What do you think about the states that are trying to ban cell phones, eating, drinking while driving?

Answer 1

i think it's sort of ridiculous. I can see states banning using cell phones, but not all the other things. If the law passes, people are still going to be doing those things, they'll just be looking around for cops, which could also be a distraction in itself.

I don't care if cell phone users have those bluetooth set ups either. What matters is if their mind is not on driving, they're likely to get into an accident. Police should enforce drivers that are clearly distracted..whether it's shaving, using a cell phone, or eating a burger while driving.

Answer 2

Mobile phones, (sorry, cells... :) ) have been banned while driving in England since last year. I'm not sure of the follow-on statistics, but I certainly agree with the reasoning.

I still see at least one person a day on their phone whilst driving though. Personally I believe that people shouldn't even have hands-free on to talk, because their mind while talking will still not be on the road, and they'll guard'll be taken down if an unpredicted variable were to take place, eg. a child running across the road.

The site I've listed as a source is worth the look though.

Answer 3

I think they should require hands free, but not ban cell phones outright. If you aren't holding the phone, how is talking with bluetooth or something any different than talking with someone sitting in the car with you?

Banning eating might be understandable, but not drinking. Are you supposed to pull over everytime you want a sip of water? Some people have really long commutes and you should be able to drink (non-alcoholic obviously) while you drive.

Answer 4

Talking on a phone while driving has been proven to be as great a danger as driving while impaired. I have had several close calls due to people talking while driving. Some people don't seem to have the good sense to know when they are overextended so we have to pass laws to tell them they shouldn't do things that the average person knows better then to attempt.

A woman in a nearby town was killed while talking and driving. She was asking her husband what to bring home for supper and HE heard the crash. She never even screamed or said, "OH NO"!, because she didn't see it coming. Not drunk, not on drugs, just distracted and she nailed two people in the other car.

Some people are capable of doing two things at once, but there are many who don't have the mental capacity to walk and chew gum at the same time. They are TOO DAMNED STUPID to be driving and talking on the phone. And since they don't have the sense to know better we have to pass laws that will affect everyone.

Don't like "government" interfering in your life?
Okay, suck it up and take your chances. There are lots of idiots out there. Drive careful now bouys and ghouls....

Answer 5

I think it's a smart idea and a good thing to be passed in every state. I can go up to the store, which is just a few blocks away from me. I can get in at least 3 close calls due to the fact that the other driver is busy talking on their phone and not paying a dam bit of attention to what they are doing.

Answer 6

people holding a cell phone and driving often times are either driving slow in a faster lane or just not paying attention...they should be fined if caught, it doesnt take much to get an earpiece or some sort of hands free device if they have to talk on the phone while driving, a lot of companies now have employees pull over while making calls during business hours and on company business...

Answer 7

I hate it when states meddle in personal things, but in your example, I'm more concerned about some idiot disembowling me because of inattention. However, for a general example, I don't think much of states that try to infringe on personal freedoms. For example, take mandatory helmet laws that are on the books in most states -- not only for motorcyles but for bicycles, for cryin' out loud. Those wonderful two wheeled self-powered contraptions that, as a kid, you just couldn't do without. And I never, never, wore no friggin' helmet. Amazingly, I am still alive without any head trauma (in the physical sense at any rate :-)

Ostensibly, because the insurance companies don't want to pay the huge medical bills for head injuries, they lobbied for a mandatory helmet requirement law. Besides pissing off a lot of Hells Angels, given that (in my opinion) severe trauma to the head is much more likely when you don't wear a helmet and more often fatal than not, it is a spurious argument at best. Think of all the money saved in hospital care. But, more closer to home, it has infringed on my freedom in a deep and very felt way. If you've never chugged along on a finely tuned Harley up a single lane mountain road on a late spring warm-but-not quite-hot day, without some claustrophobic instrument of torture strapped to your head by force of law (oh please don't start itching there, oh please, oh please), then you won't really grok just how deep this bites, given the unforgettable ecstacy of the moment riding free with the wind blowing through your hair. Legislative cruelty of the first water, that's what that is. I kid you not.

But I digress. Hang up and drive -- and aren't we, as a nation, fat enough? Guess that answers your question.

Answer 8

eating i can understand. drinking especially when your on a long trip is obsurd. With all the hands free stuff for cell phones it shouldn't be a big deal if your just talking. if they do put in a law you cannot even use hands free units...then i guess they are going to have to tell us we cannot talk to our passengers either, or sing with the radio. Which I imagine probably isn't that far off either.

Answer 9

hey, i just posted the same question!!!!!!!!!! i think they are just trying to control every little thing we do! and of course theres money involved. what i find funny, is that ALL the people that have answered your question do something in their car other than driving,yet they all act like its a good idea to let the government tell us everything we should be doing!!!!!!!! heres what you dumb@sses need to know that your mama obviously didnt tell you....... if your life is so out of control, that the only way you can function is having someone else constantly telling you what to do, how to do it & when to do it, something is SERIOUSLY WRONG WITH YOU!!!!!!!!!!!!! RUN, DO NOT WALK to the nearest HEAD DOCTOR! YOU NEED AN EXAMINATION PRONTO!!!!!!! DOESNT ANYONE REMEMBER WHAT ALL OUR PARENTS SAID????? "well, if your friends told you to jump off a bridge,would you do that?"

Answer 10

it's a good idea. people who get into accidents aren't just hurting themselves; they're hurting or even killing innocent people who were trying to be attentive drivers. the effect is the same as drunk driving, just with a different cause (distraction vs. delayed reaction).