From 60 Minutes this evening:

“Driving a car is the most dangerous thing a teenager can do”

“They’re killing themselves in very large numbers”

“Two are dying every week”

“The human brain hasn’t fully developed until the age of 25”

This story emphasised the terrible lack of skills and the overconfidence, bravado and downright stupidity of (many) teenage drivers.

However, while it was a positive thing for this to be driven home to the Australian public on prime-time television, 60 Minutes was TERRIBLY remiss in failing to even mention the policing of road safety or the quality of driver-training in order to get a licence in the first place!

The ONLY thing that was touted as a possible solution was a technological innovation which limits a vehicle’s speed to that of the relevant speed limit.

Dear o dear!!

What do OLO posters think?

What is the answer to getting teenagers… and indeed all drivers… to be aware of risk factors and safety margins, and to RESPECT them when driving ?

Ludwig! The human-being, has no sense, until the age of 30! even then, they are only guessing the out comes of their lives. I say! its your lives, and what you do, is solely on your hands. Don't second guess! What do you think the old people are here for?> too screw you over!
Not even you could be that silly.

In general, you know what is right and wrong, so this is a bull.... question!

Are you looking for a angle, just to relieve your frustrations?

OH! congratulations on your three years! Well done.

EVO

EVO

EVO.. have you developed a speech impediment? :) repeating urself there ol son.

The bravado of the young is probably why we send them off to the trenches and jungles in far away places.

I'm only beginning to feel 'vulnerable' now.. and I'm well.. 'getting on' in years...

How many of us were concerned that we might have a stroke or heart attack when we were 20? How many of our peers had such experiences?

And for the rest.. like irrelevant car accidents? aaah.. well I'm just so skilful (at 20) that it will nevvvver happen to me....right?

Ludwig: << 60 Minutes was TERRIBLY remiss in failing to even mention the policing of road safety or the quality of driver-training in order to get a licence in the first place! >>

I take your point, but if it was down to policing and driver training then I'd expect that Queensland at least would have experienced a decline in road accidents among young people. In recent years, it's become far more difficult to obtain a driver's licence (or even a learner's licence) in Queensland - with the introduction of learner log books, a minimum period of 12 months on L-plates, restrictions on numbers of passengers P-plate drivers can carry and on engine capacities etc etc.

And any young driver will tell you about the amount of attention they attract from police that we older drivers generally don't.

I actually tend to agree with Porky and EVO on this one - it's primarily a feature of the bravado of youth. However, I also agree that technological fixes like that described on '60 Minutes' are unlikely to have much effect, either.

It would probably be more effective to ban all the massively-funded and promoted so-called 'sports' like 'Indy', 'V8 Supercars' etc that the young find so attractive, and which they attempt to emulate on the roads. But I can't see that happening...

..,.Train up a child in the way he should go and he will never depart from it . The letter killeth but the spirit gives life. Love covers a multitude of sins, love is not blind, is faithfull, gentle, suffers long, and produces patience and respect. Love is not sexual lust but is one of the fruit of the Spirit and you only bare fruit if you live in the vine . The buck stops with the fathers because that is where you get your identity from. All children go from total dependance to total independance , it is when the greatest changes are taking place in the body, the teen years or called the rebelious years,completely missunderstood. People perish from a lack of knowledge. I was having problems with my teenage daughter as she loved to test her boundrys and I saw it as rebelion But the Holy Spirit showed me it was the most natural occurance in life and just part of the growing up process,Love her for love covers a multitude of sins.
Not easy when you are being challenged by a very modern miss.
Two books I recomend by Stephen R Corvey are The seven habits of highly highly efective people and Principle- centered leadership .
When a child KNOWS that his father loves him he is secure in that knowledge and will accept the word NO, esential in a fathers roll as Head Of the family where the buck stops . For the fathers role is to Guide, Guard, And Govern the family . Mothers role is to nurture the family. Wives submit to your husbands. Husbands love your wife as Christ loved the church and gave up his life for it.
Love covers a multitude of sins and is not a feeling but a decision.
My people perish from lack of Knowledge and if you are unteachable and proud, remember pride comes before a fall . And remember bad things happen . So never stop learning and living .

the usual fluff/the usual suspects[youth suicide is 3 times the road death numbers]

but you cant seize property[or put in more[revenue-raising]speed cameras for suicide]

just as the lie of a drug-war is borne by our youth

legal drugs feature in the top[5]causes of death[mainly alcohol[but by clever accounting the booze_deaths becomes MINUS 2000[due to the percieved BENIFITS of a single drink[but who stops at one right]

every day is usa alone the equivelent of 3 jumbo jets crashing DIES from adverse_reation to PERSCRIBED-DRUGS

[one in 100 hospital admissions is for adverse-reaction to perscribed drugs[1 in 10 resulting in death]

yet the govt subsidy for drugs goes on[and the media enriched by booze advertising blissfully continues its attack on our children]

yes cars kill
there are people who should not be allowed to drive[but by the same measure there are people who shouldnt be allowed to eat transfats their'fast 'foods are saturated with [also promopted by the media]

govt is ALLWAYS after the quick fix[persicute the kids who dont know their rights[because schools dont teach that]

instead the media trains our kids[with cooking shows and sports,and murder/cop shows[we're spirit's having an incarnate life experience [guess what;we ALL DIE]

ok 2 kids a week are dying in cars[what about the 32 thousand criminalised by drugs'possesion'[great choice of word's]each year[in qld alone]that despite being criminal caused but a fraction of deaths in total

and the plant not a single death[EVER}

this brain development thing is the latest buzz_word[recall the abc last week,same reason so kids cant use cannabis[wrongly called marijuana[a plant not a drug]death toll zero.

but because the public is so dumb[believing whiter than white and 20 times stronger[than what you smoked as a kid[its like saying flour that is twenty times stronger;ie pure spin

but lets break that one too shall we[in the non_drug use population one in twenty five get phycotic symptomology
[in the dope/smokers it is one in fifty]

[actually halving the number]

[but they quote only the one in fifty,and the one in twenty five still go nuts DESPITE never touching ;drugs'