Comments on: The most dangerous thing you could do today…

By: Glasstrack

Glasstrack — Tue, 16 Dec 2008 19:31:04 +0000

Well said. But no matter how many times I share this information with my otherwise rational and intelligent friends, most people seem to figure themselves exceptions. I think it’s not a misperception of the risk as much as it’s a refusal to appreciate the severity of the bad outcome. Playing Russian roulette with a 10,000 chamber pistol is easier to understand. My hunch is that if people truly understood how dangerous driving is, many would refrain (e.g., a lot of foreigners won’t drive in India, where the dangers /appear/ more obvious); if that happened, however, where would our oil companies be? And, even if it didn’t go that far, where would our cell phone companies be if people refused to talk while driving? Likewise, all that extra horsepower must appear appealing, not-at-all dangerous, and controllable by the average, poorly-trained American driver. Don’t worry: all those new gadgets will carry you away on a puffy airbag … to heaven, if you’ve lived a good life.

By: Phillip Cheung

Phillip Cheung — Tue, 16 Dec 2008 11:56:00 +0000

I've never driven in India, but I have driven in Taiwan, and the interesting thing about the crazy traffic is that everyone agrees to drive in the same crazy way, so everyone knows what to expect and things are okay.

By: Adarsh Carter

Adarsh Carter — Tue, 16 Dec 2008 11:30:00 +0000

Well said. But no matter how many times I share this information with my otherwise rational and intelligent friends, most people seem to figure themselves exceptions. I think it's not a misperception of the risk as much as it's a refusal to appreciate the severity of a bad outcome. Playing Russian roulette with a 10,000 chamber pistol is easier to understand. My hunch is that if people truly understood how dangerous driving is, many would refrain (e.g., a lot of foreigners won't drive in India, where the dangers /appear/ more obvious); if that happened, however, where would our oil companies be? And, even if it didn't go that far, where would our cell phone companies be if people refused to talk while driving? Likewise, all that extra horsepower must appear appealing, not-at-all dangerous, and controllable by the average, poorly-trained American driver. Don't worry: all those new gadgets will carry you away on a puffy airbag … to heaven, if you've lived a good life.