Power and Responsibility

Power
and Responsibility

With
great power comes great responsibility. The President of the United
States must work to ensure the security of billions of Americans.
Generals directing their troops into battle must weigh their options
carefully to prevent unnecessary deaths. Business executives cater to
the needs of their employees while generating enough profit to stay
in business and provide jobs for thousands of individuals. Every
individual in a position of authority must act to the fullest extent
of their abilities and according to their moral principles.

It
may seem at first that this sort of responsibility only applies to
individuals in leadership positions. What possible significance could
the idea of public responsibility have for anyone who is not a
leader, and who does not hold a position of authority? The answer to
this is simple, so simple that it is easily overlooked. The second
that a person opens a vehicle door and gets behind the wheel, they
have committed themselves to the responsibilities associated with
driving safely. Billions of people travel by car every day, and each
driver is responsible not only for their own safety but for not
constituting a hazard to others.

Fatal
traffic accidents are rather common, yet the risk can be greatly
reduced through the combined efforts of drivers across the nation.
Firstly, it must be ensured that individuals allowed to operate
vehicles are properly trained for the task at hand. Drivers ed
can be compared to the on-the-job training available for construction
workers and other labor positions. Before an employee is allowed to
operate heavy and potentially dangerous machinery, they must prove
their ability to do so safely in order to prevent accidents and
injuries. In theory, licensed drivers should be capable of safely
operating a vehicle.

However,
a multitude of other factors must be addressed when developing a plan
for driver safety. Perhaps one of the most obvious is driving while
tired, distracted, or intoxicated. Each of these conditions takes the
driver’s attention away from the road, making them more likely to
be involved in an accident. With today’s modern and hectic
lifestyle, it can be difficult to take time off from other
obligations due to being unfit to drive. Fortunately, there are a
multitude of solutions to address this concern. Public transportation
is available in most cities, while ride-sharing apps such as Uber and
Lyft offer shuttling services where taxis and busses are unavailable.

Furthermore,
every driver must be fully aware of the implications that their
actions can have for other drivers and their loved ones. Many
individuals are thinking only of the risk to themselves when driving
unsafely, and do not consider the risk to others. A single mistake
can result in years of devastation and grief for friends and family,
as well as years of guilt for the driver who caused it. For this
reason, drivers ed initiatives must include first hand stories
from both drivers who caused an accident as well as those who were
impacted by it. By creating a culture of forward thinking, drivers
will better understand the consequences of their actions, and will
therefore make responsible decisions.

Though
I have never been in an accident myself, I witness countless
incidents of unsafe driving practices each day. A quick glance around
the parking lot of my high school will reveal speeding, texting while
driving, and being distracted by passengers. During my sophomore
year, two students were unfortunately killed as a result of
distracted driving. I believe it would be beneficial for school
systems to introduce a driver’s safety course into the curriculum,
as it appears that many students do not take the matter seriously
until it is too late.

Every
time I get behind the wheel of a vehicle, I remind myself of the
impacts that my actions can have on others. I do not want to upset my
friends and family by getting myself killed on the road. If I were to
cause an accident that were to kill someone else, not only would I
have imposed that grief upon their loved ones, but I would have to
live with the knowledge that my actions resulted in an unnecessary
death. Together, drivers across the nation must make the decision to
drive safely, and to avoid the guilt and grief that follows a fatal
accident.