As of September 30th, texting while driving is against the law. Although I have already seen a lot of face book status’s mourning over the impact this law will have on their social life, I personally think the law is necessary. Texting has become an obsession for many people and even though it is a great way to communicate with people in a fast, easy manner, it can also be very dangerous when done while driving. In my last post I blogged about the efficiency of smart phones, such as the blackberry, and how as the world gets more technologically advanced, features such as texting are necessary. Don’t misunderstand me, I am not by any means against texting, I am a text addict myself, but I absolutely never text while driving.
US Secretary of Transportation, Ray LaHood, calls distracted driving a, “public health epidemic” and newly released data shows that 959,000 crashes reported last year were caused by distracted driving. 4,898 of those crashes included at least one death (Boston.com). Although the Massachusetts Police Association knows that this is something they will have a hard time enforcing, they hope to significantly reduce the number of crashes related to distracted driving. All in all it is just interesting to see a medium that we have become so utterly obsessed and consumed with that we cannot pry ourselves away from it even while driving, despite the dangers it holds.
Below is a news clip reporting on distracted driving:
Annie, it is interesting that you brought up the fact that many people have changed their facebook status' "mounring" over the impact of this law, because so have I. I am also a text addict, but i believe it's very important that people realize how dangerous it is to text while driving. It is not a big deal to put your social life on hold for just a little bit, while you are behind the steering wheel of your car. I know many people who do text while they drive and it makes me feel very uneasy in the car and knowing that they are endangering themselves and other drivers
ReplyDeleteI agree with both Annie and Katie. It is crazy how casual this generation takes driving if they think that it is acceptable for them to be texting while doing so. Driving is such a huge responsibility it cannot be taken so lightly. If a driver is texting they are not only not focused on the tedious task at hand but they are literally not looking at the road. How can anyone possibly drive correctly without looking? I am very greatful for this new law because if it is properly enforced, safety and responsibility will definitely be increased.
ReplyDeleteTexting while driving is extremely dangerous, but I have to admit that I sometimes do it. I will never text when I am actually driving, but sometimes at stop signs or red lights I will respond to a text if I have one. Despite this, I know it is wrong and I definitely have tried to cut down on the amount I text while in the car. The last thing I want to do is put other people in danger which is why I never text while I am driving my car.
ReplyDeleteI agree that it is a very dangerous thing to do, but I also must admit that I sometimes do it. I have recently tried to not do it all, but sometimes I think, "oh just one quick text." However, even one little text can take someone else's life. It is such a dangerous thing to do, and I personally am happy that it is becoming illegal. I feel it will help anyone who does it to stop, even someone like me who rarely does it. It will definitely make the road much safer.
ReplyDeleteIt's almost pathetic that we can't hop in the car for 45 minutes without sending a text - especially when our lives are at risk! We read about accidents in the news almost everyday due to texting or talking on the phone, yet we all continue to do so. It will be interesting to see the effects this law has. It's also interesting that teen drivers will not be able to use electronic devices at all - even to make a phone call. Although I think this law is necessary, I question the true effect it will have, but hopefully I am wrong...
ReplyDeleteI agree with this post. Yes, texting and driving is very bad and dangerous. However, if anyone has any seen the PSAs about texting and driving, it does a terrible job of showing why it is bad. Here's the link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DGE8LzRaySk&has_verified=1. It is incredibly over the top and dramatizes the effects of texting and driving to the point of where it doesn't seem like reality but more of something out of a Final Destination movie.
ReplyDeleteWhat a great blog topic. I am sure we are all guilty of texting and driving despite knowing the dangers of it. There are several statistics online involving accident rates and deaths when it comes to texting. Someone even devoted their blog to this topic.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.textingwhiledrivingstatistics.com/
The new law will hopefully make us all think twice about texting and driving. Howeve,realistically I am sure the majority will continue to have the attitude of ..."They can't tell if I am texting or dialing a phone number".
Very important topic you picked here. Can you take this problem and link our class readings with it? for example: Smart phone is a media technology, an extension of our bodies, in the same way, the car is also an extension of our bodies--what about the act of extension that turns our body parts against each other? what about our body that we're just not quite good at 'multitasking? What kind of lesson can we learn from this?
ReplyDeleteYou can link these questions with a deeper self soul-searching, and ask: why don't you drive and text, would you love to if it was not known to kill ppl? what's the pleasure and danger about it?
b.d.