When you ask me why I view teen driving safely to be of utmost importance, I would tell you because we are born to die. From the moment we are pushed from the wombs of our mothers into the blinding lights of the world, we’ve one short life to live and die. And of the many options you have to end it all, it is such a sorry way to die, sheer stupidity to forfeit your life by not wearing your seatbelt, speeding, cutting up to make a show, and to drive non-sober. Not only is it sorry and embarrassing, but it is selfish–you may consent to death, but others do not. And as serotonin-depleted, depressed and adrenaline-seeking as I, and many other teens suffer so, you do not have permission to endanger the lives of others. Of course, some would argue that there is nuance to this, that teenagers do stupid things and it is not representative of them. While I agree that there is nuance and room for growth, I believe it is representative of their character to make such decisions. I view the teens who are comfortable risking the lives of others as people who are stunted in growth; they graduate high school and plateau in and lack empathy, remorse, kindness, and development. This isn’t always, but can be, reflective in their career and life progress after many years, and they tend to continuously find themselves in accidents and I’ll leave it at that.
Driving and making safe decisions is not a personal problem, it is a public safety issue. This is critical for teenagers and new drivers to understand. The roads you drive on lead to neighborhoods, homes, schools, and public facilities. It is easy to drive however you want when you’re in your car on the highway, because you do not have an immediate face, person, and soul to tie another vehicle to. Driver’s education is vital for the complete comprehension of how lethal driving can be. As someone who was enrolled in a driver’s ed class in 2023, driving schools freely throw out ideas like death via educational videos and lectures. However, I must point out how incredibly easy it was to pass. It was completely online via Zoom calls and my instructor did not require anyone to have cameras on. As a result, I feel as though no one was really engaged–the instructor called on people, they didn’t answer, he moved on–and everyone was there only to get on the road, but not to learn. I understand that driving school is exactly that, just a requirement you must pass to get on the road, but it is also as critical to your understanding of the way the road works and certain laws, as passing the permit test. I don’t believe that online driver’s ed is the enemy, but I believe it can be vastly improved if instructors were required to see the faces of students in order to pass them. Guidance offices in high schools should also meet with students about getting them started with their permits and driving schools, the same way they go class-to-class when it’s time to pick classes for the following school year.
The biggest threat to teens learning to drive is peer pressure. Friends who do not wear seat belts and like to speed and cut up, or who invite you to do drugs with no D.D. because they supposedly can drive high and drunk (Mind you, no matter how true this can be, it is still a higher risk and consent to die and to kill). Of course, I say so because that is my personal experience. I felt a heightened sense of confidence to hangout with pretty girls who had many followers, to be with boys and men who intoxicated us and put our lives in danger. The biggest piece of advice I would give a younger teenager is to explore–go out and put yourself in the danger that seems so enticing. Ask yourself if it gave you the fulfillment you needed. Speed, do the actions that all the popular bad kids did in movies, live selfishly for a little, but really ponder after and decide whether or not these actions are reflective of you and where you want to be in life. It may be hard to do so still in school, but after graduation distance yourself from the people who put you in these situations IF they never wanted to grow with you–because the real friends were there for you in those stupid moments, but also silently humbled themselves and went back to reality with you.
Live smartly through the pain.