I once wrote to the Centers for Disease Control and asked why they never include avoiding car crashes in their ads for well being. They responded that they don't deal in "accidents." They only deal with health issues. So then I asked if car crashes are not a health issue then why do they take the victims to a hospital? Maybe they should be taken to a casino where they might have better luck. I never got a response to that query.
The truth is that car crashes are not accidents. They are avoidable. And isn't being dead the worst state of health one could be in? Unfortunately, our State government sees fit to encourage motorists to crash because it makes money for the treasury. I will explain how how our lawmakers enourage crashes and why.
Let's take the cell phone law. It says that you can talk on a cell phone while driving but you mustn't let anyone know your doing it. You must stick something in your ear so you don't have to hold the phone in plain sight. So what's wrong with that? Well, the truth is that talking on a phone is dangerous whether one is holding the phone or not. The conversation is the distraction that takes the driver's eyes and mind off the driivng. The State knows that. Its been proven in every piece of research ever published. Yet, the conversation is not banned, just holding the phone.
So, why would the State give drivers a false sense of security making them think that it is safe to talk on the phone while driving. Because car crashing is a business, a multi-gazillion dollar industry. And you need to realize that the State gets a percetage of all the transcations that flow from a car crash. When you pay a repair shop to fix your car, that's called a sale and the State gets a sales tax. When you pay a doctor to fix you up, that's income to him/her and the State gets an income tax. So why would the State want drivers to drive safely and kill that industry and dry up all that revenue? The simple answer is they don't. But, of course they can't be honest about it so they find ways to pass phony laws to fool the public into thinking they care about safety.
Lest you think I'm a loon for thinking this way, let me quote from the AAA Car & Travel magazine (May 2008): "At one time New York State was a traffic safety trailblazer........Our more recent record leaves much to be desired, however, especially as lawmakers enact legislation based not on the best traffic safety science but with an eye on raising revenue."
If you'd like to see the other side of 60 or 70 or 80 or even 90 (since the State has no age restricition on driving either -- I bet you can now guess why) I suggest you stay off the phone while driving. It's been proven to be as dangerous as drinking and driving. And may i add that you should never drink and drive. The holiday drinking season is almost upon us and let's hope you're all around to see the orher side of the New Year.
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Safe Driving Posted by Al Cinamon on October 30, 2010 - 7:08am Tags: | ||
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October 30, 2010 - 7:47pm
Larry Kaufman
Can you explain the difference between talking on a phone while driving, but with both hands on the wheel, and talking to the other passengers in the car? Or, for that matter, listening to a talk show on the radio? I agree that the more one concentrates on the road, the greater the safety, but we are just not wired for total concentration. Nor is the state wired to enforce a ban against distraction. The idea that this is all designed to drive revenue is conspiracy theory driven to the utmost!
November 12, 2010 - 6:01am
Al Cinamon
I'd be happy to enlighten you. Talking is the phone is nothing like listening to the radio or even talking to passengers. When developments on the road demand your full attention you just simply tune out the radio and don't even hear what's is being broadcast. You just tune it out.
Even when talking to passengers, if a situation develops you can tune them out also, and they would understand since they see that you're dealing with something that affects your driving.
But the person on the phone....you can't tune them out because they might not even know that you're driving so you have to pay close attention to what they're saying and keep up your end of the conversation. Otherwise you're considered rude. So you must pay attention to the person on the other end of the line and sacrifice driving safely.
Now, as for the revenue aspect. Every study ever conducted on the subject shows that TALKING is the problem. Not HOLDING the phone. So, why ban only holding the phone instead of the conversation? Simple. Cops can't write tickets if they can't see the driver holding the phone. And that is the main concern....writing tickets. And if holding the phone were such a problem, then why allow holding a cup of coffee, a pencil or a lipstick? Why not ban everything? Because, again, safety is not reason behind our current slew of laws.
With your indulgence I'd like to address your comment about "two hands on the wheel." Firstly, the law doesn't require two hands on the wheel . The cell phone law doesn't say don't hold a phone and keep two hands on the wheel. It just says, don't hold the phone. Secondly, two hands on the wheel is not absolutely necessary for control since the truth of the matter is steering is done with your eyes, not your hands. If you need further clarification of that, may I suggest that you attend one of my pre-licensing classes for beginners (as a guest, of course. No need to pay) wherein I teach the basic elements of controlling a car.
January 28, 2012 - 5:36pm
Al Cinamon
"The truth is that talking on a phone [while driving] is dangerous whether one is holding the phone or not." That quote comes from my post back in October of 2010 I am now happy to report that the National Transportation Safety Board has finally come to the same conclusion.
In December of 2011, the Chairperson, Deborah Hersman (bless her soul)
asked states to prohibit the use of cellphones and other electronic devices while driving, even hands-free devices. Although it might seem that hands-free devices would be safer by allowing drivers to keep both hands on the steering wheel, the Department of Transportation has said research shows that drivers are still distracted by the phone conversation itself and miss audio and visual cues that would normally help a person avoid a crash. I have to wonder what took them so long. If I knew this years ago, why didn't they?
Hersman goes on to say that "drivers who choose to be distracted by cell phones and texting devices should pay increasingly severe fines and face loss of their licenses. Those who kill with their arrogant carelessness should be treated as killers under manslaughter laws." I concur. Why should killing with a car be legal? It's not an "accident," which is unavoidable. It's a crash, which is avoidable. If only drivers would pay full attention to the job of driving. It is a full time job, after all.
May 5, 2012 - 10:57pm
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