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Speaking of safety, let us all pause for a moment to consider the fact that all those devices meant to protect us while we are driving or riding in our cars and trucks do nothing to safeguard people we may hit.
That is up to us, every time we get behind the wheel.
On Friday night, a horse-drawn buggy carrying four members of an Amish family was struck by a car in Shelby County, Ohio. A woman in the buggy was killed. Two infants were injured critically. A man was hospitalized with serious injuries.
After striking the buggy, the driver of the car involved fled the scene on foot. He was arrested later.
We have a substantial population of Amish people in East Ohio. Many use horse-drawn conveyances on public highways. Occasionally, there are accidents -- and, to be blunt, there is one reason for them: Drivers involved were not paying attention adequately.
Motorists need to be aware of the road ahead, along with potential hazards that may be just on the other side of a sharp turn or over the crest of a hill, at all times.
That is especially true during the spring, summer and fall months, when many more people use public roads for jogging, walking, bicycling or in other pursuits that put them at risk from inattentive drivers.
Most of us probably can recall situations in which the only thing that prevented a serious accident was a last-second jerk of the steering wheel or stab at the brakes. For a few days, such close calls make us slow down a bit and keep our eyes open a little wider.
We need to be doing that all the time. There is no margin for error of the kind that left an Amish woman dead and her family hurt badly in Shelby County.