My guess about pickup truck drivers in general is that a LOT of them have a need for power and control or maybe even some obsessive compulsive tendencies (OCD) -- meaning they are actually the opposite of being "strong and powerful"-- they are weak and wimpy and fearful and need a big truck to try to make them feel strong.
1) " I mean some of them have a legitimate reason to have a pick up truck but I think that the majority of guys who have ginormous trucks are trying to make a political statement. I noticed a lot of trucks with the wheels sticking out which I think looks retarded and giant exhaust pipes for blowing black smoke in the face of other drivers cars which is not only inconsiderate but makes them look like assholes. … It's called Coal rolling. But that is what they want, they want to look like assholes and they want to say fuck you and fuck the environment. Also they think that they are Impressing women but really that is not true at all.
2) "Because many of them are [assholes?}. I sort of answered this in another question some time back. The other question asked if hazardous or aggressive drivers could be identified by the type of vehicle that they drive.
Pickup drivers are the Jekyll and Hyde amongst the many personalities and behaviors behind a steering wheel. When I am driving a heavy truck commercially, pickup drivers are usually my friends. They are far more likely than anyone else on the road to give me a break and yield to my signaled or implied intentions.
When I am driving my own pickup, a basic mid-sized two-wheel drive vehicle of unassuming appearance, other pickup drivers are neutral around me. They do not bother with me. In my compact crossover, however, one might think that the Incredible Hulk was behind the wheel of that jacked-up 4x4 monster truck wannabe.
There is no reason for my driving behavior to be any different in my compact car as compared to when driving my pickup. So why does it seem, to me, like there are only Incredible Hulk types driving large pickups?
I can guess that the pickup driver easily sees past me, over the top of my car. When I have a tailgater, I double my following distance, if possible, regardless of what I am driving. I do this to ensure that I can execute an emergency stop without getting rear-ended. Looking over the top of my car, Hulk may assume that the distance in front of me means that I am driving too slowly.
This triggers Hulk's learned behavior that says, when things do not suit you, you should go into a rage and punish everyone who is the perceived cause of your rage. The irony is that my increased following distance gives Hulk a place to go when traffic finally allows him to move his mega-mechanical beast around me.
What most amuses me about angry or aggressive drivers, in any vehicle, is the lack of gain for the pain that they put themselves and those around through while driving. As often as not, when I manage to get a Hulk safely in front of me, I'll see him again in a few miles. He will be waiting not far from me at the same stoplight and intersection where I am waiting. He may have regained much of his natural color but the primer is fresh and ready to set off another explosion if things do not go his way again.
Safe and calm driving to you."
