Poor little children and dogs are being killed because we don’t have laws on the book preventing this. For God’s sake, we must do something TODAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Then we should ban making any phone calls, eating, drinking while driving, smoking cigarettes or pipes in your car, women putting on make-up, listening to music, changing the station, a cd, or your iPod, fixing your tie, looking for loose change to pay tolls, and sneezing. This is inane: texting is no more distracting than any of this stuff. These people are all terrible drivers to begin with; looking up a number to call, even on a hands free phone, is as distracting. Jail time for texting is nonsense.
That makes as much sense as allowing drunks to drive, since studies show that driving while being sleep deprived is more dangerous. Not everything the federal govt does is evil.
Have any of you read The Constitution? This is not the perview of the federal government. Why is there no national DMV? Because STATES make the determination of the rules of the road and who should be allowed the privilege of driving. Each state should make this determination, as is clearly laid out in the Constitution.
Are those of you calling for the feds to do this lacking in Constitutional understanding? No wonder our country is in such a mess. This is the right of a state, not the federal government. Each state house should make this illegal, if their citizenry determines, through the ballot box, this is the desire of the populace. Come on, melon-heads. At least display the knowledge a 10th grader should have after completing a simple civics class.
You also do understand I hope that the Constitution made no mention of the Air Force. As a strict Consitutionalist I strongly feel we should do away with this. Our Founding Fathers did not believe in this! Oh that’s right, they wouldn’t have a clue that there would be an invention like a car, or an airplane.
When some people are incapable of exercising common sense, democracy works against society. Prior to the advent of sophisticated mobile phones and blackberries, there was no need for instant communication gratification and the world got by just fine. The majority of responsible, mature people embraced the concept that driving a motor vehicle demanded your 100% focus and concentration. There are good and valid reasons for this.
The majority of phone calls and texting is completely un-necessary. It’s a documented fact that it compromises the driver’s attention with potentially fatal results. Personally, I’d rather not be injured or killed because a bunch of young, immature jacka sses want to “multi-task” behind the wheel of 4,000 pounds of metal going 60mph. Just because they do it doesn’t mean it’s safe or the right thing to do. As for individual constituional rights, they’re all well and good until and unless individual behaviors put me and my family at risk.
There’s no way to enforce this. Technology created the problem; it should find a solution to prevent it while a vehicle is in motion.
Oh yes, glad you brought that up (as asinise as it is). Please see:
Preamble:”We the People of the United States…provide for the common defence…”
Article 1, Section 8. “The Congress shall have Power To lay and collect Taxes, Duties, Imposts and Excises, to pay the Debts and provide for the common Defence…”
Amendment X: “The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the states, are reserved to the states respectively, or to the people.”
Really, it’s not a tough concept to understand. The rights not expressly laid out in The Constitution are reserved to the states respectively, or the people. The feds are not states.
“As for individual constituional rights, they’re all well and good until and unless individual behaviors put me and my family at risk.” This is why there are courts and state legislatures.
“When some people are incapable of exercising common sense, democracy works against society.”
I couldn’t disagree with this more. I”m so tired of people demanding government intervention for common sense things. It removes responsibility and accountability from the idiots who are doing this. Smoking is bad for your health? Ban it. Drinking kills? Ban it. Trans-fats cause heart attacks? Ban it. What’s wrong with this picture?? Everyone knows smoking will kill you, drinking too much can kill you, too much fast food can kill you – a law against them is unnecessary! Take responsibility for you’re own actions! There’s a law in my town passed not too long ago that only allows a 16yo driver one person in the car. WTF? That’s up to the parents and the kid; who the hell is the gov. to put those restrictions on me? Terrible, insane, unconstitutional. Stupid liberals.
.. lets see a show of hands for the number of people willing to pay more in taxes to cover the cost of jailing each and every person caught texting while driving.
Anyone?
I think that a very stiff penalty, say $500-$1000, might work as a better deterrent, with possible jail time/increased fine for someone that actually causes an accident due to texting while driving.
Of course such high fine might get the other side screaming about the government just seeking more $$. Go figure.
While driving to work a gasaline tanker made a left turn in front of me, the driver wasn’t texting, he was talking on his cell, This truck has the capacity of 18,000 gal of gas. Why do we allow drivers of large commercial trucks and trucks carryinhg hazardus cargo to even talk on their cell phones.
The UK has a point system whereby one gets points on their license for each infraction, i.e. x points for texting, y points for speeding, etc. After so many points (I don’t remember how many, but it’s surprisingly low) you lose your license. Now you may think “what’s wrong with that?” What’s wrong is some 70% of the tickets are filed using traffic and speed cameras, in other words, Big Brother. That is something I will NEVER support; if you wanna give me a ticket, catch me, you can’t just set up cameras. That’s invasive and voyeuristic. Besides, studies show they don’t help with either revenue or safety.
To all those meatheads who quote the Constitutional “rights” to do whatever you damn well please, I have a message.
Go ahead and relegatdriving a vehicle to a part-time responsibility and keep texting those mindless, unecessary messages to your idiot friends because you can’t focus on anything important.
If you are unfortunate enough to cause an accident involving me, I will not hesitate to exercise my “right” to kick your stupid butt and shove your little electronic plaything so far up your you know what that your eyes will water. I don’t call 911 to solve problems.
People have “rights” but when you accept an employment that involves driving a commercial vehicle, you forfeit some of them whil on the job for the common good. If you’re on your own time that’s another story. If I were kind, the punishment for texting while driving would be removal of the thumbs.
Poor little children and dogs are being killed because we don’t have laws on the book preventing this. For God’s sake, we must do something TODAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
AMEN! JAIL TME FOR THOSE WHO TEXT !!!!!
Then we should ban making any phone calls, eating, drinking while driving, smoking cigarettes or pipes in your car, women putting on make-up, listening to music, changing the station, a cd, or your iPod, fixing your tie, looking for loose change to pay tolls, and sneezing. This is inane: texting is no more distracting than any of this stuff. These people are all terrible drivers to begin with; looking up a number to call, even on a hands free phone, is as distracting. Jail time for texting is nonsense.
You forgot scratching your behind…
Agreed. Truckers need to go back to finding a channel on their CB Radios. That’s a big 10-4.
That makes as much sense as allowing drunks to drive, since studies show that driving while being sleep deprived is more dangerous. Not everything the federal govt does is evil.
Have any of you read The Constitution? This is not the perview of the federal government. Why is there no national DMV? Because STATES make the determination of the rules of the road and who should be allowed the privilege of driving. Each state should make this determination, as is clearly laid out in the Constitution.
Are those of you calling for the feds to do this lacking in Constitutional understanding? No wonder our country is in such a mess. This is the right of a state, not the federal government. Each state house should make this illegal, if their citizenry determines, through the ballot box, this is the desire of the populace. Come on, melon-heads. At least display the knowledge a 10th grader should have after completing a simple civics class.
You also do understand I hope that the Constitution made no mention of the Air Force. As a strict Consitutionalist I strongly feel we should do away with this. Our Founding Fathers did not believe in this! Oh that’s right, they wouldn’t have a clue that there would be an invention like a car, or an airplane.
When some people are incapable of exercising common sense, democracy works against society. Prior to the advent of sophisticated mobile phones and blackberries, there was no need for instant communication gratification and the world got by just fine. The majority of responsible, mature people embraced the concept that driving a motor vehicle demanded your 100% focus and concentration. There are good and valid reasons for this.
The majority of phone calls and texting is completely un-necessary. It’s a documented fact that it compromises the driver’s attention with potentially fatal results. Personally, I’d rather not be injured or killed because a bunch of young, immature jacka sses want to “multi-task” behind the wheel of 4,000 pounds of metal going 60mph. Just because they do it doesn’t mean it’s safe or the right thing to do. As for individual constituional rights, they’re all well and good until and unless individual behaviors put me and my family at risk.
There’s no way to enforce this. Technology created the problem; it should find a solution to prevent it while a vehicle is in motion.
Oh yes, glad you brought that up (as asinise as it is). Please see:
Preamble:”We the People of the United States…provide for the common defence…”
Article 1, Section 8. “The Congress shall have Power To lay and collect Taxes, Duties, Imposts and Excises, to pay the Debts and provide for the common Defence…”
Amendment X: “The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the states, are reserved to the states respectively, or to the people.”
Really, it’s not a tough concept to understand. The rights not expressly laid out in The Constitution are reserved to the states respectively, or the people. The feds are not states.
“As for individual constituional rights, they’re all well and good until and unless individual behaviors put me and my family at risk.” This is why there are courts and state legislatures.
“When some people are incapable of exercising common sense, democracy works against society.”
I couldn’t disagree with this more. I”m so tired of people demanding government intervention for common sense things. It removes responsibility and accountability from the idiots who are doing this. Smoking is bad for your health? Ban it. Drinking kills? Ban it. Trans-fats cause heart attacks? Ban it. What’s wrong with this picture?? Everyone knows smoking will kill you, drinking too much can kill you, too much fast food can kill you – a law against them is unnecessary! Take responsibility for you’re own actions! There’s a law in my town passed not too long ago that only allows a 16yo driver one person in the car. WTF? That’s up to the parents and the kid; who the hell is the gov. to put those restrictions on me? Terrible, insane, unconstitutional. Stupid liberals.
Buses and trucks cross state lines. Congress has power over interstate commerce. Ask a trucker about all the federal laws they have to follow.
Dang, Rosie, I want to go fishing with you. You can sure reel ’em in!!!
.. lets see a show of hands for the number of people willing to pay more in taxes to cover the cost of jailing each and every person caught texting while driving.
Anyone?
I think that a very stiff penalty, say $500-$1000, might work as a better deterrent, with possible jail time/increased fine for someone that actually causes an accident due to texting while driving.
Of course such high fine might get the other side screaming about the government just seeking more $$. Go figure.
While driving to work a gasaline tanker made a left turn in front of me, the driver wasn’t texting, he was talking on his cell, This truck has the capacity of 18,000 gal of gas. Why do we allow drivers of large commercial trucks and trucks carryinhg hazardus cargo to even talk on their cell phones.
The UK has a point system whereby one gets points on their license for each infraction, i.e. x points for texting, y points for speeding, etc. After so many points (I don’t remember how many, but it’s surprisingly low) you lose your license. Now you may think “what’s wrong with that?” What’s wrong is some 70% of the tickets are filed using traffic and speed cameras, in other words, Big Brother. That is something I will NEVER support; if you wanna give me a ticket, catch me, you can’t just set up cameras. That’s invasive and voyeuristic. Besides, studies show they don’t help with either revenue or safety.
To all those meatheads who quote the Constitutional “rights” to do whatever you damn well please, I have a message.
Go ahead and relegatdriving a vehicle to a part-time responsibility and keep texting those mindless, unecessary messages to your idiot friends because you can’t focus on anything important.
If you are unfortunate enough to cause an accident involving me, I will not hesitate to exercise my “right” to kick your stupid butt and shove your little electronic plaything so far up your you know what that your eyes will water. I don’t call 911 to solve problems.
People have “rights” but when you accept an employment that involves driving a commercial vehicle, you forfeit some of them whil on the job for the common good. If you’re on your own time that’s another story. If I were kind, the punishment for texting while driving would be removal of the thumbs.