Re: State Patrol reminds drivers to watch for motorcyclists
The OSP, like other law enforcement agencies on the local, state, and Federal level, have been essentially co-opted by their respective legislators, who are heavily lobbied to make driving "accessible" to the masses. Driver education efforts such as this are, quite simply, ineffective, and police officials understand it only too well. Unfortunately, they have no alternative and must be seen to be making an effort to appear responsive to the off the scale escalation in irresponsible and distracted driving behavior that plagues the nation. Kind of similar in motivation to the failed drug enforcement and gun-control policies implemented across the country. And, we have only ourselves to blame, as the license to drive has become a right rather than a privilege with millions of unqualified, distracted, mindless clones doing pretty much whatever the f**k they want behind the wheel. We've inherited this crisis incrementally as a result of written and skills testing having evolved into pro-forma issuance as a result of the politically-driven demand pressure. VTLaws, their enforcement, and oversight of recidivist violators has now simply outgrown our ability to manage it. The answer is, regrettably, more government intrusiveness in the form of tough, English-language written tests, challenging skills testing, and Zero-tolerance license cancellation / incarceration / vehicle confiscation law enforcement of a new realistic 100% consistent Federal driving law across the entire nation. Yeah, it won't be as much fun to ride anymore, but don't worry. It will never happen, because a drivers license has taken on a near Constitutional halo. But, keep in mind while castigating me for what might seem excessive over-reaction to the OSP story, that those who do so haven't lost there son or best bro to one of these air heads, who currently gets a slap on the wrist and gets right back on the cell as soon as he walks out of the precinct and cranks over his cage. You got a better solution? As Lennon said "we'd all love to see the plan". Education ain't it! Or, if it is, it's a peripheral piece of a plan that hasn't been formulated yet.
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07-26-2005, 01:02 PM
