[Dantilla]

I agree with almost all of the above.

-My kid will learn true car control. "Driver's Ed" usually means stuff like "Don't park in front of a fire hydrant". Not good enough.

-Performance cars tend to tempt the driver towards higher speeds. A newly-minted teen driver is going to go have fun testing their new skills, but if they have a second-hand Explorer or Jeep, they're more likely to go off-roading, where mishaps are less likely to cause severe injury or death. A 1960 Valiant with a slant six is a perfect beginner's car- Maybe an old pick-up truck. That being said, one of my best friends had a 1970 Firebird when in high school, and we definately exceeded the speed limit a time or two with it. But at least we used good judgement, I guess, because we're still here. I don't recall ever feeling like we cheated death, or got away with something when driving that car.

-The families of these victims live in a high-end country club, where most teens drive cars that are nicer than ..... a Valiant. Some around here seem to have the attitude that coming from a wealthy family makes it even more tragic. I don't see it that way. Poor parents would have the same pain/guilt/loss/questions as anybody else. Income makes no difference when a family member is lost. Not sure how I would react if my kid caused a friend's death. That's gotta be hard.

-Others seem to have the attitude that they deserved it for being so stupid. I have a hard time thinking somebody deserves a death sentance for spirited driving.