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Yellow light to create confusion. This was, and wasn’t, the case for the policeman killed by the first traffic light ever, at a London street corner on January 2, 1869. It had revolving red (stop) and green (caution) rotating faces on a gas light. This light exploded, killing the operating “Bobby”.

Garrett Morgan, the first African American to own an automobile in Cleveland, Ohio, sold his patent for a semaphore like signal to General Electric Corp. around 1920, providing the protection needed to begin building a monopoly on traffic light manufacturing. However, at the same time Police Officer William L. Potts of Detroit, Michigan decided to do something about the traffic problems at the corner of Woodward and Michigan Avenues. With thirty-seven dollars worth of electrical wire and controls, along with red, amber, and green railroad lights he created the first 4-way, three color, automatic traffic signal. Within a year fifteen more were installed.

I pondered all this on a drive to think last night, beginning at a red light wait for no traffic, except for the four cars behind me. It was a loooong light in the middle of the night when most were flashing red.

It occurred to me that these signals are a consistent example of the myriad laws we humans go along with voluntarily depending on our particular level of belief in “the rule of law”. Survive a cab ride through Mumbie, India without signals or driving on a certain side of the street for that matter, and you'll understand more.

Now make the leap with me to the mind of a race car driver, working in their free time or during regular business hours, who must pull together financing and build a car; keep together a crew and infrastructure to pit the car for twenty-four to thirty weeks straight; enter, survive and place in enough of them to matter; and still have energy and resources at the end to, hopefully, accept awards. Keep in mind the fine line between winning and getting caught that we all know pushes sporting records forward. Nothin’ but green light.

Officials at tracks, like the police on our streets, represent the red and amber lights figuratively when they aren’t around, and literally when a driver is black flagged or pulled over. Entrance fees, taxes and tickets pay their salaries and contracts between us govern enforcement. We give them the green light.

North Americans tend to have a unique perspective on self governing ourselves compared to the rest of the world, as is evidenced in the lack of internal wars despite the number of guns owned. The extreme love of auto racing in the U.S. is a particular indicator of this also, I believe. Popularity of movies like Fast and the Furious, Days of Thunder, Gone in Sixty Seconds, and whatever favorite you have, comes from the desire in all of us for freedom to go where and when we want at whatever speed we choose. (see Autobahn or states with 75 mile and hour speed limits for further details).

To me, every one involved in auto racing at any level probably has the “push the limit” spirit to some degree and promoters, drivers, sponsors and publishers to the Nth.
However self imposed there are limits and tolerances, set by the fastest and slowest.

Next time you’re at a red light ponder, without road rage, the color blind individual at the intersection with empathy. Maybe they were taught red light go by their environment or they were self taught never to stop. Do you know anybody by that description?