lmao i always text and drive and so does everyone i know

 

you won't be LAMOing much when you hit another car or even kill someone. please stop the madness.

 

Anything that distracts your eyes from the road in front/the side/behind you = Fail.

 

You might as well brag about how you drink and drive too.

 

thank you.

 

If you can't see how certain opinions or beliefs could be considered "unsafe" by someone looking to exploit the idea of legislating safety, then I'm just going to bow out of the discussion now. Sorry.

 

Wow, I was getting scared. I was reading through the thread and I thought no one would see why this is a good thing. Thank you for giving me hope.

These laws, which seem unnecessary, show how stupid the average Californian driver really is. I can't even count how many times I've seen an idiot swerving in their lane constantly hitting the bumps on either side, thinking they're drunk only to see someone texting while driving. Not to mention how this has increased due to the hands-free law that went into effect.

Also, the whole GPS thing should be common sense. It's as simple as not putting something in your general field of vision. To me, that's common sense, and if people are too stupid to know that and can put other drivers in danger due to objects hindering vision, then people need to be told what to do.

To the few people who say that it's not right to legislate common sense (which is worded pretty badly, but I'm using the phrase since it was already stated in the thread), please enlighten me as to how these two laws would not be seen as common sense, or may lead other people to believe these laws create an unsafe environment.

 

Most people don't know that it's against the law to hang something from your rear view mirror as well

 

I can see how certain opinions or beliefs can be considered unsafe, but dont tell me that you dont think this is a good idea. It is completely unsafe to be fooling around with a cell phone and paying more attention to what you are typing on the screen than the road in front of you. Cars are dangerous, you are in control of a piece of metal weighing more than 3000 lbs travelling at high rates of speed, your attention should be to controlling your vehicle, not texting your friends, and if you dont have enough common sense to realize that, then it is the job of the government of the state of california to tell you where your attention should be when you are behind the wheel.

 

You know what else is unsafe in addition to sending text messages while driving? Cars are unsafe, especially fast, powerful cars. Every year there are thousands of accidents because people are too stupid to drive their fast cars responsibly, so clearly we should make those illegal... right?

What else is "unsafe" that common sense and responsible action could help avoid--how about candy? Acting irresponsibly and overeating junk food can lead to a myriad of health problems, many of them ultimately leading to death. According to your logic, if applied fairly and without bias, we should also make junk food illegal.

Or heck, here's one for you: Prohibition. Alcohol is a dangerous substance that is connected to 100,000 deaths each year, 25,000 alone of which are from drunk drivers. Clearly we should make alcohol illega--oh wait, we already did that and repealed it because of the innumerable amount of problems it created, not the least of which is that Prohibition is often credited with being a major factor in the creation of the Mafia. Oh, and NASCAR.

I'm sure you'll reply and say how these examples are invalid or ridiculous somehow, but the truth is that they are the same as what you are championing.

Legislating "common sense" could also equate to legislating intelligence. So what's next? Let's just make all stupid people illegal! Let's kick in with a eugenics plan so we can perfect the human race! Let's kill all the ... oh wait.

Sorry, but I like having the right to make choices in my life. I already know you'll probably want to say something about only legislating personal choices that have an impact on others, but the truth is that all our actions and choices impact those around us, however minute that effect may be.

As I said earlier, you are entitled to your opinion, but don't tell me that you're right or I'm wrong; you simply see things differently than I do.

 

Seriously.. the hood scoop blocks the view more than my gps

 

There are laws to limit fast powerful cars, its called a speed limit, and reckless driving laws. And yes, there should be more driver training before you are just allowed to get behind the wheel of a car with 300+ hp, even a car with 200 hp. The difference between Alcohol and Candy and texting while driving is that alcohol and candy are a danger only to the person consuming said products, it is not a danger to the public if someone consumes too much candy and becomes a diabetic, or if someone drinks too much. However it is illegal to drink drunk, it is common sense not to drink and drive, yet people do it, and it is illegal. Infact if you look at studies, messing around with your cell phone or radio or GPS causes your reaction times to be slowed the same amount as driving after drinking, or even more so. Texting while driving is a danger to others, you are not just taking your life in your hands, you are taking the life of that family in the minivan in the lane next to you when you choose to pay more attention to your cell phone than your responsibilities when you are behind the wheel. The difference is that you are a danger to the public when you choose not to pay attention while driving a car and you are only a danger to yourself when you drink or eat so much sugar as to develop diabetes you are only a danger to yourself.

Do you see the difference between not paying attention while driving and drinking or eating too much candy?

And just so you know, I am a libertarian, that mean minimal government interference in our private lives, however the safety of the general public trumps "rights" of the individual. Also, do not forget the first think they teach you in drivers ed, driving is a privlidge, not a right, so if you do not want to pay attention behind the wheel, maybe you should have your driving privlidge revoked.

 

master the art of pocket texting, no need to look at your phone.

on the serious note, i do pull over to the side sometimes when i need to be doing some detailed txting.

 

Voice operated texting will probably be the standard in 5-7 years.

 

Thats what you should do. There is nothing so important that you cannot wait until you respond to a text message, and if it is that vital, pull to the side of the road. Be a responsible driver, care about the people around you.