It’s not really about being bad drivers. It’s about being anti-education.

Even just teaching people general critical thinking and risk evaluation would get them thinking “Gee, upturning this 8-ton metal vehicle would be really bad. Maybe I won’t risk that yellow light a block away.”

I think because it's so car-centric lots of people have to be able to drive to hold a job or go to school. So it's seen almost more like a "right". Compared to my friends in London or Sydney were the view seems much more that proficiency should be worked towards and licensure earned.

There is probably some parallel to gun culture, though that actually is a "right" here. A person who has no business around weapons can still buy enough to kit a small army. Beat their spouse? Meh, they can still own guns. Road rage? Psh, that's no reason to pull their drivers license or their guns.

Also, I was 13 when I got a license to drive. My state had the lowest age I am aware of for kids who lived in rural areas and didn't have school bus service so they could drive themselves to school. So yeah, 13 years old and I drove a car from home into the city of 300k people to get to my school. The only accident I have ever been responsible for was wiping out a mailbox when I slid on some ice. Motorcycle license at 15 years old after a short written test and riding the bike about six city blocks. I'm technically a successful example of the low age limits and I think it was fucking stupid.

This is true, every time I drive just a few miles, i witness dozens of traffic violations. Rolling through stop signs, turning illegally into the wrong lane, running red lights, etc. When I was a teenager there were traffic cops, today you'll see people break the law right in front of a cop and the cop does nothing.

I think it's because it's car centric the complacency set in so fast than their logical thinking can course correct. The whole place is made just for car and no other mode of transport, it train people to not ever think about others and doing thing their way, as driving are so easy it barely challenge anyone to make a conscious move.

There's a lot of variation by locale, too. In Arkansas, for example, at one point the age to start driving was 15 and there were effectively zero other qualifications for obtaining a license.