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U.S. Goverment Shames Texting Drivers on Twitter (theverge.com)
An anonymous reader writes: "The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is the federal body tasked with automotive safety," reports the Verge, adding "If you look at NHTSA's Twitter feed right now, you'll find that it's just a non-stop stream of burns aimed at people who admit -- sometimes gleefully -- that they text and drive."
For example, seeing a tweet that read, "I have no problem texting while driving, but I won't text while going down stairs, the NHTSA replied "You might not have a problem with the texting & driving...but we do. Stay off your phone and #justdrive - it's not worth it." And seeing a tweet that read "I text and drive way too much," they responded, "Um, agreed... Please realize you're putting yourself and others in danger, and a silly text isn't worth it. #justdrive".
The Verge argues "For what it's worth, NHTSA is right: countless studies have linked texting in the driver's seat with higher accident rates... Getting shamed online by a government agency is far harsher than getting shamed by a friend -- but it's still a lot better than getting killed over an email." To which the NHTSA responded on Twitter, "Thanks for the shoutout, .@verge! #justdrive"
For example, seeing a tweet that read, "I have no problem texting while driving, but I won't text while going down stairs, the NHTSA replied "You might not have a problem with the texting & driving...but we do. Stay off your phone and #justdrive - it's not worth it." And seeing a tweet that read "I text and drive way too much," they responded, "Um, agreed... Please realize you're putting yourself and others in danger, and a silly text isn't worth it. #justdrive".
The Verge argues "For what it's worth, NHTSA is right: countless studies have linked texting in the driver's seat with higher accident rates... Getting shamed online by a government agency is far harsher than getting shamed by a friend -- but it's still a lot better than getting killed over an email." To which the NHTSA responded on Twitter, "Thanks for the shoutout, .@verge! #justdrive"
Make it at least as bad as DUI, or better yet... First time felony. That'll help.
My ex-girlfriends shame me all the time on Twitter. Just not about texting and driving.
BWAAA HAAA HAAA HAA
So the arrogant "I'm-SOOO-FUCKING-SPESHUL-I-can-drive-two-tons-of-steel-and-still-be-safe-texting" JACKASSES are getting bitch slapped by NHTSA on Twitter!
BWAA HAA HAAA HAAA!!!
Too precious!
My dad was killed by a texting driver while he rode his bike. The whole thing was caught on his camera, and in the video from his rear-facing camera, you can even see, in crystal clear high definition, that the driver's head is looking down towards her lap the whole time.
She got a ticket for failure to yield right of way. That's it. No manslaughter despite her obvious negligence.
Shaming these morons isn't going to help. They won't stop until they either kill themselves or somebody else. I've given up counting the number of people I see dicking with their phones while they drive - even cops.
Autonomous cars can't get here soon enough. Human beings just aren't smart enough to be driving.
The neoliberal model is that there is no society.
We are all rational, self-interested, amoral actors.
We have no obligations to others. Only to ourselves. It is every man for his own and the devil take the hindmost.
If people want to text and drive, they are at liberty to do so until a market based (dis)incentive scheme makes change profitable.
I see it all too often. The car driving under the speed limit slowly drifting out of its lane is driven by someone chatting on their phone. The one below the speed limit weaving all over the place is a texter. Or very drunk. The person on their phone driving safely and consistently, well, they don't exist.
It's costs a lot of money to buy cars and destroy them.
Oh, I see, you didn't think that they let the car companies provide them test samples directly, did you? How silly. That's just an invitation to commit fraud by providing samples that don't match what is manufactured. That's why they buy cars from random dealers.
As if that wasn't bad enough there are plenty shameful examples.
Maybe the government should shame its tax evading corporate "donors" too. Oh never mind, almost forgot they're in it too.
Jesus christ the stupid is strong with you. There is so much batshit dumb reasoning in your post, I dont even feel the need to break it down.
The person driving below the speed limit and slowly drifting out of their lane is chatting on their phone. The one driving below the speed limit and weaving all over the place is texting. Or very drunk.
It's not physically possible to drive safely while texting. Too much time with your eyes off the road, too much attention on the phone. The instant you start manipulating your phone, you change direction. It's physiological - you start to turn in the direction of your focus. It can't be avoided or safely corrected for.
Yes. I can, but not with a smart phone. With an old ZTE feature-phone I could text all day since I didn't have to pay any attention to do it. On my smarthpone, with no physical keys, it's impossible for me to do.
Also, texting is just one of many distractions that impact poor drivers. Among the others, you have: passengers, billboards, pedestrians, food, drinks, cigarettes, cds,
Buy the car from a random dealer and then after it is in the possession of the testing agency forward the bill back to the company for reimbursement. I honestly don't even expect the car companies to squawk at this. They probably trash twenty or thirty of each of their own models doing the same tests, whats another three or four.
Problem solved.
As someone who rides a motorcycle, let me say fuck you firstly, and secondly no, you can't. How do I know? Because on a motorcycle you can easily see into peoples cars, and the number of times I'm having to maneuver to literally save my own life and I look in at the dumb ass, and they're texting. Often they're completely oblivious to the fact that they almost killed me.
So again, fuck you. Do the world a favor and never drive again.
Or driving slowly in the middle of a country road, making it impossible to pass. After a mile or so, the moron finally looks up from the phone long enough to pull back into her own lane, and the car behind starts passing. He then realizes that the moron did not pull back into her own lane because she noticed there was a car wanting to pass, but because she was going to turn left. Of course she didn't have a free hand to use the turn signal either.
Online harassment and bullying is not acceptable. It does not matter if it is for a good cause or not. What's next? Some government agency commenting on obese people's photos, that they should go on a diet else they will die soon?
What the hell happened to the US.
I wish they would pull over texting drivers and then punch them in the face.
there is NO REASON.... to text while driving. NONE... and if you do it you deserve a punch in the face for risking others with your selfish behavior.
Do not look at laser with remaining good eye.
Do you even know what the NHTSA does?
Yes, lets allow all of the major automakers to self-regulate, this will go well I'm sure, even when all of them are already lying as it is. GM with it's fault ignition locks, VW with their emissions cheating software, Mitsubishi over inflating tires to get better fuel economy listings..etc etc
Tell me again how the private marketplace works well as an effective industry regulator..oh wait, it doesn't.
if GPS.speed>5 then SMS.disable=true
Done.
Harsh punishments to laws, have less to do with justice then getting revenge.
Much like DUI, it will create a long court legal process for a mistake done by a person. With a good chance of finding a loophole to let the person go, and the court will normally allow this, because it is better off to let the guilty go free, then permanently harming an innocent man.
If something is so important that you feel the need to post it on the internet... It probably isn't that important.
Except for 911 calls, have the phone of someone texting or talking on a hand-held phone while in a moving vehicle (passengers included) broadcast the location to killer drone dump trucks. Let's see how long they can play real life pac-man.
"U.S. Government Shames Texting Drivers on Twitter "
Who even pays attention to incompetent government hacks on Twitter?
Does anyone even care?
Annoying femmenist BS site.
ALL forms of distracted driving should be frowned upon, not just phone usage. I've seen people driving past my place of work with a burger in one hand, lipstick/a comb in the other and steering with their knee and I don't see any laws being passed to deal with that particular act of stupidity. That said its not an earth shattering issue either, its deserving of no more than a fine or a short term license suspension. You're far more likely to be injured/die due to your doctor not paying attention to your chart (60k to 200k deaths) than another driver not paying attention to the road (33k) and there's no major legal effort to bring that under control.
I signed in specifically to call you out as a troll.
$1.5M per employee? WTF? 5 seconds of googling will tell you that the NHTSA spends over half its budget giving out grants to states and cities.
It also turns out that $10,000 hammers (exaggerate much?) and studies on duck penises or gender studies of climate change are not brainless expenditures of government funds. They all have very specific and usually pretty good reasons for the cost. It's like how everyone gets all riled up over the McDonald's lawsuit paying out millions to a lady for burning herself on hot coffee. Sure, it sounds ridiculous when leave out the important details phrase everything in a snarky way. However, when you actually KNOW SOMETHING about the topic, things start to make sense (surprise, surprise).
The myth of the $400 or $800, or $10,000 dollar hammer: It's an accounting quirk...
http://www.govexec.com/federal-news/1998/12/the-myth-of-the-600-hammer/5271/
Good to know you are so damn important that you can't wait a couple minutes until the next stoplight or pull over for a moment to check that SUPER important text message/email and write a response.
I drive just about never - my car insurance cost me more than gas one year.
I have nearly been struck at high speed twice by people texting in the last couple years. I WAS nearly killed by someone who hit me head on while distracted driving (was before texting, same crap - different pile).
You, sir, are an idiot.
Calling that 'shaming' is a bit far fetched. Millennials are so weak. Criticism of any kind must mean the other person is confused, right? Get some freaking spine and assume some responsibility for yourself.
The headline:
"U.S. Goverment Shames Texting Drivers on Twitter "
Is what should be shamed. Stare at it for a while, boys.
You were mistaken. Which is odd, since memory shouldn't be a problem for you
I wish more people would at least stop and think first.
In more and more cities, I'm seeing situations where a person is given a citation for "texting while driving" even though their vehicle is stopped at a red traffic light. These are often the folks who were trying to COMPLY with the law by not touching their phone until they knew they reached a red light, where it was finally safe to take a quick look at what was sent to them.
For example, in the DC metro area, we recently had a cop dressed up like a homeless person on the side of the road begging (except the sign he was holding explained that he was a law enforcement officer). He was handing out "texting while driving" tickets to people at the intersection, at the red light!
When I pointed this out to a girl I know who was ranting about the "need to lock people up and throw away the key" for texting while driving, she just shot back, "Good! The people using their phone while sitting in the car ANYPLACE should be punished! Anything to make us safer!" That's the mentality in America that always scares me.
If you or someone else is doing such a job, then have your employer buy you a bluetooth headset or a vehicle with built-in mic. What you're doing is stupid. The law is there not to have you try to avoid detection of your stupidity and therefore make it worse, but for you to stop it rather than placing everyone else on the road in unnecessary danger. If your employer is complicit with what you are doing they're going to get sued just as you might if you cause an accident that injures or kills someone else because of it.
Insurance companies should create a smartphone app that monitors whether you text while driving and gives a discount to drivers who don't.
Doesn't every phone have voice control these days?
Between Google Now, Siri, and Cortana everyone should easily be able to send off a text completely eyes-free via voice. I use Siri to do it and haven't had a problem dictating or hearing her read the incoming. It's built right into the vehicle's own CarPlay system.
If you were a "field technician" you didn't receive any important messages. You are a TECHNICIAN. You are so full of yourself. Narscisstic asshole.
Me neither, I think people are blowing this way out of propo/#)/"!#))!=*{ NO CARRIER
You would think this issue would fix itself through attrition but the people keep reproducing.
Nothing proves how self-centered and egotistical American drivers as the statistics that show that they text and phone whilst driving. This is the clearest demonstration that they have no concern for people they may kill.
A lot of this texting and chatting would stop if the other person would cut off the conversation. I have this conversation all the time:
"Are you driving?". "Yes". "Call me back when you can talk"
I've had bosses carry on meetings while their subordinate was driving. I see that as criminally irresponsible behaviour. It should be prosecutable.
I do not block ads. I do block third party scripts.
You egotistical asshole, endangering everyone around you because you care only for your own convenience. I hope you die a fiery death soon.
It's actually impossible to focus your eyes on the screen right in front of your face and the road ahead, you are doing one or the other. The same true of your GPS but that you can glance at just like you would one of your mirrors. You can't do that with a text.
I'm not seeing any correlation in the data
https://imgur.com/Ooa6Etr
Me neither, I think people are blowing this way out of propo/#)/"!#))!=*{ NO CARRIER
Grandpa! We've told you a thousand times. Don't try to log into IRC in the car. The TRS-80 doesn't fit in the front seat!
Faster! Faster! Faster would be better!
Even if you don't actually look at the phone, you have to use your visual cortex to know where the keys are in relation to each other, and that's in addition to keeping track of the words that would be appearing on the screen in sentence order. That means less ability to process the visual information in front of you.
> you'll find that it's just a non-stop stream of burns ... "You might not have a problem with the texting & driving...but we do."
Oh, snap! Harsh!
Regardless, I agree with the sentiment. Each time you're stopped the punishment so double. First time $200, second $400, etc. with no cap. Will it stop the problem? Not entirely. But it'll get awfully expensive for the asshats who insist of sharing whatever the hell it is they're texting.
Bark less. Wag more.
you can't wait a couple minutes until the next stoplight or pull over for a moment
I could, but I don't. I suspect in reality you've been guilty of this before as well (since nearly everyone has), I just have the courage to admit it. It's ok, anonymous coward, we understand. Everyone is still doing this. Everyone. Look at your own stats. Your stupid law has done nothing for this problem other than make it worse. Crotch watching is far more dangerous than using your phone freely. So the next time you get the urge to meet reality with an idiotic emotional response and pointless law, try critical thought... It might just work out better. And please, pass it along.
I bet.
Because your head is so far up your ass I can imagine you have all kinds of problems seeing your crotch.
Yeah, your arrogant head is so far up your ass I bet you can see your own damn molars - well, you would if you weren't a toothless, drooling moron.
I'll continue to text and drive. Good luck trying to figure out where my eyes are looking when I have sun glasses on!
If I had a nitwit at the NHTSA do this to me, i'd ask them how that non paying pension is looking.
I've had a theory on this. Okay, you say you can drive and text just fine. How about we make it so you sign an agreement that says you can text and drive just fine and you can't be ticketed for texting and driving. But, we will take you on your word that you can text and drive just fine and as such, if you were to ever kill somebody while texting and driving, since we're taking your word that you can do it just fine, we'll assume that it was intentional and you'll be tried for first degree murder. Since you can do it just fine, would you be willing to sign that agreement?
A large part of the problem is diverting attention from driving, which applies to yapping on the phone, fiddling with the stereo, eating, reading, swilling coffee, and quite a few other things some drivers do. But I've noticed that most of the horrible incidents in my corner of the world (yeah, no scientific data here) have accompanied looking down and texting or looking down at the stereo, etc. So at the expense of increasing texting, at least all of these diversions could use displays routed to the windscreen and buttons on the steering wheel. Perhaps sensors could blank the display when obstacles appear nearby or closing speed becomes important. People are apparently NOT going to stop messing with other things while driving.
It's actually impossible to focus your eyes on the screen right in front of your face and the road ahead, you are doing one or the other.
The great thing about our eyes is they don't need to focus on something to see it. It's actually how we are designed. We are able to focus on a target (be it prey, or a piece of fruit) but still see things peripherally that affect our ability to reach that goal. Say a larger predator that may decide we're a suitable meal.
It's certainly safer to not text and drive at all. But the texting and driving laws have made roads much much much more dangerous for us. They should have stuck to cops hitting people with dangerous driving charges instead of adding a new law to encourage unsafe behavior.
If the government does something "harsh" to a citizen, that's a punishment. The problem here isn't that the harsh action is shaming, it's that it happens without due process. That's particularly bad because if the NHTSA gets it wrong, unlike a private party that you can sue for damages, you have no remedies against the federal government.
Since the NHTSA cannot tell whether a text was created using voice recognition or not, it's merely engaging in the crime of detraction.
The department of health going on people's Facebook pages and posting hygiene and eating recommendations for the people who...look like they may need advice.
That would be a sensible solution, but unfortunately doesn't help with the legality; legally, being stopped at a stop sign is driving, as is pulling over with the motor running. Furthermore, at least in the US, on highways, the places where you can legally "pull over" when there is no emergency are far and few between.
The "no texting" laws are not sensible in another way, since "texting" can mean many things. With mobile text apps, people can "text" hands-free, or they can simply push one of four response buttons, which is probably less distracting than changing channels on a car radio. On the other hand, "no texting" laws often don't cover other activities where people are distracted because they enter text manually into devices (or put on makeup, brush their teeth, play with their infant, etc.).
You should respect no-texting laws. Nevertheless, those laws are generally poorly thought out and poorly written. There are probably better ways of reducing fatality rates from distracted driving.
I'm not just talking about your eyes, I'm talking about your attention.
Granted all things are not equal, there is a huge difference between the cruise of a long haul interstate drive and in city traffic but in city traffic requires a driver to actually have all their vision and focus on the road and mirrors it also requires both hands on the wheel, or at least free to grab without pause.
If you are texting you are unlikely to even notice something that would take a fast two hand reaction to resolve before it's too late. You spend less time on your decision making for actions like switching lanes. You spend less time checking indicators like the speedometer and that reduced time to check everything adjusts the speed at which you want everything coming at you so you tend to slow down like a drunk driver. There is also a dramatic difference between focusing on an unrelated to task and switching between the many tasks involved in driving.
Here in the US where we all drive on a daily basis we tend to forget how much is actually involved because we do most of what it takes to drive automatically and without conscious thought. Because of the tax all being reflexive and automatic it feels incredibly easy leading us to believe that adding on other tasks is likewise easy. But make no mistake, your driving is impaired if the radio is loud vs quiet. Your driving is impaired if you are eating a cheeseburger, and your driving is far far more impaired if you are texting vs those things.
Cops have normally 2 phones, laptop and a radio. They will be looking up information while driving, calling other officers about issues and incidents, and talking on the radio. They are multitasking WAY too much in the car.
The average person will most likely use bluetooth or have a car read texts now, so the issue is going away. But not for police.
So you want to give a felony to citizen drivers but allow cops to text. Thats interesting.
I could, but I don't. I suspect in reality you've been guilty of this before as well (since nearly everyone has), I just have the courage to admit it. It's ok, anonymous coward, we understand. Everyone is still doing this. Everyone. Look at your own stats. Your stupid law has done nothing for this problem other than make it worse. Crotch watching is far more dangerous than using your phone freely. So the next time you get the urge to meet reality with an idiotic emotional response and pointless law, try critical thought... It might just work out better. And please, pass it along.
OK, I'll post as something other than AC. You're wrong saying "Everyone is still doing this."
I've texted while driving before, but it was never a routine thing. I stopped completely after my cousin was killed by some asshat who didn't see the red light. It's been more than 5 years since I, or anyone in immediate family, texted while driving.
In a different incident, my dad's friend and colleague spent a full year in the hospital because another asshat ran a stop sign while texting.
Now I find myself trying to very discreetly answer something important in a way that requires my eyes to be off the road. Much more dangerous.
Yet you continue to do what, by your own admission, is dangerous.
I have lots of choice words for you that I'll keep to myself, because they won't sink in. Let me say this instead: I sincerely hope you never have to get the call my cousin's parents got, or the visit from police with their heads lowered that his wife got. I also hope that you are never the person who drifts out of your lane, fails to see the red light, or the bicycle on the shoulder, or the pedestrian stepping out from behind cars.
- "Nobody came out that night, not one was ever seen. But Old Man Stauf is waiting there, crazy sick and mean!"
Don't underestimate the entertainment value of shaming for the general US public. They *love* that shit.
That's why this will fly.
So I see in FF, posts made no longer show up until the page is reloaded and "load all comments" is clicked. The "Working" indicator comes on and never goes away.
Happens in every article today.
Good job, Slashdot. It wasn't borken enough for you already, eh? Super. JFC.
Don't shame people for texting while driving.
Take away their driver's license for one year, sell their car at auction (with no proceeds back to them), and confiscate their cellphone.
Problem solved.
-- Tigger warning: This post may contain tiggers! --
There are many different kinds of attention and varied degrees to maintain for a modicum of safety to be had. Absolute safe means I get to kick you off the road. We'll never have absolute safety.
I did drive drunk - for a very, very long time. I've never caused an accident and I have no moving violations on my record for well over 30 years. I don't drink any more but I was a functional alcoholic for years. Did you know that you can kind of see straight if you close one eye when you're seeing double? Did you know that it's really hard to do that for like 20 miles of rural driving? Yeah... I have no idea how I didn't hurt myself of someone else but I didn't. My bad, I've learned my mistake and don't do it anymore.
It gets worse...
I was a professional driver for a while. I'm an automotive enthusiast, I've taken somewhere close to 100 different driving courses (I'm not kidding or exaggerating), and I've actually traveled for the express purpose of driving certain roads and taking further instruction. Example: I spent almost two weeks in Germany, the first four days were in a classroom and then I had two days of driving lessons. Then, I spent the remainder of the time renting exotics and even paid for further instruction - to do laps on the Nurburgring. I also worked, quite specifically, in traffic modeling and that means a lot of attention to safety. I've driven on tracks and off-track. I've driven down highways and I've used block and tackle and worked my way to the top of a mountain and back down. And more... Much more...
So, I knew better. I still did it. Shit, I've driven with my knees so that I can snort a line of coke. Though, I'm not sure coke has much debilitating effect. It does increase your paranoia, however. So, it might lead you to make stupid choices that result in harming someone else.
We're also not really allowed to do much testing. We can't just get people trashed and let them drive around a closed course or anything. It's not allowed and it's illegal to operate a motor vehicle while intoxicated - even if on private property or in a closed environment. So, we use simulators and I've driven a bunch of simulators and they're not very realistic. I kind of miss getting drunk and driving in snowstorms but it's actually a pretty stupid thing to do.
"So long and thanks for all the fish."
Unless you are a passenger then turning off the phone is pointless.
Seriously though, if you idiots get some law passed disabling devices going more then 5 mph and it screws with my kids playing games on the tablet in the back seat I will be livid. Them being distracted means they aren't distracting me, the one operating the 2 ton metal box.
...so they have to look away from driving to get the govt response!
Yes, this is how things work in the u.s.s.a.
How can so many people be so retarded?
I have never said I do it all the time, just that, like you, I have. I think most people have, and most people are probably able to deal with the distraction of texting responsibly. Distractions are not new, the form has just changed. When I was a teenager we didn't have phones, but I'd need more than two hands to count the number of friends who got in accidents over paying too much attention to the radio or checking their makeup. Remember when we had to use paper maps? That was always fun while driving. Is it worse now with phones? Maybe. The problem isn't the phones, it's the irresponsible drivers. And regardless of the problem, the fact remains that these laws simply make it worse not better; which was my entire point. Now that you've managed to have your little emotional outburst to my admission I have texted and drive before, perhaps you can argue on that point, or do you have nothing to offer other than anecdotes and hyperbole?
If it ain't broke, don't fix it.
A friend moved from the US to the UK and joined the company I worked at (he wasnt a friend before that point) and he was astounded by how different the drink-drive culture is in the UK - over here, its universally accepted that its a very very very bad thing to do, to the point where very few people pressure you to "have a quick one" if you are driving, and drinking soft drinks on a night out is completely acceptable.
He was very approving of it, and said that it was unheard of from where he came from (California).
This just means your friend's friends are assholes or still in college. I know plenty of people in the states who drink a bit, but none of them would pressure someone to drink who said they were the designated driver or that they were driving.
Isn't anyone else just slightly creeped out about the US government browsing our online posts any more? Or have we come to the point where the actions of big brother are to be expected? I remember reading of the outrage of Chinese government officials prying into the online posts of its people before. What happened to us?
I have never said I do it all the time, just that, like you, I have.
I used to be a field technician and would use my phone while driving every day.
I could, but I don't.
Sounds like a regular and ongoing thing to me.
Here's a tip: people on the internet don't know you, they only know what you post and most don't read very carefully. Speak plainly and stick to the point. Use paragraphs when appropriate.
And regardless of the problem, the fact remains that these laws simply make it worse not better; which was my entire point.
If personal responsibility was no issue, I might be inclined to agree with you. As it is, you sound like you're trying to assign blame to someone else; in this case "it's not my fault that I am distracted in the car, the government shouldn't have MADE me look in my lap." I claim that the irresponsible drivers aren't being MADE to do anything, they either think they're not doing anything dangerous, they don't care, or they're just not thinking about the danger they're putting other people in. The fact is that we're simply not good at multitasking, and the comparison between texting while driving and drunk driving is well-earned.
Now I'm no expert, so I did a quick search. It looks like this was probably the earliest study into this issue, which supports your claim. There is more discussion about that study though, and a later study seems to contradict it.
Now that you've managed to have your little emotional outburst to my admission I have texted and drive before, perhaps you can argue on that point, or do you have nothing to offer other than anecdotes and hyperbole?
First you offered anecdotes about how your own driving changed after the passing of this law, expressed anger at the size of the fine, and suggested applying existing laws about careless driving; all without any comment regarding the actual danger of distracted driving. Your entire first post comes off as an indignant rant about a law you disagree with.
Then you blithely admitted that you continue to drive in a dangerous (your word, not mine) manner. You claimed "Everyone is still doing this. Everyone."
Now you claim the problem is with irresponsible drivers and hint that you're not part of the problem, and you try to shift the burden of proof to me, when you've given no arguments of substance yourself.
I'm touchy on this issue because it's personal to me. I'm not upset at you for your "admission [you] have texted and drive before"; I'm upset because you switched to a "much more dangerous" activity and made no indication that you are give a damn about the people you are putting in very real danger. As long as motor vehicle accidents are one of the leading causes of death, some kind of effort must be made to improve the situation; people must be held accountable for their actions; ergo, punish those who needlessly endanger others. If you have some better solution please present it, the world will thank you.
- "Nobody came out that night, not one was ever seen. But Old Man Stauf is waiting there, crazy sick and mean!"
If you have some better solution please present it, the world will thank you.
The world doesn't need to look to me for better solutions, it just needs to be less lazy. Freakonomic's entire thesis is based on the idea of incentives working better than prohibition. You want to make driving safer? Incentivize. My 2016 Ford Escape reads my text messages to me, at least 8 years too late. Tax breaks for this type of safety could have been brought in sooner. Spend your money and time educating people, or punishing people that actually offend instead of shotgun blasting the entire population with a ridiculous nanny-state law. Do you want to know what this law does? It subconsciously makes people distrust authority, and you're not helping. You want to demonize people that look at their phones while driving because you have a reason to have an emotional reaction to this problem. This is akin to a teenage girl being told she can't have boys over because "I said so". Your reasons are terrible and your methods are despotic, which people will naturally resist. The simple fact is that 99.9999% of time you check your phone you're not going to cause an accident. The problem is negligent drivers - the phone is simply their tool to be negligent. Address an increase in negligent driving due to cellphones with a series of incentives, PSA campaigns, and punishment for the severe cases. Don't shotgun blast the symptoms of a problem with lazy regulations. And then, with astonishing hypocrisy, continue to defend those regulations when they're proven not only ineffective, but more dangerous to the actual problem.
If it ain't broke, don't fix it.
Texting drivers can be even worse than drunk drivers. Both should gtfo of the car.
Oh, I see, you didn't think that they let the car companies provide them test samples directly, did you? How silly. That's just an invitation to commit fraud by providing samples that don't match what is manufactured. That's why they buy cars from random dealers.
No they don't. How could that work? Cars have to pass NHTSA crash tests before they are allowed to be sold; so how could they go to a random dealer to buy a car that is not yet on the market?
captcha: fantasy
How can so many people be so retarded?
those words should be a recursive loop, endlessly rolling through the entire waste of existence. They are a self-fulfilling prophecy. again and again and again and again and again.
To
You just admitted in engaging in unnecessary behaviour which endangers other road users, and expect to make some sort of point besides "I'm a selfish twat who thinks their texts are more important than the lives of other people". You are tragically hilarious. You are the irresponsible driver you are talking about.
An emotional response that doesn't address what I was actually saying but rather uses hyperbole to reinforce an already established world view? Oh, your name is dave420, makes sense. I remember the days when adults used to visit this site, what happened?
If it ain't broke, don't fix it.
I've thought for many years that police should be able to confiscate the phone from a texting driver, stick it under one of the cars wheels, and then wave them on their way. This alone ensures that, at least until they can get to a shop and buy a new phone, the nut holding the wheel can concentrate on driving safely.
Don't blame me, it's usually 2 in the morning when I post
Maybe beta has a spell-checker... Or editors.
If they kill someone, its 1st degree murder.
Hang 'em by the side of the road with their phone taped to their hand.
http://yro.slashdot.org/story/...
Casteism
Let's say you can text and drive and be safe 9,999/10,000. Most people would think that they like those odds. Now, let's say now that 10,000 texts are sent while driving in one day. The chance of an accident is (0.9999)^10,000 = 36.79%. That means if the odds of an accident were 1/10,000, for every 10,000 texts, over one third of the time you would expect an accident. This is a basic problem those dealing with safety encounter. While something might seem relatively safe, as the volume increases, an accident becomes almost guaranteed. Texting and driving must be treated the same as driving under the influence of alcohol.
Nothing agains fighting texting while driving but...why is U.S. legislation always about ruining peoples' lives completely?
Before texting and deiving was a "thing", my friends little sister t-boned a pregnant women at 70mph because she was texting and driving. This was 2004.
Being shamed by a friend really means something to me. Why on earth would I care what these bureaucrats think? I'm just grateful they're tweeting rather than threatening for once.