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Blaming the wrong people

The tragic deaths of three teenagers in an overnight car crash have sent talkback radio in Melbourne absolutely wild. Among the many messages coming across from callers was the issue of police and high-speed car chases.

One woman said police should not be allowed to conduct high-speed pursuits and that society should find others ways to deal with car thieves and joyriders.

Another person suggested that cars should be better made so that stealing them is almost impossible.

Hello? Aren't we missing the point here guys? Who allegedly stole the car? Who drove at high speeds - up to 140km - in city streets? Who made the decision to do those things?

The teenagers who were in the car that crashed.

Not the police, not society - they did it themselves.

The police in Victoria are ordered to pull back from pursuing high-speed cars and follow at a safe distance. They do so when they feel the situation is too dangerous. Does that stop the offenders and get them to slow down?

Not really. It would be fair to say that they are having too much of a buzz with driving fast with their mates.

And what if the joyriders plough into some innocent driver who is going along, obeying the law and is all of a sudden killed or maimed by irresponsible thieves?

Once again we seem to have got it all wrong and the issue of personal responsibility never gets raised.

The victims last night were behaving in a dangerous manner and brought it upon themselves with their own actions. No one else is to blame.

It's tragic, it's avoidable and we should not get stuck into the police who were doing the right thing by society by trying to deal with the problem.

If there is something that has really got up your nose, let Grumpy Old Coot know at grumpy@webwombat.com