As everyone probably knows it is illegal to text while you are driving. The theory is that if you text while you drive you will be distracted and won't keep your eyes on the road and this could cause an accident. Probably a good theory. Everyone is not as coordinated as me, and likely doesn't have the skills to text while driving.
But isn't this a little like profiling? Don't get me wrong I believe distracted driving is wrong. But do we just single out the texters and target this group? Is that really right? I have seen women doing their makeup while driving, a guy reading the newspaper while driving on I-75, and I won't even go into how many times I have seen people smackin' at their kids in the back seat. All of this behavior is distracted driving and also very dangerous. But it is totally legal. Go ahead and do your make up, read the paper, and beat your kids...just don't text while driving!
The federal government is not allowed to profile. Just because a few middle eastern folks blow up buildings and airports, it doesn't mean they all do. This is why blowing up buildings and airports is illegal and being middle eastern is perfectly legal. I draw the same comparison to texting while driving. Yes it is probably dangerous in most cases. But texting in itself is not the evil thing. It is driving while distracted that is bad. We have focused on too small of an issue and are missing the big picture. People do many dumb things while driving. Let's make all the actual dumb things illegal and not just choose one aspect and single it out.
Will I continue to text while driving? Probably not. But there are occassional exceptions to every rule. And do I want people to keep sending me youtube videos of people dying while they are texting? No I don't. But if I could find that guy that reading the paper on I-75 you could send him some disturbing videos.
Another profiling issue...It is widely know that about 20% of all accidents involve drinking drivers. If you carry that a step further 80% of all accidents involve drivers who are not drinking. Wouldn't it therefore make sense to have a couple of drinks before driving to lower your risk of being involved in an accident?
ReplyDeleteI was going to post a comment but then Dad's comment made my brain explode. Have to get the mop.
ReplyDeleteWow, I am really confused by the logic above?? I am a little slow though.
ReplyDeleteI do not understand why texting isn't allowed either. Driving around with a 3 year-old screaming in the backseat is way harder more dangerous than texting.