People who talk on cell phones while driving

[BOSSHOG]

should have those cell phones shoved up their asses sideways. Not a day goes by, this morning included, that I see some jerkoff yahoo driving down the highway yakking on the phone, I'd bet about absolutley nothing of importance, totally oblivious to red lights, green lights, turn signals, stop signs, traffic patterns, merging traffic, pedestrians, their fellow motorists or the safety of anyone around them. Its enough to make an old fart cuss and want to install a cattle catcher on the front of his truck. I'm so happy when I drive aboard a military installation and see the sign posted at the gate which says, in so many words, don't even think about talking on your cell phone in your vehicle on this installation.

[bryant69]

1. Hear Hear

Also people who tailgate.

Bryant
Check it out --> http://politicalcomment.blogspot.com

[flvegan]

2. Texting is even worse, and from what I've read, a growing problem.

[Javaman]

40. When people tailgate me, I slow way down then put on my head lights.

they think I'm braking. I look in my rear view and see them freak out. They get the idea and back off.

[madokie]

141. I like that one

holding a full soft drink bottle out the back window of my f150 and shaking it like I might just toss it right in their face sure gets results quick too :rofl:

[MilesColtrane]

41. Texting probably contributed to this horrible accident that killed five.

http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/story?id=3379012

"Cell phone records show a text message was sent from the phone belonging to the driver, Bailey Goodman, at 10:05:52. A reply was sent to her phone at 10:06:29. Thirty-eight seconds later, someone called 911 to report the accident that killed Bailey and her friends."

"Cell phone records indicate the phone was in use," Povero said. "We'll never be able to clearly state that she was the one doing the text messages."

[AZBlue]

127. I've seen it on the highway at speeds of 70+ mph!

[OmmmSweetOmmm]

3. It's against the law here in NY. A couple of days ago my oldest son got

a ticket for talking on the cell while driving. He deserved it! I've told him the past, if you need to use the phone while in the car, pull over.

[Dulcinea]

106. It should be against the law everywhere!

I can't count the number of times I've almost been killed by some dumbass yakking on their stupid friggin' phone while driving. I can't wait for the day that cell phone drivers are treated like drunk drivers.

[Warpy]

4. Cell phone clods are enough of a menace when they're

walking around. They collide with inanimate objects as well as other people.

Laws against driving and yakking aren't enough to deter these clods.

I think we need these morons to buy extra liability insurance at a very expensive rate.

[DemGa]

5. You don't know every situation

Not that simple. You might bet they are talking of nothing of importance, and you could be wrong.

[BOSSHOG]

9. If its important I invite them to pull over

Regardless important or not important I think the yakking is a safety hazard.

[DemGa]

13. Maybe time is of the essence in this particular "yacking."

Pregnant wife, death in family, the list goes on...

[BOSSHOG]

15. If thats the case then we

all should have a cooler of ice cold beer in the front seat in case we get one of those calls so we'll have something to calm our nerves.

[QueenOfCalifornia]

34. You mean

You don't already do that????

[QueenOfCalifornia]

28. oh come on...

Please... Every time I go out of the house some idiot tries to kill me because their wife is having a baby and their mom died....

I have a couple of girlfriends who talk constantly while they drive. They call me to talk about nothing while they are driving.

So -- I guess I have to excuse the guy whose grandmother died and he couldn't wait to get home to call someone????

[Gormy Cuss]

96. Or maybe, as is the case nearly every time, it's just mindless yakking.

There are always exceptions but based on the number of drivers on cell phones I'm thinking that most aren't in the midst of an emergency so urgent. If the only people using their cell phones while driving were attending to emergencies there wouldn't be much of a traffic hazard.

My recent experience was witnessing a yakking driver blow right by a signalman showing a stop sign. The twit spun in the gravel and came within feet of hit the car in the opposing direction. Too bad in this state they don't require cop details for road construction projects.

[Arkansas Granny]

56. Thanks BOSS. These people who just can't wait a few seconds

to answer or return a call wind up putting many lives at risk for their impatience.

[meegbear]

11. That is true ...

kinda like those people who drive 85 and swerve between lanes and such. They could be rushing to the hospital to seek emergency treatment or they could just be an asshole.

[TexasProgresive]

52. You could be right but chances are you are not-

From what you hear in one sided converstation most calls are about nothing.

[slackmaster]

84. The way some of them gesture with their hands, you'd think it was pretty important

At least to them.

[lazyriver]

6. I hear ya. A guy on a bicycle, talking on his cell phone

and steering with one hand cut in front of me this morning in the center of town. He was riding on the shoulder going down hill through town (about 25 mph) and suddenly decided to hang a left just as I was about to go past him. He cut in front of me and another car coming the opposite way and never even looked at either of us as he turned onto a side street. He is lucky both drivers were paying attention or somebody would be scraping him off the street right now.

[tridim]

7. 90% of the time when I almost get hit by another car..

the driver is on the phone. I look every time.

I often wonder how much MY insurance rates have gone up because of drivers who insist on being on the phone while driving. I don't even own a cellphone.

[redqueen]

8. I wonder which causes more accidents.

Talking on the phone or road rage.

[Javaman]

57. I wonder if people talking on cells while they drive causes road rage? nt

[redqueen]

60. Well obviously it does.

Cell phones shoved up asses?

That counts as rage in my book, anyways.

[BOSSHOG]

77. That thought and verbage were made

at home in front of my computer. I have a very warped psyche, I tend to get extremely calm in stressful situations, it came in handy througout my Naval Career.

[redqueen]

79. Glad to know you're not one of those people I see all the time

all red in the face and cursing at other drivers.

We should ban those types from driving. And elderly people, too, probably.

[BOSSHOG]

81. My left sided brain rationalizes

to be calm in the face of potential adversity. On the flip side I do go insane about practically nothing. In a related note, it was a very sad day when the Doctor took my Dad's driver's license away from him as his dementia increased. Sad, but quite necessary. He took it well, he had built in chauffeurs for the rest of his life, which wasn't long.

[Arkansas Granny]

58. I wonder how much road rage is caused by someone talking on

a cell phone and not paying attention to their driving.

[redqueen]

62. I bet ragey type people rage about all kinds of things.

I think it's an addiction, really.

[Selatius]

64. Talking on the phone, according to my nationwide insurance rep.

More accidents are racked up due to inattention to the road than people intentionally, maliciously ramming other cars out of rage.

[redqueen]

66. Your insurance rep uses an insurance definition.

I'm not talking about people getting so mad they ram cars... just getting so mad that they also become distracted.

:hi:

[Selatius]

68. Well, I generally defer to the insurance rep, because there's no legal def. of "road rage"

Bosshog incidentally lives in Mississippi, and so do I. We don't have the nightmarish expressways seen in sprawled cities like Los Angeles or Houston or New York City that seem to generate a lot of road rage out there, but we do have a lot of people driving around talking on their cell phones. Is it a safety issue? I think it is. Should there be a law against talking on cell phones like New York State has? I dunno, but if people keep getting into car wrecks because of inattention on the road, I'm pretty sure insurance companies are going to start lobbying for laws against the practice.

[redqueen]

69. The issue is distraction, yes.

Hence my observation about people who get filled with rage because of what other drivers are doing while driving.

[Jim__]

10. Amen! - n/t

[soothsayer]

12. I never talk on my cellphone while driving. It cramps my texting.

[ProfessorGAC]

22. Yeah. And I Can't Read the Paper If I'm Talking On The Phone!

Between the driving, shaving, and reading the paper, who has time for a phone call?
The Professor

[Nikki Stone1]

27. How about clipping nose hair while you're driving?

:evilgrin:

[ProfessorGAC]

29. Ever Do That & Hit A Bump?

Youchie!!!!

Bakatcha! :evilgrin:
GAC

[Nikki Stone1]

36. Nothing like those bumps to teach you to put those clippers away. :)

The only thing I do in my car is listen to Air America.

[soothsayer]

51. Of course it's hard to hold my beer while I'm driving and texting

[ProfessorGAC]

59. Yeah! And Try Smoking A Cigar While You're Doing All That!

Now THAT'S multitasking!
GAC

[BOSSHOG]

78. The funniest thing I ever saw someone doing while driving

An old man was driving an old stationwagon several years ago on a sidestreet in Smyrna, Georgia and was blowing up an inflateable pool which was hanging out the driver's side window.

[Ghost in the Machine]

92. I saw a woman in a Mercedes on 285 getting herself off with a dildo

at 630 am... I love Atlanta... sometimes...

[BOSSHOG]

95. Now that you mention it

I've seen a couple guys getting head while driving 70 MPH in the left lane flying down the interstate.

[hobbit709]

14. Tests have shown that driving and yakking

is more dangerous than driving and drinking.

[BlooInBloo]

38. Link?

[redqueen]

42. A quick search will get lots of hits for the study. It came out a few years ago.

What I'd like to see is the statistics on accidents involving elderly people as compared to drunk drivers and cell phone talkers.

[BlooInBloo]

43. It's not incumbent on me to do a claim-maker's research for them.

[redqueen]

45. aahaahahahaha

I thought EVERYONE saw that study. It was all over the place.

Guess you were out that day. :hi:

[endarkenment]

75. Got a link for that?

[hobbit709]

50. Try watching Mythbusters on the Discovery Channel

Not to mention numerous studies if you bother to Google. If I doubt a statement posted I check for myself-I'm not that lazy.

[Zodiak]

16. From what I understand

Cell phones impair driving more than alcohol does in many cases. I have seen a couple of demonstrations of this.

After seeing these demonstrations, I work very hard to not be around people who are clearly more interested in their phone conversations than driving. It's a defensive driving thing.

[guitar man]

17. amen

and amen from a biker. :thumbsup:

People on cell phones here are THE biggest hazard on the road to those of us on motorcycles. :mad:

[Nikki Stone1]

18. It's worse on freeways & interstates. Cell phoners drift in and out of lanes as they are talking,

usually without realizing it until they are practically in the next lane. They also speed up and slow down for idiosyncratic reasons, not related to what's going on around them. I have been behind cell phone users who slow down in the left lane when there is no reason to, and who change speeds erratically without any highway-related cause. I can only assume that the reason for these changes in speed is their changing emotional states during their phone conversation.

The problem for other drivers on the road is that safe driving works a lot on prediction. To avoid accidents, most drivers are monitoring road conditions, highway speeds, other drivers, etc. as they drive. It's not always a totally conscious process, but it is continuous. And, as people usually have regular driving habits, the careful driver can usually predict a lot of the behavior of other drivers after a few minutes of watching them. The problem with cell phoners is that their driving becomes unpredictable because the phone usage interrupts their driving process. They are distracted from the road and they are emotionally and cognitively effected by their conversations. This makes it really hard for drivers around the cell phone user to make any kind of assessment. The cell phone driver becomes more unpredictable and other drivers are put more at risk as a result.

[BOSSHOG]

21. The one I see often

is the light turns green and they have one hand on the cell phone and the other hand up their ass and their car just sits there until someone leans on the horn, and then its "what? Me?"

[Nikki Stone1]

25. Yeah, I've seen that too. My favorite surface street behavior is when cell phoners make left turns

as they are talking, and when there is no left turn light to tell them when it is safe. They are half paying attention as they cross 2 or 3 lanes of traffic, with the possibility of being T-boned along the way.

[many a good man]

67. Funniest thing I've seen

I stopped at a light at a 3-way intersection. Three cars are lined up when their light turns green. The first two are yakking on cell phones and don't move. The third driver doesn't honk, just drives around both of them. The two cars finally take notice and as they start to move the light turns red.

[raccoon]

19. Totally in agreement with ya, Bosshog. K&R. nt

[lpbk2713]

20. Sit under a corner with a traffic signal for a few minutes.

And watch who runs the red lights. More often than not it will be some idiot with their hand up to the side of their head. There have been several times when I was almost hit by one of these airheads. The real pisser is when they miss your front bumper by just a hair and they give you a dirty look for being in their way! :grr:

[burythehatchet]

23. Corporatism means public safety is secondary to corporate profitability

the cellular service providers will work hard to prevent any regulation of this public health menace.

[QueenOfCalifornia]

24. That's when I have turrets syndrome

I so totally agree with you!

This morning, as I drove my kids to school and the husband to the train for work --- A woman, driving an SUV almost smashed into me as she dialed her cell phone.

She NEVER saw me -- even after she drifted into my lane right next to me and I swerved to avoid her.

My poor kids got to hear Mommy drop the F Bomb... (I think they hear it every time we drive someplace....)

[notadmblnd]

26. you're right. and they should face the same fines and penalties that drunk drivers do.

[madmom]

30. I agree 100%, also people who talk while placing an order to a service

sector employee, like all we have to do is stand there and wait till they decide to grace us with their attention. They want service but can't let the freaking call wait 2 minutes!!!!! Sorry about the rant but :banghead:

[BrklynLiberal]

39. heh heh . Have you ever seen two people sitting at a table in a restaurant...BOTH talking on their

cell phones? It could have been a comedy skit on SNL or MADTV...:silly:

[hobbit709]

53. I watched two twits talking to each other

on their phones while they were about 6 feet apart in a buffet line.

[madmom]

70. yeah.lol...I often wonder if they're talking to each other.

[BOSSHOG]

80. Love your rant Mom and I think you would love the signs

at many stores in New Orleans; Please turn off your cell phones while in this store. Such a shame common courtesy must be dictated.

[madmom]

99. wish we could do the same here..but alas the customer is always right...NOT

[BrklynLiberal]

31. From your keyboard to the ears of every lawmaking body!!! There are some people who cannot even

WALK and talk on the phone at the same time. I have to deal with these fools on the street everyday here in NYC.

The idea of someone having an extended, involved conversation while driving is totally assinine. I see it every morning while looking out the window of the bus I take to work.
These drivers are more involved in what they are talking about than the traffic around them. I would like to see some stringent enforcement of the law that prohibits this.

I am not even going to get started on the idiots who have loud, personal conversations on the bus...the ones who walk onto the bus with the phone to their ear, exit the bus in the same way, without ever having stopped blabbing on the phone.

[IDemo]

32. Normally I commute on a bike

One month ago, on a morning when I had to drive, I witnessed a woman in front of me on a cellphone drift completely into the bike lane I normally use, drift her way back into the center turn lane, and back. She 'nudged' the bike lane again before I turned left. Between that and dodging all the broken glass and other garbage in the bike lanes, I'm thinking of giving it up.

[Starbucks Anarchist]

33. What if they're also breastfeeding?

:popcorn:

[Nikki Stone1]

37. Bored today?

:popcorn:

[mentalsolstice]

46. My favorites are the smokers

Cell phone up to their ear, ciggie hanging out of their mouth with an inch of hot ashes about to fall in their lap...

:hi:

[Starbucks Anarchist]

47. Hey, I used to do that!

Not with the cell phone, though. :hi:

[Javaman]

35. I love when they drift around in their lanes or go a full 30 mph under the limit

on the freeway.

I like beeping them just when I drive by, the panicked look on their faces is priceless.

[Bandit]

44. How about drinking coffee while driving or a soda

Or smoking a cigarette? With all the idiots driving on our highways I would think anything that distracts a driver should be banned.

[scorpiogirl]

76. Hey, let's ban kids. They are my biggest distraction in the car! :-)

As for cell phoners, they always drive slow on the freeway. They completely hold up the freeway while everyone else has to drive around them. Makes me nuts! Oh, and they're a load of fun maxing out at 40 mph on the on-ramp. Meanwhile, they're about to get run my ass run down by a big rig as I try to merge at 40 too.

[redqueen]

48. Seriously... anyone know of any comparisons between elderly/drunk/distracted drivers?

I'm curious now...

[leftofthedial]

49. yeah, and old people too

and people with unruly kids in the car

and people putting on makeup

and people drinking coffee or other beverages

and people eating

and people singing with the radio

and people with personal audio devices crammed in their ears

and all males under the age of 35

and people driving old cars

and motorcyclists

and anyone with a dog in the car

and anyone who has had an alcoholic beverage in the last four hours

and anyone who has had caffeine in the last twelve hours

and anyone who is smoking

and anyone in a vehicle with a seat more than 30 inches from the ground

what you said!

[hiphopnation]

54. yaaaaaaaaaaaaaawn

[SheWhoMustBeObeyed]

55. And if you're on the phone with someone who's driving, HANG UP

When people call me from the road I tell them "Call me back when you're parked" and hang up.

If I call them and find out they're driving, same thing.

I don't want to be party to an accident.

[proud2BlibKansan]

61. People who talk on cell phones while shopping

I was at Target a few years ago and the lady in front of me at the checkout was yacking away on her cell phone. The cashier finished ringing her stuff up and looked at her and told her the total. The lady kept yacking on her cell phone. So the cashier repeated the total and I looked at the lady and said "I think she wants you to pay her now" So the lady puts her cell phone against her chest (so the person she is talking to can't hear her) and looks at the cashier and says "Can't you see I am on the phone?"

Some people just shouldn't be allowed to own a cell phone at all, much less drive down the road while talking on it.

[ProfessorGAC]

63. Almost Exact Thing That Happened To Me

Nearly the same phrase came out of the lady's mouth too. My reply? "Can't you see you're not the only one in the store? Unglue the phone from your ear, pay and get out of my way." End of discussion.
The Professor

[madmom]

71. I wonder what would happen if the cashier would pass over them and

go to the next person because they "didn't want to interrupt what must be an important call"?

[lpbk2713]

65. That would be a real test of my self-control.

She was obviously a freeper type.

[hobbit709]

73. I probably would have grabbed her phone

thrown it on the floor and smashed it. Rude behavior needs that kind of attention-getter.

[BOSSHOG]

85. Last month

at the barber shop a guy was in the chair getting his haircut while yakking on the phone and couldn't understand why the barber stopped cutting his hair.

[yella_dawg]

72. I've been hit twice by someone yakking on a cell phone.

Once in a parking lot, once at a traffic light. No damage either time, but it gets old.

[Evoman]

74. I'm a biker/pedestrian.

I've almost been killed by cell phone drivers. I'm not exaggerating...one time I was crossing the street (on a green light with a walk sign) and a cell phone driver comes tearing around the right corner. Lucky I was walking across the street facing him, because I had just enough time to jump out of the way. I fell sort of badly, and got some bruising. The guy stop about 2 meters ahead of the point where I would have been hit. Sure enough...he's got a cellphone and HE IS STILL TALKING ON IT. I approached his car, fully intending to pull him out of it I was so angry, and he drove off still yaking on the phone.

[theHandpuppet]

119. I was nearly broadsided by a cellphone blabbermouth

She was so busy flapping her jaws she blew right through a stop sign and nearly broadsided me. Lucky for me I slammed on the brakes. Then she had the nerve to take the other hand off the wheel just long enough to flip me the bird.

[slackmaster]

82. Kicked and Recommended with extreme prejudice!

:kick:

[MUSTANG_2004]

83. I tend to agree, but am still guilty of it /nt

[theHandpuppet]

120. Then STOP IT!

Thank you! :)

[ComerPerro]

86. I don't know if the cell phones are the cause, or just coincidental

I've seen a lot of fuckwits who aren't on cell phones. Possibly more.

[redqueen]

91. I'm with you on this one.

Most of the fuckwits I see on the road are NOT on the phone, so...

:shrug:

[ComerPerro]

100. Stupid people will do stupid things, cell phone or not

[VenusRising]

87. I made a similar statement to my husband just this morning.

I sympathize, BOSSHOG. :hug:

[BOSSHOG]

89. I might look on the bright side

and have been driving much more defensively and cautiously of late. Most of them seem to be on another planet.

[Stinky The Clown]

88. A young woman was cutting her bangs while driving.

I saw that just last week. She had the vanity mirror down (making forward vision pretty tough, it seems to me) and was looking and snipping.

I wonder if her cell phone was on speaker?

[sweetpotato]

90. saw a bumpersticker that said

You're not driving a phone booth.

[BOSSHOG]

94. The two wacky brothers on Car Talk,

the Best hour on Radio, are offering a bumpersticker on their website:

Drive Now, Talk Later

And these guys know their way around cars and safety issues. If you've never listened give them a try, found on Saturday Mornings on your local NPR station. They give good car advice while being incredibly entertaining and humorous.

[Gormy Cuss]

101. The Magliozzi Brothers, AKA Click and Clack

Their office is in an old building in Cambridge Mass and the corporate name is stenciled on the window as if they were a law firm:

"Dewey, Cheatham, and Howe"

Some newspapers carry their column but it's not as much fun as hearing them on the radio.

[BOSSHOG]

109. I love those boys

My wife knows where to find me on Saturday mornings at 0900. Out in the garage listening to the boys usually laughing my head off and trying to do a chore or two. They are rerun on Sundays at 1100 and I often catch them at that time too.

AND EVEN IF MEMBERS OF DU SWEAR THEY WILL JOIN FREE REPUBLIC WHEN THEY HEAR US SAY IT, THIS IS NPR.

[AlCzervik]

102. i love Click and Clack! i download their podcast every week.

i heard they're getting a tv show.

[BOSSHOG]

107. I hope so

Self deprecation in High Resolution. Praise the Lord.

[AlCzervik]

108. i found a link---

http://www.tvsquad.com/2007/07/12/car-talk-coming-to-tv/

[BOSSHOG]

110. Thank you very, very much

[superkia]

93. Drinking coffee, eating, doing make up, all take attention away from the road!

[AlCzervik]

97. i totally agree but a phone call requires more attention than chewing, imo

our brains can't toggle back and forth between two things that take concentration at the same time. I have amanual transmission so cell phone call never happen when i'm driving, i let it go to voice mail.

[superkia]

121. You are correct but drop that bagel in the bimmer and

you gotta get it off the leather right away..oops But yeah I understand what your saying there but it only takes that one time at the right point. I admit my guilt here, I'm certainly not throwing stones or my house would be crashing down around me. :-)

[AlCzervik]

125. about a year ago i was driving my daughter to school and everyday we would see this guy

and he would be eating his breakfast while he was driving, everyday is was something different, the last time we saw him he was eating-------corn on the cob! We quickly changed that to "cob in the car". i couldn't believe my eyes.

[superkia]

126. Not with your daughter in the car but give him a small break check!

[GETPLANING]

98. I like to honk my horn at them as if they are about

to have a wreck. Beeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeep!
It usually startles them so bad they drop their phone.
At least the person they are talking to hears the sound and wonders.
The fine for using a mobile phone in your car in most European countries is around 500 euro.
The mobile communications lobby in America has a lot of blood on its hands.

[bullwinkle428]

103. This thread would be MUCH longer if it weren't for Circuit City...

:rofl:

[AtomicKitten]

104. I don't own a cell phone and probably never will.

Inevitably that is reinforced every time some jackass makes an interesting albeit illegal smooth move on the highway with a phoned lodged in his ear or when we all get to enjoy a one-sided louder than average conversation in the grocery store, theater, etc.

[BOSSHOG]

105. Me neither Dear

I unaffectionately refer to them as leashes. I have a CB radio in my truck in case I need assistance. My wife insisted she has a cell phone for safety's sake. I acquiesced but told her no talking while driving. We do use it to call family and friends long distance to reduce our home phone bill, other then that I have no use for them. Call me a neanderthal but I don't need an instrument to ask someone what they are doing - "nothing, what you doing." and if they are used for business, that can be done while not driving and not in a public setting.

[Joe Fields]

112. I have never owned one. I won't say I never will, but for now I have

no need for one. I have managed very nicely by land line. And to tell the truth, I don't have a lot of use for land lines, either.

[AZBlue]

128. I'm so jealous!

I have to have one for work - well, I don't really have one, it's their phone, I'm just required to carry it. I hate it. I occasionally use it for personal reasons - never while driving - but I hate that I have no down time anymore. People will actually just rotate between home and cell phone numbers until you pick one up. What's that?????

[Joe Fields]

111. Hey Boss! Thank you for posting this. I swear, every single day,

some asshole, or assholes with a cellphone attatched to their face places my well being in some degree of jeopardy. I watch drivers like a hawk, because there are SO many of them gabbing on the phone while "driving," if you can call it that. And STILL,I end up having several close calls a week. These jerks come out of nowhere, blowing through stop signs, stop lights, turning from side streets, without so much as stopping and looking my direction, pulling right out in front of me, oblivious to what they have just done. And I get damned pissed off about it, too. I don't appreciate some goddamned idiot placing my life, and the lives of others in harms way, all because they feel the irresistable urge to use the phone, whether it is a conversation, text messaging or game playing, when they are supposed to be driving. K& R.

[BOSSHOG]

113. Makes one long for the good old days huh Joe?

I'm getting a bit on the old side, I'm 53 and I try to drive as defensively as possible. If I see a person with a cell phone I'm on triple super red alert. I choose not to call for a ban on the practice hoping that folks will be courteous enough not to put others life's in jeopardy but. Just but. Thanks for your feedback Joe.

[Joe Fields]

118. I really do miss phone booths on street corners...LOL

[TrogL]

114. I'm on call - I have no control over when a trouble-call comes in

...and often I'm dealing with the problem over the phone as I go there.

But I use a handset so I can keep both hands on the wheel.

[Dukkha]

115. What about people watching DVDs!

I've seen it and not just the kids in the back seat. There was an incident where someone crashed their truck and killed someone because they were watching a DVD while driving.

[Raine]

116. I'd like to do that to those

who jaw LOUDLY in stores on cell phones, they are so irritating. I don't want to hear their conversation they are so LOUD you would think they were talking thru two tin cans tied together with a string. I have a cell phone but I'm polite with it.

[SeattleGirl]

117. They drive me crazy, because they can't DRIVE and talk at the

same time!

Meandering all over the road.

Being in the wrong lane, and holding up everyone in that lane until the turn lane next to them is clear so they can move over.

And all the things you said in your post.

Hey, I have a cell phone, but driving and talking is still not okay.

[earth mom]

122. My husband and I can always tell when someone is talking on the phone in front of or next to us:

They are driving like complete gawddamn idiots! :grr:

[OhioChick]

123. I Agree Wholeheartedly. n/t

[Toasterlad]

124. I Hate Those Fucking Things in General.

If it's not an emergency, it can wait until you get to a real phone. I hate being subjected to people's personal conversations everywhere I go. No one but you cares that Marcie had her baby!

[porphyrian]

129. I think some people can do more than one thing at a time safely and effectively.

So, I'm not sure that I feel it should be a separate law (and I understand that it is in some places already). However, I was almost hit on two separate occasions by people who ran a red light with a cell phone to their head. That is impaired driving and a moving violation, and those individuals should be ticketed, perhaps with the cell phone distraction noted in the charges should they turn out to be repeat offenders. That way, no extra law, no extra police work, individual offenders punished instead of everyone.

[electron_blue]

131. There was recently an article in New Scientist that described research on this.

The results were that, yes, some people can learn to multitask, but only a very, very small percentage of the population. And the vast majority (over 90%) of the rest of us are physically incapable of doing it. What gets me is that everyone I know who talks on the phone while driving claims that they are in that special elite group.

[porphyrian]

134. Driving is multitasking. If that study is accurate, no one should drive.

I suspect that's not exactly the conclusion of the study.

From my personal experience, I believe most people can drive with one hand and hold a conversation (holding a phone or not) at the same time, under most circumstances. The problem I've noticed is that people, in general, don't pay enough attention to driving at all, with or without additional distractions.

[electron_blue]

135. Yes, there's more to it. Driving by itself is multitasking that doesn't, on the whole,

require much crossover between left and right hemispheres. It's the talking that disrupts the actions. Talking to someone in the car is already disruptive, but talking to an absent person is far more disruptive because that person can't see when the driver is up against something even a little tricky. With both people in the car, there will be natural pauses as the driver changes lanes or makes a turn, or if someone cuts the driver off, or what have you. This is absent with a cell phone conversation. And it's when the driver has to talk to someone when they should be watching that the problems comes from. The brain has difficulty reacting appropriately to both stimuli. It has to first finish reacting to the conversation that is going on at the time before it can switch over to taking evasive action, for example.

It was fascinating. They did many extensive tests that go way beyond anecdotal observations.

[porphyrian]

136. That does sound interesting.

And, with the risk of sounding like everyone else, I believe I am one of the people who can multitask, at least with regards to conversing while driving.

[electron_blue]

139. I know. I want to think of myself in that special group, too.

You might change your mind after reading the article, too. It has to do, among other things, with switching from audio to visual input.

[Imagevision]

130. Texting+driving+killing 2 people= 4 years in jail for that 18 year old...

actually she got a cheap sentence

[Nikki Stone1]

137. That may be because cell phoning while driving is still not against the law.

...

[Mabus]

132. Amen

Yesterday we were behind a woman on a cell phone who kept stopping where there were no stop signs or lights. Twice she waved to people (who were at stop signs or lights) to go ahead. It was so confusing because you never knew when she was going to suddenly stop. Her driving speed was also erratic. Sometimes she'd go the speed limit and sometimes she just crawled along. About the fourth time she inexplicably stopped (and we were sure it was safe) we drove around her. Naturally, she sped up and tried to cut us off. I looked over at her and, sure enough, she was chatting on her cell phone (probably complaining about us passing her).

There's also a four-way stop a few blocks from us. Because of the way the streets are laid out I have to go that way to get to the grocery store. I usually end up yelling "hang up the phone!" to some nimrod who is screwing up traffic. I'm not the only one either. The kids at the school (also located at the four-way) yell at drivers to hang-up when they're out on the playground.

[Fleshdancer]

133. This is one of my biggest pet peeves

I hate sharing the road with these people and I hate it when someone calls me while driving. You would think that if their driving was so bad that they would at least be holding a decent conversation, but no. Most of the time they suck at both.

Either get off the phone or get off the road.

[Greylyn58]

138. AMEN!!!!

I can't begin to tell you how many times I've almost gotten clobbered by one of these jerks. It makes me crazy.

I also think you are correct about most conversations being about nothing. I am a sales associate and I, unfortunately, get to hear most of these conversations. If the majority of these people talk about nothing while they are shopping, you can be sure their conversations while driving are probably the same.

Recently as I was sitting at a red light, I counted the cars going by me whose drivers were yakking on their cell phones. It was incredible.

[Initech]

140. I almost got in a head-on collision because of an idiot talking on her phone

and not paying attention to the road. That was almost 4 years ago and I've been vehemently opposed to people talking on their phones while driving ever since. Thankfully my new car has Bluetooth.

[aikoaiko]

142. There was a big study done, but I've not been abl e to locate it

It was supposed to be comprehensive and compared performance under ideal driver alertness with sleep deprivation, drunkenness, cell phone use, eating, and mental calculations. If I recall correctly, all the conditions led to taxing something the researchers referred to as "cognitive load".

If anyone has a link or copy, please let me know.

[Buns_of_Fire]

143. "Does it bother you when I talk on the phone while I drive?" he asked,

as I was going "nnnnnnng... nnnnnnng..." with a death grip on my seat belt while he was happily drifting towards the median. This was shortly after we almost wound up a new bumper decoration on the semi in front of us. He'd had the damned thing on -- and talking -- even before we left the parking lot at the office. Almighty business, dontcha know. Couldn't do that before he left the office, of course.

Then he spent several seconds looking intently at the screen on his phone. We're in the left lane of the interstate, doing roughly the speed limit.

After I finally pulled my tongue out of my throat, I finally said, "Surely to GOD you're not texting someone!?!?!?" "It bothers you?" "YES! It scares the SHIT out of me when somebody's screwing around with their damned cell phone while they're driving!" He closed the flip and put it down. I think I hurt his feelings. Good.

I'm all for pulling people over who do this. (See http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x1763240 for another discussion.) Especially here in Virginia, where the fines for moving violations can wind up in the thousands of dollars, thanks to the legislature.

But I must admit, shoving the cell phone up where the ring tone is muffled has a certain appeal to me, too.