The Daily News reports that a bicyclist was killed in a Long Beach shooting last night.
The shooting occurred prior to 8 pm Tuesday on the 2100 block of East 14th Street; no other details are available at this time.
This is the 5th cyclist fatally shot in Southern California this year, and the 4th in L.A. County.
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An anonymous reader forwards news of a tragic collision in San Diego last week, in which a 15 year old boy was critically injured when an 84-year old driver mistakenly stepped on the gas pedal instead of the brakes.
Isaiah Fisher remains in a coma after reconstruction surgery to the entire right side of his face. The van driven by Dean Hedlund reportedly made a wide left turn, went over the curb and hit a light pole before colliding with Fisher.
Just when an elderly driver is no longer able to drive safely is one of the hardest questions any family will face. For older people, driving means represents freedom and an ability to care for themselves, yet it can also pose a significant risk to themselves and everyone else on the road as their ability and judgement decline.
The hard part is that this occurs at a different rate for every individual. Some can no longer drive safely in their 60’s, while others can maintain full control of a motor vehicle decades later.
We took my father-in-law’s keys away after he suffered a severe stroke; even with significant physical impairment, he would have gladly gotten back behind the wheel if he could.
Unfortunately, most people don’t have such a clearly defined indicator that they can no longer drive safely. The warning signs of declining driving ability are usually subtle and slow to develop, often not becoming apparent until it’s too late; Hedlund himself denied that his age was a factor in the collision.
As a society, we haven’t begun to address this problem.
Instead of mandating annual testing after a certain age, we leave it up to often unqualified family members to recognize the problem and take away the keys.
As Isiah Fisher tragically shows, that’s just not good enough.
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Speaking of drivers who should be on the road, Bikeside’s Alex Thompson offers a full update on the condition of the victims, as well a interviews with witnesses, in the Culver City collision that injured 11 cyclists, 6 seriously enough to require hospitalization.And he forwards a link to some very sick and disturbed people who consider Christine Dahab, the driver who put all those people in the hospital, a hero.
Maybe we should force everyone who posts such vile comments online to visit the victims of their hatred, and see firsthand what drunken and/or distracted carelessness can do.
Maybe then they might rediscover a shred of their own humanity.
Doubtful, though.
