Sarto's answer was beyond belief
Published: 9/6/2007 12:02 AM

Some letters absolutely demand a response and Carpentersville Village President Bill Sarto's is a perfect example.

He asks, "Why not make sure that all drivers regardless of their legal status are able to legally get a driver's license?"

My response to him is why not just let everyone do everything they want?

The reason is that until now, we have been a nation of laws that were enforced. He looks at additional expenses for impounded vehicles for unlicensed and uninsured drivers as a punishment.

Well, it should be.

If people elect to illegally enter our nation, knowing full well that they will not be able to obtain a valid driver's license and insurance and then choose to drive, they have no one to blame except themselves if they are arrested.

But to imply that impounding their vehicle is not a safety measure is ludicrous.

Not having a valid driver's license means that a driver has not had to prove his knowledge of the rules of the road or his ability to drive with the skills needed to meet the standards for licensure.

The safety of licensed drivers is compromised when the unlicensed drivers choose to and do get behind the wheel and drive.

If the illegal drivers know that their vehicles will be impounded in addition to receiving citations and actually being arrested, there may be a greater hesitation on their part to drive.

And not having illegal drivers behind the wheel increases the safety for all the legal drivers.

In the past few years, Illinois has increased the time for teenage drivers to be accompanied by a licensed older driver, has decreased the number of passengers able to ride with a teenage driver and has made senior citizens take annual drivers testing after a specific age.

Why?

Because there were increases in the number of accidents in these categories, which put other drivers in harm's way.

If a 16-year-old citizen decided to drive without a license and was caught, he wouldn't see a driver's license until he was at least 18 years old.

If an 87-year-old citizen driver didn't take an annual test and was caught, he probably would never get another driver's license issued to him.

So why should illegal immigrants be given access to the driving privileges that our own citizens must prove to be responsible enough to have?

There is no acceptable answer to this question.

If an illegal immigrant with no license and no insurance injured or killed one of Sarto's family members while driving, would he be as accommodating?

Tricia L. Dieringer

Elgin

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