DECEMBER 14, 2019 – Impeachment can wait. Minnesota is lucky I’m not a highway patrolman. If I were, I’d have every other car pulled over for one infraction or another—speeding, following too closely, failure to signal, failure to yield, failure to come to a complete stop at a stop sign, texting while driving. If I caught someone driving under the influence, I’d come down especially hard. But I’d reserve my sharpest scolds for driving with obstructed views (i.e. snow on the windows) and driving without lights.
Speaking of “driving,” this last one drives me crazy. In Minnesota, as in most states, the law requires that if you drive after sunset and before sunrise or if it’s precipitating enough to require windshield wipers to be activated, your headlights must be on. I’m amazed by how many people drive around in darkness, rain or snow—without their headlights (or taillights) on. The law here is not simply “the law”—it’s rooted in the distinction between the visibility and invisibility of a large, fast-moving object.
If the vehicle is an older model without automatic driving lights, there’s no excuse—no lights, no dash lights, and in the dark, at least, every driver should notice if their dash is also dark. Most late model vehicles are equipped with automatic driving lights, at least in front. (Though, for some reason they’re “automatic” only if the switch on the steering column is manually set to that position.) Turn the ignition on and those driving lights turn on automatically—as do the dashboard lights. However, in most urban settings, which are well lit by streetlights and illuminated signage, a driver wouldn’t notice that he’s driving with only the automatic driving lights, not the true headlights. Moreover, on many vehicles, taillights are not paired with the automatic driving lights. How many times I’ve encountered a vehicle sailing blithely along with the driver clueless to the fact the rear of their car is completely dark.
An automotive engineering standard should require that headlights and taillights be connected to the ignition, not a separate switch. Start your vehicle—night or day, rain, snow, or shine—and all lights should be on automatically and stay on until you exit the vehicle. (Since the 1970s, Sweden has required lights on at all times. Why hasn’t this standard been adopted worldwide?) Until the engineering improves, it’s incumbent on every driver to ensure that full lights are on when required (in my book, at all times).
Okay. Lest you fear that I’m a little crazy about this, if I were a highway patrolman, I wouldn’t be some unbending, lean-jaw type with ego and authority busting out of my uniform. I’d represent myself as a “safety advisor” and give you a stern lecture about safety, replete with statistics and simple physics. Then I’d let you go.
And then in a few short weeks, I’d be “let go” for not having written enough tickets to hit my assigned quota.
Whew. Now back to impeachment drama!
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© 2019 Eric Nilsson
