“Nothing is more terrible than ignorance in action.” (Goethe)

I just saw a weather map of the United States that showed dangerous conditions for nearly the entire country. Here in Kansas it’s going to drop below zero some time tonight. That’s a rare occasion and a very dangerous one for anyone who has to go out into the elements. High winds and black ice will make driving extremely dangerous and I know this from personal experience having driven 75,000 miles a year during my time in the foster care system. I had to go out in those days because kids were at risk and getting them somewhere safe was an urgent need. I went because I had to and that’s the point of this blog.

If you don’t have to go out in these conditons, please don’t. You would be doing the world a huge favor and those people who do have to be out like policemen, firemen, EMTs, doctors, nurses, road workers, truck drivers and foster care drivers would be eternally grateful if you just stayed home till the worst is over. Those of us who chose jobs that serve society are always at an increased risk of not making it home because of some poor fool who doesn’t have good tires, didn’t bother to check the condtions before leaving, thinks it’s okay to still drive 70 on the highway and is just plain ignorant of the laws of physics that make stopping on ice nearly impossible. I don’t feel particularly sorry for people who are clearly ignorant and choose to ignore all the warning signs.

I do feel sorry for all the emergency personnel who have to risk their lives to clean up the mess caused by these fools. Whenever someone makes an incredibly bad decision to risk their life so they can go get a latte in the middle of a blizzard other people will be forced to risk their lives by helping them get out of that ditch. I had my share of calls to head out and find a child that some parent had just abused. I went because I had to and I willingly made that choice to take that job but I wasn’t happy about it and I had no sympathy for abusive parents, just the kids. I could write several pages about my close calls on the road with kids in the back seat sobbing. If I wrote them all down, you might be the one sobbing. Somewhere tonight someone is not going to make it home. I hope that latte was worth it.

Empathy is the ability to see the world from 50,000 feet and understand that all of us matter. We all make decisions every day that could lead to good or bad outcomes and bad ones usually require assistance from others and good ones are made possible by a willingness to help. I’m glad so many people want to be helpful and every policeman, fireman and EMT gets all of my utmost respect for risking their lives to help others. I just wish more of us would take a moment to consider those lives as being more important than that latte.

In all my years on the road, I was never that worried about my own driving ability but I was terrified of meeting some fool head on. Ignorance and physics are incompatible. Your risk goes up exponentially in bad weather and no safety features will eliminate the impact of sheer stupidity. Then when you’re slowly freezing to death in the ditch, you will be totally dependent on some other person’s willingness to come save you. Does that seem fair to the other person? I, for one, would never trade a cup of coffee for a life.

Let me just close with some fatherly advice or in my case, grandfatherly advice – stay home where it’s warm and comfortable and safe for you and for others. Those good people who are willing to help should be given every opportunity to make it home too and by choosing to stay off the roads, the rest of us can actually make a difference in their lives for a change. That warm feeling of empathy tastes just as good as any latte you will ever have.

©Guy R. Horst and grhgraph.wordpress.com, 2024. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this blog’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Guy R. Horst and grhgraph.wordpress.com with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.