Originally Posted by bluejack
It would be nice -- as a society -- if we were able to occasionally suspend our rigid ruleset as a goodwill gesture to accomodate groups of people out enjoying the world, whether it's a "critical mass" of shabby slackers or packs of sleek roadies or impromptu parades or festivals or whatever. We have law to protect ourselves from each other, but sometimes we can suspend the rules in order to be nice to each other.
Nice is good.
If you cede right of way when you have it, you're being nice. If you take it when you don't, making the the other guy be nice on your behalf, you're a 'hole. These guys were being 'holes.
Re: the comparison to funeral processions or military convoys: those are exemptions that are specifically written into the law, at least around here. Likening yourself to one of those is like saying that since I have a blinking red light on my bike I should be able to use the road like a fire truck on its way to a fire.