They weave. They race. They tailgate. They thread the needle. I have a name for young guys who drive like bats out of hell on the highway.
Video game drivers.
These young dudes grew up playing video games, and you can tell that’s where they got their driving technique. Certainly not from driver’s ed, which – done properly – would have taught them to always leave a large space between cars, to be mindful of other people, to not operate a moving vehicle demonically, and above all, to drive defensively.
Instead, these guys in their teens and 20s drive as offensively as possible. Coming home from a night Phillies game recently, I was driving with Hugh in the passenger seat. Suddenly a sporty dark death car swooped and swerved in front of us, before speeding off in another lane. We could see red brake lights brightening up ahead as this idiot picked off dozens of unsuspecting, safe drivers, one by one.
I said “Hugh, promise me you’ll never drive like that.”
Hugh promised, and then said later, “No offense Mom, but he was in control. He knew what he was doing.”
I begged to differ. While conceding the point that yes, young guys have good reflexes – thank God - quick reaction time is ultimately not enough. Sooner or later, they’re going to go out of control.
And unlike the times when they’re driving a fake car on a glowing screen and a wreck just means losing the game to their buddy, this crash is going to hurt.
