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texas sort of went by that way of thinking, or nearly so, up until relatively recently, by having no open container law. you could drive down the road with a beer in your hand, in plain sight... which seems to just be asking for trouble if you ask me.
I think it is because awareness of texting and driving dangers has not risen to the point of DUI, plus in many states it is still legal (not for much longer though). There is a perception that many people still do not know better and had to learn the hard way.
I equate it with attitudes in the 60s and 70s before the era of MADD. Drinking and driving wasn't illegal. Even drinking WHILE driving was perfectly ok.
Ok but it seems like the awareness has spiked of recent.
But do you not agree that there is more empathy for text messagers who kill or mame themselves and others as opposed to drunks?
Really it is the same except the texters actually would have better judgement because they are not impaired by alcohol.
It seems like it is something that people think they can get away with it because there is currently no blood alcohol level for cellular phone activity!
I bet most people who text believe they are above the curve when it comes to driving skills and reaction time and that it won't happen to them. Then when it happens they are so sorry and contrite.
I don't know what the answer is except moral responsibility. I don't think introducing laws is the answer personally. Just another peril of our advanced society I guess.
texas sort of went by that way of thinking, or nearly so, up until relatively recently, by having no open container law. you could drive down the road with a beer in your hand, in plain sight... which seems to just be asking for trouble if you ask me.
Well think about it. You hear on the news when there was a DUI accident or a Texting while driving accident.
Yet....
You never hear about the other thousands of people that did the same thing that day with no problem. I'm not saying that the danger factor isn't increased with these activities, which is why I limit my texting and I don't drink and drive at all. But I'd rather have the choice to do that than to have the choice made for me.
And before someone says "but what if your kids" statement, I'd feel awful. However, my kids could just as easily be killed in a plane crash, limb falling from a tree, or an alligator attack. I don't live my life by "what if"
Spoken like someone who doesn't have to deal with the aftermath on a daily basis.
Spoken like a free American who has the right to think on his own.
I've seen the results of drinking and driving. I have had family members suffer because of it. They went to jail because they had accidents, that I'm fine with.
But because some guy down the road has three beers and drives home, and he is a block from his house and blows a .09 on the breathalyzer doesn't mean he should go to jail, lose his job and his license, and forever be looked down upon by the rest of society.
there are some who can yap on a phone and drive without issue, but most cant.
I don't believe that. When someone is talking on the phone and you're driving near them, you're not going to notice that they're on the phone unless they do something to specifically draw your attention to them.
If you can't carry a conversation while driving a car, and you've got more than, oh, six months driving experience, then you probably couldn't have (or shouldn't have) been able to pass the driving test to get your license. Talking on the phone is no more distracting than talking to a passenger. Often, it's less distracting - how many people take their eyes off the road to look at their passenger while talking to them?
There are a few idiots out there that can't walk and chew gum at the same time, but they're not the majority.
I don't believe that. When someone is talking on the phone and you're driving near them, you're not going to notice that they're on the phone unless they do something to specifically draw your attention to them.
If you can't carry a conversation while driving a car, and you've got more than, oh, six months driving experience, then you probably couldn't have (or shouldn't have) been able to pass the driving test to get your license. Talking on the phone is no more distracting than talking to a passenger. Often, it's less distracting - how many people take their eyes off the road to look at their passenger while talking to them?
There are a few idiots out there that can't walk and chew gum at the same time, but they're not the majority.
I do believe that Mythbusters have proven that yapping on a cellphone (hands-free and hands-on) was actually worse than driving while at/near the legal limit alcohol-wise... At least for conversations that required the talker to use brain power.
If someone has a wreck while texting and driving, and hurts anyone, they should be prosecuted accordingly.
But if someone is texting and driving, and causes no harm to anyone or anything else, that shouldn't be against the law.
That's like saying, "If someone is drinking and driving, and causes no harm to anyone or anything else, this shouldn't be against the law".
If you are texting, it takes your attention away from what is happening on the roads.
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That's like saying....
