I have to wonder why anyone would be interested in a driverless car. You have to ask what demand there really was behind it even being invented, and why all this money is being poured into them? In some communities, even our city councils are planning special pathways for them to drive on.
I could see the attraction on a road trip I guess. You could sleep in the car on the way there, but would we now lose those great on-the-road games such as 鈥渆ye spy鈥� or 鈥渓icence plate鈥� as we鈥檙e snoring away? Also what about those countless 鈥淭immy鈥� coffee stops? Don鈥檛 need that caffeine fix either.
Maybe driverless cars will increase tourism鈥ore road trips because all the driving is taken care of for us鈥ess time planning the trip and stopping. Just let old GPS take you there. Ok maybe I can also justify the safety reason for these cars. Let someone else do the driving when you drink. Can you imagine the financial boom to bars and liquor stores because now you can drink all you want, stagger to and from the car, throw up and never worry about an accident? Now that is progress. No incentive here to ever stay sombre or get off those heavy sleeping pills.
So now we have established the potential boom in the hospitality business while at the same time we totally eliminate the need for taxis鈥aybe transit too. Does this also mean we become an accident-free society as we allow the electronic gizmos built into our cars to be making all those important decisions assuming of course they are ALWAYS working.聽 Oops one of my sensor batteries went out鈥idn鈥檛 meant to run over that cat! So can you still be charged for hit-and-run when the car is at fault?聽 Oh, and how about that mechanical bill for fixing all that computer stuff. Maybe my 15-year-old neighbour kid will become my new mechanic since he already shows me how to play Call of Duty or use my smartphone.
So my conclusion is all this: maybe humans just want to have everything done for them. Why enjoy home cooking when you can microwave or get take out? Why do math when you can have a calculator? Do some people maybe have too much time on their hands鈥o they just make up irrelevant things and we give up something we should be doing instead? Don鈥檛 get me started. How bad was it before? We鈥檝e all heard about the lack of brainpower we actually use over our lifetime鈥ow they want to take away our motor skills. Can you say v-e-g-e-t-a-b-l-e sedate r-o-b-o-t-s? That is what we will become. Then we have communication鈥o point calling someone when you can TEXT.
So to all those inventors out there, let鈥檚 spend all that energy on real inventions that will make us happier, smarter, and healthier鈥etter HUMAN beings. Let鈥檚 not always look for things to be easier, but maybe more rewarding or better for society. How about a practical thing like a flying car instead? Imagine the savings on infrastructure such as highways if we 鈥渉overed鈥� over the roads as opposed to driving on them. Then we would also be able to reduce one of our seasons 鈥� potholes. Flying vehicles might also be a benefit in the movement of people or goods in a different, safer, cheaper ways than trucks or airplanes. They might even prove to be a better way to transport accident victims or respond quicker to an emergency. Finally how about the price of fuel these days? Can鈥檛 we better use our waste and garbage to fuel our transportation needs? I would even be happier to just pee in a cup and start my engine up. Now that would be smart!
