Then And Now---Driving

Years ago when I was a teenager learning to drive, the rules of the road were written in cement. I attended drivers training classes at school, passed my driving tests at DMV (Dept of Motor Vehicles), earned a drivers license along with the privilege of driving my old klunker car up and down the main drag on the way to and from school.

During those times there was something called a "rolling stop" which was not making a complete stop at a stop sign. And guess what, there were consequences for not making a complete stop: A Traffic Ticket.

Today at least in the area of the country I live, most of the drivers do NOT make a full stop at a stop sign, in fact they don't attempt to slow down at a stop sign. I have to admit I have done the same thing myself at a corner that is very familiar to me and driving on a one way street and absolutely no traffic. One day I did the rolling stop at that corner in front of a local police person. And received a smirk from the driver of the police car and nothing else. The police these days have so much more to do than worry about a driver not making a complete stop at a stop sign.

Part of me is melancholy when I think back to the days of less traffic, less populace, simple rules.

Could it be that my memories are dim after all these years? I don't think so. I do remember riding in a car with other people who were pulled over and given tickets for not making a complete stop. That is why it is clear to me that there used to be interest in enforcing the minor traffic laws but like other things in this life there are way too many more things to do than the simple rules of yesteryear.