is it worth the risk?

With all the traffic jams going on around the provinces thanks to the holidays, a lot of people prefer to go by motorbike rather than by car, by bus, or by jeep. These motorbike riders can weave in and out of traffic, stop under the shade of a roadside tree or store where ever they want, and can go to some of the more inaccessible places because of the narrow width of the vehicle.

However, some of these riders are some of the worst risk-takers out there as well. I've seen and heard of several incidents where the riders have been squashed by trucks they tried to cut; they've collided with pedestrians because they were driving on the sidewalk; they've been in collisions with other vehicles at night because they're on the wrong side of the road, drunk, without headlights or taillights.

And so, as perfect example of how careless and inconsiderate some of these motorcycle riders are, I'm posting photos I've taken on the road (I was a passenger, not the driver). The motorcycle driver in these photos opted to take the risk of passing a truck while approaching a blind curve where he (or she) shouldn't be on the wrong side of the road (hence the yellow line).

The driver didn't care, it appeared, for their safety because aside from passing the truck on a tricky part of the road, he (or she) also decided to be on the wrong side while a tricycle was closing in. True, the tricycle driver could swerve out of the way to avoid a collision. However, just in case a larger vehicle was approaching (such as a truck or a bus), this motorbike and its driver and passenger would surely be injured, if not killed. How about his (or her) family? The children?

Is driving carelessly really worth the risk?