TURTLES: Research or law-breaking?

I just finished reading The Press’s feel good article about the Clemson University student who is studying the relationship of local drivers to small turtles crossing the roads. This article, interesting as it is, also shows the stupidity of some of our academia. The student, probably breaking at least one law, littering the highways, is also creating a situation that potentially could cause a serious accident. As stated, some drivers swerved to hit the plastic turtle, and I’m sure many also swerved to miss it. How would this genius feel if a driver who swerved lost control of his vehicle and injured or killed himself or some innocent passerby? I was taught as a teen just learning to drive that we should always try to brake for small animals, but never to swerve trying to miss them. Once a driver loses control of a 4,000-pound vehicle, it is hard to regain that control.

The statements by the Clemson professor were also interesting. I laud his compassion for one of God’s creatures, the small box turtle, very prevalent in the South. His family apparently shares his concerns, but it is hard to believe that his wife will stop traffic and run onto the highway to rescue a small turtle. Great compassion, but very little intelligence.

WALTER PORTER

Rathdrum