Sunday, October 10, 2010

Consequences of a Failed System: Part 6

Excerpt from Stop Beating the Dead Horse

Many deaths and injuries in automobiles are caused by drivers’ lack of skill, poor judgment, inattention, and not realizing the significance and consequences of all these things. Driving is a skill that is so important to the safety and welfare of the population, it should be taught in the school system, yet most people dismiss it as not being important to teach. Over eight times more people die each year on our nation’s highway than the total of U.S. casualties in the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq in the last eight years combined. People of this country are distraught by the casualties of the wars in the Middle East, but think nothing of the vehicle deaths. Even though war casualties are very unfortunate, at least the soldiers are dying for a cause that they are getting paid to defend, instead of the totally senseless deaths of innocent men, women, and children on our highways. Over 40% more of our citizens die on our roads and highways than are killed by guns each year, yet we don’t hear of organizations trying to take motor vehicles away from people to stop the senseless killing.
I realize that implementing a drivers’ education program that involves vehicles, instructors, and insurance is very expensive, which is why most public schools don’t do it anymore, but by freeing money up that is spent on feeding students, for example, it can and should be done. Even if the instruction is merely class-based and not vehicular-based (i.e., no actual driving), it would be helpful in increasing student’s knowledge of laws, safety, defensive driving, consequences, etc. Also, there are many vehicle driving simulators on the market which could come close to the real thing. With the inordinate number of vehicle deaths, many of them young people, teaching vehicular safety is an extremely important obligation of the public school system, not an optional course.

To read more from Stop Beating the Dead Horse, visit www.stopbeatingthedeadhorse.com.

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