I agree with Mike. About Japan for motorcycle licence, I think it is a great idea requiring riders to work there way up. I knew a 17 yr old kid when I was younger, who was killed riding a zx10 at well over 100mph, but this goes back to the parents responsibility as well. What parent in there right mind would buy a 16 yr old kid a bike like that . When I was learning to drive, my Mom took me out to a large parking lot in all types of conditions(wet, dry, snow,ice) to learn how to recover from a slide. We also spent alot of time in heavy traffic, learning to anticipate other drivers stupidity. All of the tickets that I`ve had in the past were for speeding or driving under suspension, and all tickets were recieved after 10pm. I`m not saying that I don`t speed during the day,it`s just that I usually drive faster at night or early in the morning when traffic is light.
Bottom line is, It`s the parents job to teach the kids to be safe and responsible, and it`s the states job to punish them if they`re not.