Keller @ Large: Google's Driverless Cars A Terrible Idea
BOSTON (CBS) - Let's face it, every one of us, no matter how young or young at heart we are, has an old fogey lurking inside us.
However open-minded we may be, there comes a moment in everyone's life when they look at some bit of purported "progress" and wish they could roll it back.
I understand how predictable this is. When one of my sons borrows my car and returns it with the radio set to some abysmal pop music, I am momentarily appalled, until I recall how my parents must have felt when I kept playing my 45 of "Wild Thing" by The Troggs over and over and over again, at high volume.
But when it comes to the new movement toward driverless cars, I think my inner fogey has the right idea.
Google, one of the companies tinkering with this technology, will soon unleash their fleet of 25 driverless cars on the streets of Mountain View, California. Speed is limited to 25 mph, and there will be a human driver ready to seize control if necessary, but these cars will still be driving themselves.
"We're looking forward to learning how the community perceives and interacts with the vehicles," says the Google executive in charge.
Allow me to interact.
This is a terrible idea, not just because it's going to terminate in a terrible accident when human nature does not compute one rainy night. But why would anyone want to give up driving the car in the first place?
It may be hard to believe living here in the land of the angry driver, but many people enjoy driving their car. Just because you hardly have to lift a finger to do anything anymore doesn't mean finger-lifting isn't good for you.
Let's re-think this one, computer nuts of America.
And while you're at it, get off my lawn.
Listen to Jon's commentary:
You can listen to Keller At Large on WBZ News Radio every weekday at 7:55 a.m. You can also watch Jon on WBZ-TV News.
