Bicycle lane...not?

Is it stupidity? Is it a dimming of brain cells? Could it be spite? Maybe indifference? What about a simple case of ignorance? How does someone drive the length of the street in a bike lane? We can disregard ignorance right now; this is not a bike lane that suddenly appeared overnight, it has been there for years. It is also clearly marked with both lane lines and bike lane symbols. And then there is the signage saying "bike lane." For those locals, I am talking about Mills, and this is not the first time I have observed this taking place. In the past it has been an elderly woman I have seen, on more than one occasion I might add, driving where bikes, and only bikes, are supposed to be. Why she was driving when she could not distinguish that fact is beyond me. Scary enough.

This afternoon riding back up Mills from a trip to the Post Office a white pick-up comes by me and pulls over into the bike lane, and then continues on up the street, finally making a right on Baseline, a good 1/2 mile drive which should not have taken place where it did. I had my camera on my back and could have swung it around front and snapped a photo but I kept expecting him to turn right onto one of the side streets. You know how certain types seem to be moving over to the right earlier and earlier in preparation to make a turn - I see it more and more frequently. But no, he simply chose to drive up the street in the bike lane. There were no other cars headed up the street, no one he had to get around, so I can rule out impatience. Did this driver think he was in a motor vehicle lane? No, he was in a full-size pickup; they don't fit in bike lanes. So, did he do it because he wanted to show me that he could. That would be stupidity, spitefulness and indifference all rolled into one. What about impairment? It is, of course, all just conjecture. Only the driver knows what was going on for sure. No harm was done. But if someone cannot follow a simple rule of the road, a rule intended to provide for the safety of other road users, should the driver of that vehicle even be granted the privilege of sitting on the controlling side of a steering wheel? I am sure you know my answer to that question.