full throttle

Sometimes I hear boats crank up and head up the creek…putt, putt, putt. When they get out past the “no wake zone”, you can hear them push the boat into full throttle. You know that sound. It’s the roar of engines and burst of water that splashes back against the stern of the boat. There is one boat in particular that I know by the sound it makes.

Who else is going full throttle? There are rioters in Baltimore City becoming more agitated with each act of violence and destruction. They went from a slow hum to a full throttle affront on police and local businesses.

Living in the fast lane, no holds barred, going for the jugular, take no prisoners- there are multiple euphemisms for “full throttle” or living in the extremes.

Research shows that young people are among the most vulnerable to addiction. Through pleasure-seeking, risk-taking parts of their brain are in full throttle, areas that control judgment, emotion and impulse aren’t fully developed until the mid-20s.  “You’ve got the accelerator without the brakes,” says Dr. Robert L. DuPont, first director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse and author of “The Selfish Brain: Learning From Addiction.” Genetics, peer pressure and psychological disorders up the ante.

That’s powerful- imagine that. If you had a car with just an accelerator and no brakes. Would we be foolhardy enough to drive it? I doubt we’d rev it up to full throttle. How would we stop in time? Good question!

That’s why we probably don’t need to be going full throttle or living in the fast lane. How can we stop in time? We can’t.It’s too risky, so why do we persist in doing it? Do we have adolescent brains or a death wish?

Time to set our pace at a more mature level- make wise decisions and enjoy a slower lifestyle.