I'm a little torn on this one. It's always so very easy to point fingers when something like this happens. If the driver had survived and the passenger still died, is it still the parents fault? Or would we point fingers at the driver?
As far as I'm concerned (and I am by no means 16, although maybe still a kid mentally?) the only one who should be held accountable is the actual driver. He is the one that crossed the double yellow line. I don't care how fast the car is, how slow it is, who his brother's girlfriend's mom's ex boyfriend is, who his parents are or anything else. He was the one driving. A car cannot drive itself (yet). Therefore the car didn't decide it was going to cross the line for the driver. He is the one that made these decisions. Why not blame society while we're at it? Let's blame atari, they are, after-all, the ones who really mainstreamed video games 30 years ago. If not for Atari, "kids" now-a-days wouldn't be playing GT4 on PS2. Maybe we can blame the tire company. Please, please, we need someone to blame. Someone must be held accountable!
Looking back over the past 14 years (since I was 16), I have only learned one thing. I have learned it over and over and over again. People are hypocrites. I have not learned anything new about driving. The are only two driving laws that have changed (that I can think of). The speed limits were changed from the federal level to the state level and Florida is no longer no-fault.
Street racing is not a new thing because of the fast and the furious. For all you "old" people, go back and watch Better off Dead. For those a generation older than that, go back and watch American Graffitti. For those still older, watch Rebel without a Cause.
People driving "stupid" is not a new development either. If anything kids now-a-days are better off than when I was younger. Or perhaps when people older than me were younger. My parents grew up in the muscle car era. 400hp cars with no crumple zones, no headrests, no airbags, lapbelts instead of three point seatbelts. There were no child restraints back then. Power steering and NON-abs disc brakes were merely options back then.
My first car didn't have abs, airbags, disc brakes, hell maybe not even crumple zones. The only people I can imagine saying this MS3 is too fast for kids either a) completely forgot their childhoods (meaning muscle car era) or grew up in the late 70's to late 80's where the mpg was more important. Even if option B is the case, you still must concede that these "more powerful" cars have a better chance of saving lives than our cars did from the 80's.
I'd like to think I know how to drive "properly". In '94 I drove 60 in a 45 and I still drive 60 in a 45. In '94 I always knew my surroundings while behind the wheel and I still do today. Do I break the laws of the road? Probably on a daily basis in some form or another. What about everyone else? Inconsequential unless they directly effect me.
Yeah it's tragic that this had to happen this way. But, at the end of the day, this kid made a bad decision and it cost him his life as well as his brother's.
His parents are going through enough right now w/o some jackbags looking for someone to crucify. Say your peace and pray the people in the hummer pull through.
