Wrong-headed Leadership on Distracted Driving

Posted on by Kenneth Zuber

Don’t do that!  It’s wrong!  Don’t do that; you’ll get hurt!  don’t do that; it’s not nice!  don’t do that; it’s illegal! Don’t do that, because I said so!  DON’T DO THAT!

That’s what Adam and Eve were told about eating the apple in The Garden of Eden.  That’s what Pandora was told about opening that box given to her on her wedding day.  That’s what we were all told a million times by our parents when we were kids, and it’s what we tell our kids.

Adam and Eve ate the apple.  Pandora opened her box.  Kids always seem to do exactly what they have been told not to do.  We certainly did.  It’s part of human nature.  It’s practically a law.  Whatever is forbidden, we will do.

The antithesis of “don’t do that!” is “I can’t do that!”  It also is very common and natural among humans.  I can’t do that, because it is wrong.  I can’t do that, because I’ll get hurt.  I can’t do that, because it will hurt somebody else.  I can’t do that, because it goes against everything I believe in!  When we feel this way about some act, chances are extremely good that we will not do it.

Reacting to the epidemic of electronically distracted driving, our modern authorities have rejected the long established fact that driving is a full-time job.  They nether expect nor teach us to control our cars, watch the road, concentrate, or take any pleasure in driving.  In this way, they deny us the opportunity to develop the deep conviction that ” I can’t do that!”

 

 

Traffic Cameras

Posted on by Kenneth Zuber

Big Brother is watching, but he is not helping

They say traffic cameras are for safety.  Somehow they believe that zero-tolerance surveillance coupled with the threat of a fine will relax us and encourage us to perform at our best behind the wheel.  Well, the following actually happened to me about a month ago, and it scared the hell out of me.

I was approaching a familiar, commercial intersection near my house.  Both roads have 40 m.p.h . speed limits.  One has four lanes, the other six.  As I moved into the right-turn bay, I was aware that the traffic signal was red, but the right-turn arrow was green.  I knew the intersection has red-light cameras.  Then it happened.  I fixated on the green arrow to make sure I didn’t blow the red light as I turned.  I focused only on the arrow!  I IGNORED THAT TRAFFIC!

The camera was satisfied that my turn had been legal and I suppose, safe.  I was rattled, knowing that my car had essentially been out-of-control, because I had only the vaguest idea of the traffic situation.  THANKS A LOT BIG BROTHER, AND KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK!

 

The Inevitable, Lethal Aftermath of Defensive Driving

Posted on by Kenneth Zuber

“Drive Defensively.”  Initially, that advice seems to mean pay attention.  Stay out of trouble.  Do a good job behind the wheel.

All positive stuff.  If that’s what it means to you, stop reading now, because the truth is that the concept of defensive driving is downright pernicious.

Defensive driving’s promoters insist that you should expect poor driving from everyone else on the road.  Not only should you assume rudeness, obliviousness, clumsiness, illegality, harassment, and just plain outrageous behavior; you should look for it.  You must focus your attention on their mistakes, never mind your own driving.  They are the cause of all bad traffic.  They’re  too slow, too fast, tailgating, on the phone, cutting you off – doing whatever they can to make you miserable and unsafe.

You must protect yourself and your passengers from the evils others do, because their lousy driving is a given.  It cannot be cured, and it won’t go away.  You, and you alone, are totally responsible for making the streets safe.  It’s like being on a team where nobody else understands the game, nobody else helps, but nobody else is held responsible – just you!

Or, think of it in business terms.  You are the head of a department, and everybody who works for you makes mistakes all the time – often dangerous ones.  You are expected to cover for everybody.  It can’t be done.

It can’t be done in business, on a team, in a family, or among friends.  It certainly can’t be done on the road!  Defensive driving can’t work.  It doesn’t work.  Yet defensive driving is the core of our current driving paradigm.