It's one thing to require would-be motorists to enroll in driver's-education classes and to be tested on their knowledge of safe driving practices and highway signs and signals. And of course anyone getting behind the wheel of a car should be liable for damage caused through negligence or irresponsibility. But to condition driving itself on governmental permission? To extort a chunk of money every few years to keep that permission current? By what right?
Paul Tuns writes:
This is a losing cause for libertarians and conservatives, but it says a lot about modern society that it isn't even worth engaging in a discussion with the general public about whether the state should be granting permission to people to drive cars.
I suspect that there isn't a great burning desire out there to change this.
But I think it would be useful to have this discussion in any case.
People with drivers' licenses driver recklessly in any case.
And there are plenty of people out there who continue to drive in spite of having lost their license.
