? I can't. Realistically, I couldn't even make a safe check of the roads because I was so distracted by the episode going on. Chilling at the light was, IMO, a much better decision than driving off with my nerves all wound-up thanks to the aggressive asshole honking at me.

Furthermore, I'm sorry, but considering those automatic ticket-issuing cameras they have hovered over so many intersections these days, I am frankly not ever going to assume it's OK to turn on a red or yellow just because some meathead is honking at me to drive more aggressively. Not happening. Not now, not ever.

Here is my point.  I will never fault you if your sole reasons for your actions were safety and legality.  But they werent.  Your acted the way you did, in part at least, to piss off an already pissed off driver.  That in itself is not safe.  I merely pointed out that you were very much involved and responsible for the road rage incident you were bitching about.  You have to admit that you could have handled this better....and you are lucky it wasnt someone who was willing to escalate it further with a tire iron!
I have made my point, and regardless if anyone agrees, I think it is valid.  But I dont think there is anything else I can add to this discussion, so I will bow out.  And my apologies if you think I called you a name....the douche descriptor was for your action, and not for you as a person.
Im out

[jingle.boy]

So what, actually? The fact that you can turn on red does not mean that you need to, period. You turn when you feel it's safe to turn. Always.

Seriously?  Rules of the road and expectations of other drivers say you turn.  If you're behind someone who has an advanced left light who doesn't go, what do you do?  Sit patiently and wait because they don't think it's safe.  An advanced left doesn't mean you HAVE to go, just that you can.  Piss poor argument.

Furthermore, I'm sorry, but considering those automatic ticket-issuing cameras they have hovered over so many intersections these days, I am frankly not ever going to assume it's OK to turn on a red or yellow just because some meathead is honking at me to drive more aggressively. Not happening. Not now, not ever.

ROR is aggressive?  Sure, whatever. 

Your argument as to why YOUR behaviour was ok is losing steam.  Your whole reasoning in your OP as to WHY you didn't turn was because you wanted to 'stick it' to the driver behind you - nothing to do with red-light camera's (which, at least up here, there's no such thing for ROR) or traffic density.  You've only mentioned these two points once Eric pointed out your move was douchey - not that YOU were a douche, but that the action was douchey.

Edit... ninja'd by Eric.  I'm saying the exact same thing.  Peace out.