The rules of the Road drivers license bookets do not even mention hand signals these days (you can get a ticket for not having working turn signals on your car). So most younger drivers have no idea what standard hand signals mean, so pointing with the hand towards where you are going is probably safer.

And before us older guys, and gals, sneer; what is the standard hand signal for "I am about to brake"? And did you realize that signals indicate intention, they are not needed and too late once you actually start to do it.

Another thing I noticed is the number of posters who say they have to be able to break hard to make that turn, they not only do not know what they are talking about, they are suicidal.

Speaking of which there is another suicidal one that always bugs the crap out of me. Near my home is a rather steep hill with a bank on one side of the road and a drop off on the other no shoulder at all. Most of the bicyclists stupidly ride along the side of the road at 3-5 miles per hour. Now the road is too narrow for a car to pass them with out going partially into the on coming lane anyway, so the bicyclist should be out in the middle of the lane simply for safety's sake. If someone starts to go around them and an oncoming car appears they are going to pull right into the cyclist rather than have a head on collision with another car. On the other hand if the bike is taking up the lane, they are going to make sure it is clear before pulling fully out into the oncoming lane in a normal passing maneuver. Riding at the side of the road there is not safe. Heck, walking at the side of the road there is not safe. Luckily only an idiot is driving more than about 25 mph there, I forgot to mention the curves, even though the limit is 55. Oh yes, and to make things worse ,the Blue Ridge Parkway is being detoured along that road while they do some bridge work on the parkway.