Not so long ago a truck was heading west inside the city limits, doing 50
miles an hour in a 35 mile zone. It was past midnight, and very few cars
were on the street. The driver was anxious to get home because he hadn’t
seen his family for a week. He had driven this same route many times and
knew it was safe to go this speed at that time of the morning. His only
concern was to keep an eye out for a patrol car so he wouldn’t get a ticket.
Up ahead, four blocks away, he saw that a traffic signal was green when
about a half block away he knew that it would soon be joined with the
yellow light and followed in a few seconds by the red, indicating that he
would have to stop. Because he felt this was a nuisance, since the amber
light had not yet gone on and since the darkness enabled him to see that no
headlights were coming from other directions, he felt safe to increase his
speed to 65 miles an hour.
Heading north was a car carrying five people – a father, mother, and
their three children. They had just attended a wedding and were on their
way home. The father had been drinking rather heavily and completely
forgot to put on his headlights. He was also traveling along at 50 miles an
hour when he slowed down to 35 so he wouldn’t have to stop for the red
light up ahead, but when he saw the yellow light go on for the other
direction, and knowing that the light would be green before he entered the
intersection even if he resumed his 50 miles an hour, he did not hesitate to
do just that. Now just before the truck got to the crossing the light changed,
which meant that the driver would have to go through on the red. At that
very moment he saw the car without any headlights on enter the intersection
a fraction of a second ahead of him, but it was too late to avoid the
collision. The father saw the truck at that instant too. They both jammed
on their brakes and turned their wheels instinctively, but the truck ploughed
head on at a slight angle into the rear right side of the car. The parents were
somehow only injured slightly; the truck driver was not hurt at all, but the
three children were killed instantly. Standing on the corner was someone
who noticed that the car’s lights were not on. Now let us analyze this.
If the truck driver had any inkling that such an accident would have
resulted from his trying to beat the light he certainly would never have
considered it, but he chose to do what he did because it gave him greater
satisfaction at that moment. However, we are not concerned now with what
he should or should not have done but what he must do for greater
satisfaction following the accident. It is obvious that he feels absolutely
terrible over what he knows was his fault, yet he does not want to be
blamed for the death of these children. There is certainly no satisfaction in
feeling the weight of this responsibility; consequently, he is going to do
everything in his power to shift it away from himself. The police arrive and
learn that the father was driving without headlights on and that he was
highly intoxicated. The truck driver kept saying over and over again – “It
was not my fault. That man went right through the red light and didn’t even
have his lights on. The death of those children is horrible, but it was not my
fault!†Before long he was absolutely convinced that the accident would
never have occurred had the headlights been on, and he was right because
what made him speed up to beat the yellow light was his certainty that no
car was coming. However, he could not tell the police the truth, that the
right-of-way still belonged to the father even though intoxicated and
without lights – although it made him feel as if it was not his responsibility.
In court the father was found guilty of manslaughter even though he was
innocent, which infuriated him. But because the deaths of his children were
considered punishment enough, his sentence was suspended and he was
placed on probation. His wife, however, was not satisfied with the decision
since she believed him guilty of killing their children (she had warned him
time and again about his drinking at parties), and filed for divorce. The
truck driver was awarded quite a bit of money in damages because he
discovered that he was not physically the same after such a traumatic
experience. Had the conditions been slightly different making it impossible
for the truck driver to shift his responsibility, the only avenue open for
greater satisfaction would have been for him to pay a heavy price for what
he did. His insurance would have compensated the parents to a degree for
their tragic loss and they would have been satisfied to know that he was sent
to prison. When released he would feel that he paid his debt to society and
the family, and his conscience would be cleared. If he felt the least big
guilty for killing these children he could always confess this sin to a priest
or psychiatrist, or atone for it in various ways.
The father, on the other
hand, who was found guilty although he was completely innocent has built
up a tremendous hate for the entire system of justice and may desire to kill
the truck driver in retaliation if he thinks he can get away with it. His life
has been ruined and he wants to hurt somebody in the worst way for what
was done to him. Had this accident not taken anyone’s life, the driver of
the truck might have volunteered that it was his fault so his insurance
company could reimburse them for property damage. This could help
compensate in some small way for what happened. Now pay close
attention to the same accident under changed conditions so you can see why
the truck driver when faced with the choice of speeding up or slowing down
is compelled to prefer the latter – which avoids the tragedy. Let’s see how
the truck driver is making out.