Just hopping in to comment on the car safety angle (because, you know, that's what I do). The US driving exam is a joke, and doesn't have cross-compatibility with those in a lot of other countries simply because it doesn't take much skill to pass. Also, in other countries with much lower death rates, not only are there fewer unnecessarily large vehicles on the roads, there are also much stricter restrictions against speeding and driving drunk, two things that are highly common in the US and contribute to much of our unnecessarily high driver death rates.
One quick reference for additional reading: http://thecarcrashdetective.com/2014/07/why-are-swedish-roads-so-safe.html
I was absolutely floored to learn the other day that here in the great state of IL, one does not even need to take Driver's Ed if he or she is over 21 at the time of first getting his/her license. I assume that people first getting their license at that age are probably not learning to drive from mom or dad, so they probably need Driver's Ed MORE not less. Insanity.
what is so flooring about this? if you take an exam that involves driving and being graded it shouldn't matter who taught you to drive.
why do you assume at 21 mom and dad suddenly are less involved ?
by 21 they have had more time to be exposed to opportunities to learn to drive, simple by the fact of being older.
