Our driver’s education teachers, our moms and the cops that pulled us over for speeding all told us the same thing: driving is a privilege. Apparently, this is no longer the case.

The American Civil Liberties Union is suing the state of Indiana because up to 56,000 driver’s licenses could be revoked because the license information doesn’t match the Social Security database. According to an MSNBC.com online article, some of this could be due to typos or name changes caused by marriage. State officials have sent out letters to get the misinformation rectified. The same article said the ACLU filed an injunction to make sure all those whose licenses are possibly going to be revoked get hearings.

Up to this point, all of this made sense. It would not be fair if someone were to get their license taken away and had not had the chance to plead their case or fix the conflicting information. However, it was what one of the leaders of the ACLU said in several articles about the incident that tripped up most of the Review Editorial Board. Ken Falk of the ACLU said you are “entitled” to have a driver’s license.

Entitled?

If we are all entitled to a driver’s license, why does the state not set up a shop in the mall and hand them out to everyone? We should not have to take that test, either. If this is the case, then people who have had their licenses revoked should get them back. Then they could continue to drive under the influence, drive without insurance, leave the scene of accidents and drive recklessly. This seems like a great idea.

We’re not sure if you’ve driven in Topeka or the surrounding area lately, but there are enough bad drivers or even good drivers under bad circumstances that the possibility of our cars getting smashed by some idiot is great enough already.

Now, we’re not saying that everyone who has had his or her license suspended is an idiot, or that everyone who does not have a driver’s license is any less of a person. What we are saying, however, is that this lawsuit sets a bad precedent. People should not just be given licenses and those that have been suspended should not be “entitled” to retain them. As well, it is important that people who deserve licenses, who have taken the tests and followed certain traffic laws, should keep their licenses.

Perhaps this is a cop out, or perhaps we have seen too many selfish drivers in Topeka, but we agree with our parents and teachers: driving is a privilege and should remain so.