said by Mele20:Automobiles are supposed to fun to drive. The fun is totally lacking with an automatic transmission. You don't have the control when it is automatic. Plus, automatic costs a great deal more at purchase time, gets worse gas mileage, and almost always needs expensive repairs during the car's lifetime...besides being quite a mess if the rear transmission goes out suddenly and you have to back up. With a stick if you don't ride the clutch you can go the entire lifetime of the car ((15 years or so) with no repairs for the clutch ....maybe shifter bushings replaced late in the life of the car.
You do realize that Europeans think Americans ARE LAZY? You seldom see automatic transmissions there.
No, you think cars/trucks are supposed to be fun to drive... for a lot of people, vehicles are essential to how they make their living.
You also have the pricing backwards these days - standards are typically more money now; if it's even an option - and in many vehicles, it isn't.
Gas mileage and repairs are also a wash these days. With tighter gear ratios, and more intelligent shift points; it's even possible to get better mileage from an auto over a manual these days.
Don't get me wrong - I like driving a standard, when it's for fun - that's why the Mustang has a stick. But driving in stop and go traffic, the "1st/2nd/3rd/2nd/1st/2nd/1st" dance gets old fast; and is tiring. I'll let the automatic do the shifting for me.
Automatics are also becoming much more common in the rest of the world; for an assortment of reasons.
To the OP/On the original topic - I have a backup camera in my F150... It's very handy; but it doesn't make me a better or worse driver - I can (and do) use the mirrors, check blind spots, and otherwise drive the way you're supposed to - the camera is just another 'tool' in the box... Although for parallel parking and hooking up a trailer by myself - the camera does make it WAY easier...