I don't know why people get so mad about this. You use the term "right lane", but what does that mean? It only means what you want it to mean in a given situation.
The lane is open until it is not, and as long as both lanes are open they are both "right" (in the non-directional sense, obviously). Why rely on clearly nebulous (sometimes variable, sometimes non-existent) social norms rather than concrete traffic norms? Use the open lane, or don't complain when others do. It's not asshole behavior, it's common sense driving.
There is no reason to take offense while driving so long as people 1) follow the rules of the road and 2) do not endanger others with reckless driving. Using open lanes does neither, and it only inconveniences the people that refuse to use the roads as they are intended to be used.
There are known choke points where traffic is forced to merge. There is the occasional tourist, but rush hour happens every weekday. People know about these merge points, see traffic backing up in all lanes, and will still jump into the lane about to end trying to rush around a few extra cars.
Okay, when do you think people should start merging? Thirty feet before the "choke point"? One hundred feet? One mile? Three miles?
It's an arbitrary game, and everyone makes up their own "rules of decency" and gets mad when someone follows the rules of the road rather than the rules of their head. Yes, people "know" about choke points, but that doesn't mean it's wrong (or rude) to use open lanes. So long as those lanes are open, they are going to be used, so everyone may as well make use of the space.
Is it my fault that others choose not to use those lanes? No. Is it your fault that it upsets you? Yes. It's not rude. I'm not being impolite. I wish everyone would just follow the same set of rules so we could stop being mad at each other. Which set of rules should we follow? I vote against the ones that change in with the person you're asking.
Having said that, I don't really like when people change lanes just to jump ahead of one or two cars. It doesn't upset me and I think it's fair game so long as it's done safely, but I empathize with the distaste for that a little more.
During "normal" periods where there are no choke points because there is no traffic these "smart" people do not have a problem staying in the "right" lane. However, when the traffic starts growing up almost everybody, except them, go into what looks like a queue, one car at a time, waiting for their turn to move forward/leave the road they start passing everybody on the "wrong" lane and merging at the end.
This is not only rude, but also blocks the other(s) lane(s) bringing traffic to where it wasn't before.
Its almost like say it's ok to pass in front of other people in the theater line.
The lane is open until it is not, and as long as both lanes are open they are both "right" (in the non-directional sense, obviously). Why rely on clearly nebulous (sometimes variable, sometimes non-existent) social norms rather than concrete traffic norms? Use the open lane, or don't complain when others do. It's not asshole behavior, it's common sense driving.
There is no reason to take offense while driving so long as people 1) follow the rules of the road and 2) do not endanger others with reckless driving. Using open lanes does neither, and it only inconveniences the people that refuse to use the roads as they are intended to be used.