It's becoming an almost daily battle cry. My car is trying to kill me. A manufacturer with a reputation for stellar quality, Toyota, is on the ropes - and it is at least possible that there is no good reason for all this Congressionally fired hubbub. Let's take a slightly less panicked look at the issue of runway automobiles

The story is not altogether unheard of. It has happened before, after all – to drivers who were behind the wheel of cars made by other manufacturers. The basics are the same, however.

The basics look like this. While driving along, minding your own business, the car accelerates without warning. It increases in speed even as you stomp on the brakes and make every effort to reverse the life threatening trend. Your life flashes before your eyes and you can tell that you're in trouble.

This is where the pilot in me kicks in. Actually, this is more accurately the point where my flight instructor training takes hold. There is no point in a flight where a pilot is encouraged to throw up their hands and admit defeat. Over-speeding propellers, engine failures, engine fires, iced up wings, and bird strikes are all possibilities for a pilot – and they are all possibilities that we prepare for in advance. There is no time to learn how to handle an emergency like before it happens. The mind doesn't work with great clarity in the midst of a surprise test where your life hangs in the balance. Not in an airplane, not in a car, not anywhere. Pilots train, study, test, train, and study some more so that they can deal with life-threatening issues as if they are pedestrian events that occur every day.

That is not the case for the majority of Americans who drive cars, but haven't taken a class, read an article, or submitted to a driving test in decades. If the dreaded runway acceleration happened to a pilot, the pilot mind would kick in and a series of actions would be implemented to fix the problem.

First, go for the brakes. If that doesn't get the car slowed down, pop the transmission into neutral. If the car continues to accelerate, a pilot would kill the ignition switch. If the car continues to accelerate at that point, turn over and go back to sleep. You're dreaming.

Failures in the mechanized world are a fact of life. They happen. But a failure of the fuel delivery system, the braking system, the transmission, and the ignition system all at the same time is so unlikely that all laws of space and time would have to be suspended for us to seriously consider the possibility. Imagine the odds! The electrical, mechanical, and hydraulic systems of the car all fail simultaneously – then just as mysteriously, they regain function again.

Weird, huh?

Here's an alternative view of the situation that is far more plausible, even if it is uncomfortably familiar. It's entirely possible that these poor souls rocketing down the street, out of control, are operating cars that are far beyond their capacity.

Perhaps they've engaged the cruise-control without realizing it. That would mean that the accelerating car is doing exactly what they asked of it – even if they are unaware they made the request. And as for brakes, many owners of ABS equipped cars do not realize that pumping the brakes, stabbing your foot at the pedal with full force, over, and over again – is a signal that causes the brakes to release. Smooth, even pressure is what you want when you've got ABS on your side. But then, smooth and even is hardly the natural reaction of a person who is in a near panic at the thought of a runaway vehicle taking them to their doom.

Granted, my view is in the minority – but that has nothing to do with the likelihood that the idea has merit. The original Volkswagen bugs never took off on a whim, unless their name was Herbie and the Disney Studios had a hand in the action. But Volkswagen bugs were simple as could be, too. There were almost no systems to fail, or to misunderstand.

As with so many things in life, education is more than likely the cause, and the solution to this problem. Unfortunately, accepting that possibility requires a modicum of personal responsibility, which is not a trait American's are known for of late.

Perhaps that will change. Or perhaps it won't. Personally, I am happy to drive a Toyota on a regular basis and feel perfectly safe doing it. But then again, I know how to operate the machinery. I'm not just along for the ride.