Bad driving [Was: Re: Cupholders & Americans]

[Elliott Potter <epotter@abraxis.com>]

DOUBLDz@aol.com wrote:
> 
> >BTW, my record for the most things done while driving was(I am not proud of
> >this, and don't flame me because of this) is driving - shifting, talking on
> >the cell, studying for midterms, and looking for a pager my friend ask me to
> >find in the car.
> 
> >Jason C
> >89 200t10v
> >Redmond WA
> 
> Precisely why males, 25 and under, have astronomical insurance rates.
> 
> Dee
> 95A6q pearl

<RANT>
It's an unfair stereotype, though.  Not because males under 25 are good
drivers, but because for the most part, males *over* 25 aren't any
better.  And neither, for that matter, are most females under 25, or
(you guessed it) over 25.  (Sorry Dee)
The fact is that at least from my experience, (I've driven mostly in the
US, and a little bit in Cyprus where the drivers are only marginally
better than the Lebanese) you stroll into the driver's license office,
take a rediculously easy test (1: you see a red light.  You should a)
stop b) go ... hint: red means "stop" and green means "go" 2: you see a
green light.  You should a) go b) stop ... hint: green means "go" and
red means "stop". ... etc) and they hand you a license.  Then, if you're
lucky, your dad hands you the keys to the 100 and you're on your own. 
The only reason that older drivers tend to get in fewer accidents is
that they've gotten enough experience to be slightly better at avoiding
them.
If you spend your time in the car eating, reading, sending e-mails,
combing your hair, talking on the phone, shaving, jerking off, or
looking for that tape you just dropped (I've seen all of these
activities on I-285) when you're 18, you'll probably still do them when
you're 25, and you'll probably still do them when you're 30: you'll just
be a bit better at steering with your knees (or other appendages) (no,
not that you sick freak).  And if you drive like this when your kids are
in the car, how do you think they're going to drive?  No one's going to
tell them any better, just like no one ever told you any better.
Age isn't the judge of how good a driver you are, it's maturity.  And
maturity doesn't magically appear at 25, or 30, or 20, or 55.  Now, I'm
20 and my boss is 30.  Is it fair that our insurance rates are the
same?  In 5 years of driving, I've gotten one speeding ticket (4 years
ago), and been in one wreck - In 15 years of driving, he's gotten 8
speeding tickets, and totalled 6 cars.  His rates are high because he's
a menace; my rates are high because I'm an "unmarried male under 25."

Anyway, it bugs me when people say "well your insurance rates are
astronomical because you're under 25."  Yes, they are, but is my being
under 25 a good reason for my insurance rates to be astronomical?  Your
rates should be based on your driving record, not on your age, because
age isn't a good judge of what your behavior will be behind the wheel.
</RANT>

--
Elliott

"Right.  Where was I?"
"Pontificating."
"Ah yes.  And another thing..."
	--somewhere in the Hitchhiker's Trilogy