Report 7

A news article, called TRAFFIC: Residents ask for relief , describes a problem at an intersection where there have been numerous car crashes due to people exceeding the 25 mph speed limit. A neighbor located near this intersection is described in the most recent of these incidents. "John Wyrsch awoke to the sound of screeching tires one November morning at 2 a.m. He went outside to find that a car had plowed through his hedges. "Cars have hit my bushes five times in the last three years," he said". Wyrsch and other worried neighbors sent complaints to the Palo Alto Police Department in hopes that they could implement a plan to reduce the number of accidents in their area. In response, the police department sent an officer to patrol the area and issue tickets. Unfortunately, as the officer states who was sent to patrol the area, "What we can do is discourage people from violations at an intersection, but enforcement alone doesn't fix anything."

Law enforcement will not discourage people that are in the "HARMFUL" state of mind. It does not even apply in their way of thinking. Here is another example.

Described in the Golden Gater Online, titledCross Traffic Collision , a Honda CRX speeding at an estimated 65 mph ran a red light at an intersection causing a three-car collision and injuring two people. The CRX was struck by a Toyota Corolla crossing the intersection (the passengers were a couple and their three children). The Honda then spun out of control and collided with a Subaru station wagon traveling in the opposite direction (the passengers were a father and son).

As the last article stated, due to re-occuring accidents in this area, police officers were sent to patrol the area and give out to tickets to speeders in hopes of reducing the number of accidents. Again, law enforcement will not change the behavior of the "HARMFUL" state of mind. Here is a last example. An article in The Detroit News titled, 2 Cops Killed, 2 Injured in West-Side Chase , a police car chasing a dark car going west that was driving so fast "it was just a blur" radioed in for a backup police car that was driving east. What happened was the police car driving east and the police car chasing the car going west crossed a blind intersection and hit each other dead on. Two policemen died, one was seriously injured and the dark car got away. "Lord, have mercy, I was sure they were all dead, said 75-year-old Loree Ferguson, who watched the crash early Saturday morning from her bedroom window. "I don't know how anybody could have gotten out alive".

Speedlimits obviously don't effect the "HARMFUL" state of mind but it does establish a guideline for the other two states, the "HARMONIOUS" and the "HARNESSED". Since speedlimits do have quite an affect on the majority, it is reasonable to perserve them. The main focus remains in resolving the "HARMFUL" ill state of mind. A driver's education program, given prior to attaining a driver's lisence, consisting of training drivers how to control and deal with their feelings,thoughts and actions would possibly prevent or suppress an ill state of mind. Basically it would include training, literally, on how to think in a civil and ethical manner.