New Graduated Licencing Restrictions Came Too Late to Save This One

On Fri, 20 Jan 2006 07:35:23 -0800, Scott en Aztlán
> wrote:

>From the KTLA Morning News:
>
>As the video showed an unrecognizable ball of crumpled metal, the
>reporter described how a teenaged boy in Pasadena, who had been
>licensed for THREE DAYS, and who had just received a new car
>YESTERDAY, lost control and struck a light pole last night, splitting
>his car into two pieces (and, of course, killing the boy).
>
>Chalk up another one for Darwin.

As a whole, _any_ new restrictions on _anything_ to solve old problems are
excessive. We had all the laws we needed about 50 years ago. Gun laws,
traffic laws, zoning, and every other damn little thing that's been done since
then simply removes more of people's rights, or makes it hard on some minority
whether they're racial or age-related or whatever.

Lawmakers should quit thinking up new ways to prohibit people from doing things
because other people are scared. Freedom from all fear is not in the
constitution. People are scared of criminals having guns, so laws are passed
that criminals also ignore and that just hurts the right people's ability to
protect themselves. And now, the natural tendency of people who are learning
and gaining experience with a new and dangerous activity, driving, is somehow
going to be cured and made all safe by raising the driving age yet again.
Hell, about a year before I was eligible, the ability of 14 yr olds in Ohio to
ride scooters was removed. Yeah, it probably saved a bunch of kids. Hey, we
could save _everybody_ if we _all_ gave up the inherently dangerous activity of
driving. But dead kids are the object of _someone else's_ (parents) fear, while
adults are willing to take their own chances on the road.

People are afraid their property values will go down of the poor schmuck down
the road builds the sort of house he can afford, so all of a sudden his house
absolutely must be this many square feet, and he can't conduct any buisness out
of it, and he can't have a radio tower, and he can't park his boat on the
property, and he can't... can't... can't... And the bottom line is that we
_all_ "can't". What a way to live. Supposed to be the land of the free. Ha!

Zoning? We _have_ zoning _way_ out here in the county, 20 miles outside of
Fredericksburg, Va. and have an ugly trailer just down the road, all manner of
houses from manufactured homes to nice, big, constructed homes, and occupied by
all sorts of people. My house still doubled in value over the last 3 years.
People are generally afraid of their property values going down for no good
reason other than they're afraid.

OK, a good Saturday morning rant - but new restrictions, and a lotta old
restrictions, just **** me off... and I don't really care _who_ they're aimed
at at the moment.

Dave Head

In article >, Dave Head wrote:

> could save _everybody_ if we _all_ gave up the inherently dangerous activity of
> driving. But dead kids are the object of _someone else's_ (parents) fear, while
> adults are willing to take their own chances on the road.


There is the inerent risk in the activity of 'living' that far worse
than most things that get legislated these days.

Brent P wrote:
> In article >, Dave Head wrote:
>
> > could save _everybody_ if we _all_ gave up the inherently dangerous activity of
> > driving. But dead kids are the object of _someone else's_ (parents) fear, while
> > adults are willing to take their own chances on the road.
>
>
> There is the inerent risk in the activity of 'living' that far worse
> than most things that get legislated these days.

See also ("Falling banana kills woman"):

http://www.news.com.au/story/0,10117...9-1242,00.html

Dave Hogan

On Sat, 21 Jan 2006 15:39:23 GMT, Dave Head > wrote:

>On Fri, 20 Jan 2006 07:35:23 -0800, Scott en Aztlán
> wrote:
>
>>From the KTLA Morning News:
>>
>>As the video showed an unrecognizable ball of crumpled metal, the
>>reporter described how a teenaged boy in Pasadena, who had been
>>licensed for THREE DAYS, and who had just received a new car
>>YESTERDAY, lost control and struck a light pole last night, splitting
>>his car into two pieces (and, of course, killing the boy).
>>
>>Chalk up another one for Darwin.
>
>As a whole, _any_ new restrictions on _anything_ to solve old problems are
>excessive. We had all the laws we needed about 50 years ago. Gun laws,
>traffic laws, zoning, and every other damn little thing that's been done since
>then simply removes more of people's rights, or makes it hard on some minority
>whether they're racial or age-related or whatever.
>
>Lawmakers should quit thinking up new ways to prohibit people from doing things
>because other people are scared. Freedom from all fear is not in the
>constitution. People are scared of criminals having guns, so laws are passed
>that criminals also ignore and that just hurts the right people's ability to
>protect themselves. And now, the natural tendency of people who are learning
>and gaining experience with a new and dangerous activity, driving, is somehow
>going to be cured and made all safe by raising the driving age yet again.
>Hell, about a year before I was eligible, the ability of 14 yr olds in Ohio to
>ride scooters was removed. Yeah, it probably saved a bunch of kids. Hey, we
>could save _everybody_ if we _all_ gave up the inherently dangerous activity of
>driving. But dead kids are the object of _someone else's_ (parents) fear, while
>adults are willing to take their own chances on the road.
>

>
>Dave Head

Bondurant wpn't let a teenager attend this without 6 montha
experience.
http://www.bondurant.com/courses/Teendriv.html

Graduated licensing schemes for motorcycles have existed in Europe and
Japan for a long time.
http://www.timberwoof.com/motorcycle/faq/europe.html

Me and my 4 teenaged buddies considered ourselves race drivers even
before we were allowed behind the wheel. We egged each other on to
drive fast. 2 of us had "accidents", sideswiping trees or going over
stone walls on the dirt road that leads to my folks house. I drove my
dad's plymouth into the back ofa Mustang driving a batch of friends to
watch a race at NHIS (Loudon, back in 1967). I was not paying
attention.

During the first year or 2 we developed some real skills, including
the ability to multitask without paying some attention to the road.
I don't think that comes with a full week of Skip Barber training.

On Sat, 21 Jan 2006 20:27:20 -0600, (Brent
P) wrote:

>In article >, Dave Head wrote:
>
>> could save _everybody_ if we _all_ gave up the inherently dangerous activity of
>> driving. But dead kids are the object of _someone else's_ (parents) fear, while
>> adults are willing to take their own chances on the road.
>
>
>There is the inerent risk in the activity of 'living' that far worse
>than most things that get legislated these days.

Yep! <G>

DPH