Driving with Dead Weight

From
a very young age, life taught me, whether I was ready or not, about
the dangers of the road. At the age of 3, my father died in a car
accident before I even had the chance to remember him. Being so
young, I do not know exactly what occurred, but I do know that the
decisions made by just a few people for one day impacted the lives of
many for eternity.

Given
my upbringing, driving recklessly is the last thing that I would want
to do when I step into a car, but I know that not everyone was raised
the same as me, and not everyone has experienced my trauma. There
have been many times when offered rides from friends where I believed
that my life was in danger. For my peers, the thrill of going 70 on a
30 is often more important than being aware of the life changing
possibilities, and this is not only happening in my community; like a
drug, many young adults keep repeating these dangerous actions all
over the nation.

In
order to combat these activities, I encourage my family, friends, and
even myself, to learn the statistics of driving recklessly and
participate in multiple informational sessions related to driving,
such as drivers ed and defensive driving safety training. Many
people don’t know that driving with a phone is more dangerous than
driving intoxicated, and because people do not know the facts, they
act ignorantly, in a way that would not be occurring if they were
educated on the matter. For that reason, I believe that drivers ed
should be required of all potential driving candidates wishing to
receive, or renew, their license regardless of age or experience.
Georgia discovered that drivers ed was important with the
passage of Joshua’s law in 2003, requiring all 16 and 17 year olds
to take a drivers ed course with 30 hours of in-class
instruction, 6 hours of behind the wheel training and 40 hours of
supervised driving. Since the passage of this law, car accidents
involving young adults under the age of 21 have dramatically
decreased. Given the great outcome, I believe that every state in
America should participate in the passage of this law. Being educated
may bore some, but it will save the lives of many more.

And
remember, when driving with a loved one, ask yourself, “Are my
reckless decisions worth my life and the lives around me?”.