An Internet Globetrotter

On the bus this morning, I overheard the cliché that seems to manifest itself in California's driver law. Driving is not a right, but a privilege. I had to laugh because I was on a motorized vehicle. What I have to argue here is there is a third consideration towards this cliché: driving is a necessity.

At the present time Butte County is laid out so that the only practical way to get around is by motorized vehicle, bus, taxi, or automobile. As I walk to my bus stop, hundreds of cars remind me that this is a fact of life as they buzz by on the asphalt.

The automobile is a double-edged sword. It allows those with money to come and go as they please, all things being equal. On the other hand, I have to plan my day based on the bus schedule, all the way down to the classes I can take at Chico State. Living up on the Ridge is a point of separation between me and other students in that those who live around the campus have no desire to go up the Skyway to get to my house. I am too far out of the way for them.

Which brings me to the other edge of the sword. A car separates its driver and passengers from the rest of society. Closed windows define their world; those in the automobile deal with what is in their chariot, and have no feeling about anything beyond the perimeter of their car. The only exception is anything that could threaten their world or impede the progress of their trip.

In other words, nothing or nobody better deign to get in their way. Because of my stroke I walk slowly. More than once I've heard a car horn imploring me to get out of the way. Drivers like to push out of driveways right in front of me as though I am not there because their egress is more important than mine.