One of the truly great things about America is, that for the most part, we are free to do a wide range of things and make any number of decisions about how we live our lives, thankfully free of regulatory interference. (Although some would argue that the nefarious Nanny State is alive and well). A good example of this is to operate a car at any speed for any distance on 14 year-old tires. The fact that so many Crossfires are offered for sale with ample tread on expired tires is further evidence of this. It may also be further evidence that not many Crossfires actually run very often due to the quaint "quirks" that keep them in constant need of repair. I am not sure what the fact that many Crossfires appear to be fair weather, short distance drivers says about the car or the operators. Other than perhaps they are hobbies and "toys", and the owners have the luxury and the resources to use them as such. Good for them!

The great American tradition of making choices like driving on 14 year-old tires has also had a beneficial side-effect. It has kept ER Trauma Nurses like me gainfully employed for years and helped to create a shortage of healthcare workers and properly accredited Trauma Centers. People who drive without wearing seat belts, motorcyclists who don't wear helmets, and geezers climbing ladders are just a few of the frequent supporters of ER Trauma business. The glaring difference between the individuals described above, and drivers who operate cars beyond established safety norms is that these folks mainly endanger, injure, and kill only themselves. Drivers who operate any type of motor vehicle with equipment well beyond established safety norms endanger every other driver on the roads and pedestrians who may be present along their paths. It doesn't matter that the endangerment is only for 20 miles or only in sunny weather. Accidents and tragedies are independent of such deceptive variables. Simply put, faulty tires do not care if the sun is shining, or they are only going to the grocery store.

Another side-effect of operating statistically unsafe vehicles is to keep personal injury attorneys extremely busy and very well paid. One has only to observe the eyesore of their ubiquitous billboards cluttering the highways and byways of our formerly scenic countryside to understand this. If you are involved in an accident running 14 year-old tires it is almost a sure thing that you and your insurance company will lose money, and attorneys and victims will be handsomely rewarded. The peripheral economic costs like lost work time, tragic disabilities, and skyrocketing insurance costs also are part of the equation.

Just because one can do something does not mean one should. Bungee jumping from a towering suspension bridge comes to mind. It is not my intention to single-out or chastise anyone on this forum. I am addressing the practice of running on expired equipment that is absolutely essential to safe operation, not the drivers who do so. As I observed in the opening, this latitude of discretion, or lack thereof, is a major feature in American freedom. I would submit to the reader that folks who can afford to operate multiple cars of relatively high value, and reserve some as merely fun cars to be driven short distances in ideal weather can probably afford to keep those cars maintained well within safety specs. And it begs the question: Why? No one on this forum would purposely expose themselves and others (grandchildren, loved ones, friends) to a known and statistically proven danger unnecessarily. Why do this with something as mundane and easily mitigated by spending a few dollars on safer tires.

So, by all means, exercise your rights of choice when equipping and operating your cars. Just please don't cause an accident that affects me or mine. And it is well to remember that any accident in which you are involved impacts all the other occupants of your vehicle (see grandchildren, loved ones, friends, above), You may be saving money at the tire store, but you can only cheat death a finite number of times. If driving on obviously expired equipment is the hand you want to play, perhaps you may want to reconsider when to fold your cards.