Mari K. thought she was one of the drivers being scolded: I use my turn indicator only when using it provides useful information for the safety and well-being of the drivers around me. Using a turn indicator for a lane change when the nearest driver is 300 yards behind me is pointless. Similarly, in general, MY indication that I'm turning left or right is that I'm in the left or right turn lane, respectively, not a blinking light on the back end of my car.

Wally provided a rebuttal: Your theory has a major flaw. If someone is in your blind spot and you don't use a turn signal, then what? All it takes is one time for you to think you know every car that's around you and you don't use your signal. Is it really THAT much of an effort to flip the signal every time you change lanes? Sounds like laziness to me.

Some readers challenged the validity of the survey.

Cham thought it was "a horrible article."

When you see wild swing (from 20th to 49th) ... doesn't it tell you that something is seriously flawed with the survey. We didn't all of the sudden become dumber. If 5,130 people were in the survey / 51 states (and DC) that means about 100 drivers were surveyed from each state. Just add it to the list of countless meaningless studies that some one throws out there.

COMMENT: Good points, but if we ignored it we'd be missing this lovely discussion.

JohnM. gave the credit to Gov. Martin O'Malley: Perhaps it was due to the "New Marylanders" who don't speak or read English so well, but are qualified to get a MD drivers license.

And a reader identified as "the old captain" was either agreeing with the sentiment or poking fun at it. I couldn't tell, but he did change the language:

Que? No comprendo.

COMMENT: ¿Ha notado que algunas personas piensan que una persona que habla Inglés es automáticamente más inteligente que uno que habla español?