The bigger picture.

Drivers ed prepares students for tests to obtain a driver’s license or learner’s permit. So, why is this simple knowledge important? As we all know, car accidents cause more deaths than American soldiers who have died from war in Iraq and Afghanistan combined. With this comprehension to the situation at hand, it is odd to know that not much has been changed or improved to help drivers stay safe while on the road. What can we do about this? Obtaining more drivers ed to all drivers could help limit the amount of car accidents. More knowledge given on what makes you an irresponsible driver in more ways than speeding or drinking could stop this amount of deaths from happening per year.

Car accidents are happening all around us. They are even brought up online quite often. Caitlyn Jenner was in a car crash, resulting in the other driver involved to die. Even outside of the US, Go Eunbi and Kwon Ri-sae, two k-pop stars from a five member girl group called Ladies Code were killed in a car crash, while one member named Lee So-jung was in critical condition for weeks. Why is the information that we have now not enough to stop people from distracting themselves while driving on the road? Yes, nobody thinks an accident will happen to them. It is just human nature to react to situations differently if it doesn’t happen to us, or someone close to us. And I think all people drive irresponsibly at times without realizing it. If someone isn’t drinking while driving, or speeding, they don’t think that they are driving irresponsibly. This is the problem. Tens of thousands of people die in serious accidents because of eating while driving. Thousands are killed and injured just from picking up a dropped item off of the floor. People get into accidents even from shuffling their playlist on their radio. Lack of sleep and even depression can cause accidents. If your mind is elsewhere, it is not safe to drive. But these topics are not brought up as much as they should be, and they are overshadowed by many other major causes of car accidents. Bringing awareness to more causes of car accidents could save hundreds or even thousands of lives a year.