I am a concerned mom trying to teach my son to drive. He's just completed two weeks of driver's ed and has logged more than eight hours of driving on his learner's permit. But it's extremely difficult to learn to drive in this town.

This morning as we approached a green light to make a left turn, my son was driving and asked, "Should I go or wait for that oncoming car?"

My response was, "If there is any question at all, the best course of action is to wait and be cautious," so he waited for the oncoming car and was honked at, not once, but several times, by the driver behind him.

Finally, we turned and I asked my son to pull over and let the impatient driver pass.

Whenever my son goes exactly the speed limit on Rodeo Road, he is tailgated to the point that anyone would become nervous.

Can't our community cut young drivers some slack?

The tragic accident that killed four teenagers last weekend is going to make learning to drive that much more difficult for them.

They understand that a car can be dangerous and serious. I am so very proud that my son is not reckless or taking chances; shouldn't the community be, also?



It is my opinion that Lt. Stephen Ryan should be immediately relieved of his duties as head of Santa Fe Police Department's Internal Affairs Division as a result of being charged with aggravated drunken driving. I can imagine this would be an extremely difficult decision for his superiors to make. However, police officers are, and should be, quintessential role models for young people. They should have integrity and be well respected by the citizens of our community.

Drunken driving is a horrible problem, as we've all been reminded once again by the accident that killed four promising, beautiful young teenagers and devastated their families. We all need to be responsible for ourselves, our families and our greater community. The lieutenant has failed in his mission. I wish the police chief the wisdom and fortitude to do the right thing.



New Mexico's DWI laws are actually fine. It's the failure of our judiciary that contributes to the tragedies of this past week, and to the tragedies we experience repeatedly.

These failures add up to the appalling DWI statistics that we live with in New Mexico. Too often our judges decide, at sentencing, that an offender's employment, or health concerns, or classes, or some other factor is more important than the lives of the rest of us.

The judge imposes time served, or minimal probation, and a few hundred dollars fine.

Given the risks involved, it would seem that life is cheap.

Drunken drivers need to go to jail, with steeply increasing time, starting with the very first offense.

They need to pay the consequences of their behavior, not the innocents on the road.



Once again the city of Santa Fe is grieved into community. Once again the loss of innocents makes parents of us all. Asking "why" brings neither answers nor solace. "What" and "how" more appropriately give impetus to grief: What to do, what works in other places, what will work here. How do we do it, fund it, and garner support from all of us. There is wisdom among the people of New Mexico. And there is money in the stimulus package. Other states have successful plans in place. We no longer have an excuse. A new paradigm is upon us and we'd best move with it. Let us redirect the energy of our grief into strength of prevention. The 21st century is when everything changes. And I do mean everything.