It’s a good idea to learn to drive in high school in case there’s an emergency, but it’s not a good idea for teenagers to drive too much. Studies show that teens have worse judgment than adults and are much more likely to die in car accidents.
In Israel, the rate of traffic fatalities per mile driven is slightly higher than in the US, but the overall traffic fatality rate (per person) is much lower, because people don’t have to drive as much. The murder rate is also much lower, about half of what it is in the US, and life expectancy is higher. For these reasons, one is actually safer to live in Israel, despite the occasional terrorism and wars. The less driving people do in everyday life, the better. Maybe they could just have a Skype date instead? Just kidding.
SaysMe: I hope no one takes that to mean they don’t have to teach their kids to swim. It’s very important. I saw in the news fairly recently that several teenagers drowned, ironically while they were trying to save someone else who was drowning. None of them ever learned how to swim.