Fast and furious overlooks the role of dream merchants

[Kelpie]

From Yahoo! News

 

COMMENT

 

One thing hasn't changed since a red supercar slammed into a taxi near Bugis Junction last weekend. Ferrari's showroom on Leng Kee Road is still open for business and its flashy website continues to sell the dream of macho power and unbridled speed.

 

Anger at the unnecessary deaths has been directed at the rich young Chinese national at the wheel of the 599 GTO that night. When the video surfaced suggesting that he had ignored a red light, Singaporeans' outrage was matched only by that of people in China who are sick of the class of individuals in their midst who think they can get away with anything (because they often do).

 

Opponents of gun control in the United States have a famous slogan that says, "Guns don't kill people, people kill people." It states the obvious, that unless you inhabit the world of Terminator or the Transformers, humans shouldn't be blaming machines for their problems.

 

As obvious, though, is the fact that people can kill people is by failing to control the harm they can inflict with their machines. We already have speed limits, and the government has promised to step up

enforcement. But, in this and all other cases of speed-related deaths, we seem to accept without question the right of manufacturers and merchants to sell fast cars that maybe just don't belong in a crowded city.

 

The comparison with guns is instructive. The standard defence of gun rights in the US is that guns aren't used only to commit violent crimes: they can also be used for hunting and self-defence. But then you don't need a military assault rifle like an AK-47 for such purposes, so these are more tightly regulated.

 

Cars, similarly, have mostly benign uses. When you think about it, though, it is odd that there are no special restrictions on buying the vehicular equivalents of AK-47s: cars expressly engineered for purposes that would be unsafe anywhere or anytime in Singapore. We have no speed-unlimited autobahns nor a cross-country rally course. Yet, luxury sports models like Ferraris and more-affordable racers such as the Subaru WRX ply our roads freely, packed with the kind of horsepower that has no legal purpose.

 

True, a Ferrari is a thing of beauty even when it is standing still, so why shouldn't a car aficionado buy one like it's a piece of art. However, as last weekend's crash seemed to demonstrate, a thoroughbred strains to show what it was created for, and the temptation to let it can be irresistible.

 

(When I last bought a car, I reluctantly decided against the Suzuki Swift Sport

[Ctxiaogui]

Maybe they need to do another class 3F license for people who wants to own/drive a car with horsepower above XXX. Like motorbike, 2, 2A, 2B.

 

From Yahoo! News

 

COMMENT

 

One thing hasn't changed since a red supercar slammed into a taxi near Bugis Junction last weekend. Ferrari's showroom on Leng Kee Road is still open for business and its flashy website continues to sell the dream of macho power and unbridled speed.

 

Anger at the unnecessary deaths has been directed at the rich young Chinese national at the wheel of the 599 GTO that night. When the video surfaced suggesting that he had ignored a red light, Singaporeans' outrage was matched only by that of people in China who are sick of the class of individuals in their midst who think they can get away with anything (because they often do).

 

Opponents of gun control in the United States have a famous slogan that says, "Guns don't kill people, people kill people." It states the obvious, that unless you inhabit the world of Terminator or the Transformers, humans shouldn't be blaming machines for their problems.

 

As obvious, though, is the fact that people can kill people is by failing to control the harm they can inflict with their machines. We already have speed limits, and the government has promised to step up

enforcement. But, in this and all other cases of speed-related deaths, we seem to accept without question the right of manufacturers and merchants to sell fast cars that maybe just don't belong in a crowded city.

 

The comparison with guns is instructive. The standard defence of gun rights in the US is that guns aren't used only to commit violent crimes: they can also be used for hunting and self-defence. But then you don't need a military assault rifle like an AK-47 for such purposes, so these are more tightly regulated.

 

Cars, similarly, have mostly benign uses. When you think about it, though, it is odd that there are no special restrictions on buying the vehicular equivalents of AK-47s: cars expressly engineered for purposes that would be unsafe anywhere or anytime in Singapore. We have no speed-unlimited autobahns nor a cross-country rally course. Yet, luxury sports models like Ferraris and more-affordable racers such as the Subaru WRX ply our roads freely, packed with the kind of horsepower that has no legal purpose.

 

True, a Ferrari is a thing of beauty even when it is standing still, so why shouldn't a car aficionado buy one like it's a piece of art. However, as last weekend's crash seemed to demonstrate, a thoroughbred strains to show what it was created for, and the temptation to let it can be irresistible.

 

(When I last bought a car, I reluctantly decided against the Suzuki Swift Sport

[ER-3682]

Depends on the driver restrain,i saw Indian/Chinese speeding their 24 tonnes lorry up to 140km/h.

[Mustank]

Depends on the driver restrain,i saw Indian/Chinese speeding their 24 tonnes lorry up to 140km/h.

 

Thats why there is a real need to roll out Pervasive Deployment of Speed Cameras across the island

[Fd3s57]

make a class 3F license all over the world . enuff said , that will solve the problem .

[Stanle1]

Thanks for your post.