Better To Drive Drunk Than On Cell Phone?!?

The friendliest place on the web for anyone that enjoys cooking.
If you have answers, please help by responding to the unanswered posts.
See posts with no answers
Status
Not open for further replies.
We have been debating this issue all day........I personally think it is a toss up...either way, does that mean the penalties will be the same as if it were a DUI?
 
The difference, however, is that if you're drunk, you're drunk. Believe it or not, I agree that too many people talk too much on their cell phones, but it's not illegal to do so, so what kind of penalties are they proposing for doing something that's not illegal?

BC
 
I'm sure the powers that be will come up with some as soon as some moron talking on their stupid cell phone runs a red light & kills someone.
 
:) I believe it illegal in alot of states to drive and talk on cell phone,I have a trac phone pay as you go as it does not work in the middle of nowhere where I live but its a comfort to have when I drive long distances in case I run into some sort of trouble and its great at the store if someone has a last minute request as the trip to town is 45 miles away and to the next town which has alot better groceries is 65 miles one way.
 
BreezyCooking said:
Mylegsbig - I am 50. And somehow I've managed to live an unbelievably fantastic & wonderful life without the use of a cell phone for the entirety of that life until 2 years ago. Go figure. I only use my cell phone for car/household emergencies. Go figure.
Click to expand...
A cell phone is a convenience. No one is saying you can't live your life without one. You can live without electricity, running water, TV, radio, cars, internet, computers, etc., but just because you use those conveniences does not make you a moron.

BreezyCooking said:
If you can't function without speaking to someone on a telephone every 10 minutes, then, quite frankly, you need to re-examine what's important to you. I managed an entire Manhattan Import/Export company without the use of a cell phone. Go figuire. Duh.
Click to expand...
Ummmm I have had a cell phone for many many years. So has everyone I know. NONE of us spend much time on it. We use it when we need to and it has made life that much easier, not to mention safer.

BC you might want to consider opening your mind a little bit. You just may see that these newfangled devices are not the devil you make them out to be and the people who use them can be just as intelligent as you.
 
GB - you raise many good points, & I really do apologize if I've ruffled feathers - really. That wasn't my intention.

My point is is that there is no reason why someone can't pull over to the side of the road or move to a safe/unobtrusive space to take/make these apparently constant calls. I'm sorry, but unless you're calling an ambulance, there's no way someone can convince me that there's no way they can find a convenient space to pull over & make/take a call.

In the supermarket, high-scale restaurants, & - dangerously - on the road, people are always on the friggin phone. How, exactly, did they exist without it?
 
It is illegal in Chicago, and also in the nearby town of Naperville, IL to talk on a cell phone while driving. It is not illegal to talk using a handsfree device. I certainly agree with that, and use a handsfree device when I'm in the car, whether I'm in those cities or not. It's much safer. And as I said, but Breezy refused to acknowledge, I don't use my cell much, so would not die a million deaths without it, but I have a right to use one and some narrow minded bully is not going to intimidate me into not using it with their mean spiritedness.

BC
 
We have cell phones for safety only.

At least for me the distractions of dialing, and maintaining a converstaion on the phone, make me a dangerous driver.

Have driven behind, and next to, too many drivers who are swerving, having trouble mergind on a highway, and just not driving properly while on the phone to think I could do better than they could.

And so I always find a place to pull over if I have to make a cell call on the road.

I do not want to live the rest of my life thinking I could not have killed someone had I only been paying full attention to the road.
 
I agree with you Breezy. There are very few good reasons that someone would need to be on the phone while driving. I would feel much safer if people waited until they were not driving to make or take that call.

That being said I have to confess that I do use my phone when driving. I generally try not to, but if and when my wife/parents/brother call then I need to answer to make sure everything is OK. I try to be as careful as I can and I feel I do a very good job of it. I do understand that it is not really the smartest thing to do though.

Quite honestly though, I find an iPod to be a MUCH bigger distraction. When I first got my iPod I almost ran off the road a few times thinking I could scroll through the songs or options on it. I quickly learned that is not the case. I am a lot more nervous of that than I am cell phone users. At least with a cell phone you can keep your eyes on the road even if your full attention is not there. With an iPod, your eyes can be off the road for a while if you let it happen.
 
i saw an episode of Mythbusters that tested that and they got the same results. i don't have to worry about that yet though cuz i can't even drive yet!!!!:LOL:
 
I have seen studies that report distractions in general as a major cause of accidents. Further, talking to others in the car and eating while driving far exceed cell phone usage as causes of accidents. Legislators choose to attack cell phone usage as it is an easy target. Try to criminalize eating while driving or talking to passengers...

I'm over 50, not rural, and neither a moron nor an idiot. I use a cell phone. I can, but choose not to, live without it.

I have driven on roads where it is not possible to pull over to make a call or have a heart attack or change a tire.

While I acknowledge that others have different opinions from mine, I do not consider them to be morons or idiots for doing so.
 
Bluecat - I fully apologize to you for missing the fact that you use a hand-free phone. But. . . .

Although these have been found to be less distracting than hand-helds, the distraction is still the conversation rather than the hardware, so there's not much difference.

I'd still pull over. And I still feel that people who can't wait to talk to other people until they're home & relaxed, unless it's something urgent, need to rethink their priorities. No one here will ever convince me that having an in-depth conversation with their friend/girlfriend/boyfriiend/husband/wife will NOT take their attention off the road. You only need to hit a person or animal once to take its life.
 
Last edited:
I am on the side of Breezy and BlueCat, neither of whose comments by the way, have I found the least bit objectionable. Maybe because I agree.

I have an old mobile phone which I keep in the console of my car, just for EMERGENCIES, like, you know, breaking down on the side of the road. Prior to that, I'd have to wait for a cop to come help me, so a cell phone is a benefit to saving time.

Otherwise, I do not carry one on my person, I never have it ON in the car, and I see no reason for doing so. Yeah, GB, almost everyone else I know (other than the five other members of my family) carries one, and I hate that. But we cell-phone-haters get along in life just fine, as we always have.

I vehemently object to people using them in ANY store, restaurant, BEACH, while driving, well, pretty much anywhere in public. People evidently don't grasp the fact that using phones in public is an imposition to others, and extremely rude, self-centered behavior. Many don't consider the fact that one can turn them OFF, and that you don't HAVE to answer them when they ring.

I agree with Breezy - we all grew up without them, and we can all do without using them gratuitously and dangerously.

Lee
 
Okay - I fully admit the terms moron/idiot were over the top.

But really - just in the past 3 weeks I've twice almost been run off the road by people talking on their cell phones, not paying attention, & drifting into my highway lane. A 55-mile per hour lane I might add.

Sorry if I find this dangerous.
 
jpmcgrew said:
:) I believe it illegal in alot of states to drive and talk on cell phone,I have a trac phone pay as you go as it does not work in the middle of nowhere where I live but its a comfort to have when I drive long distances in case I run into some sort of trouble and its great at the store if someone has a last minute request as the trip to town is 45 miles away and to the next town which has alot better groceries is 65 miles one way.
Click to expand...

yea I've thought about getting a trac phone too, for emergencies. I prefer the idea of pay as you go, no contracts.
 
Wow. What I missed while at work!

Lets be clear here. The tools we use are not responsible for car accidents or anything else. It is the driver who is ultimately responsible for their vehicles. In Alberta, we don't call them "accidents" anymore, they are referred to as "collisions" because they are all preventable and so the word accident is a misnomer.

I suspect I may start off a firestorm with my next comment. I fail to see how a talking on a cell phone is worse (for most people) than talking to a passenger in your vehicle. I know folks are going to say that one of your hands is off the wheel, but come on now, how many of us have driven with one hand? I bet there are very few who could claim to always keep both hands on the wheel. I am not condoning this behaviour, just trying to make a point.

As drivers we all do things that are less than safe. Drinking coffee, flipping stations on the radio, yelling at our kids in the back seat. Most of the time we get lucky and there are no dire results from these actions. Occasionally, though, the consequences of a moments inattention are horrific. Cell phones are not responsible for this. We are.

Breezy (and others), if I understand correctly you are not just upset with the use of cell phones in cars, but with the discourtesy of people using them everywhere. I can see your point. I find it irritating when I am in a restaurant and someone takes a call on their cell phone. However, I find it equally irritating to have someone practically yelling to their dining companion and disturbing my meal. Its easy to place the blame on the overuse of cell phones, but really the blame squarely rests on the individuals for not being aware of (and considerate of) others.

OK, hope that doesn't set everyone off again. Just wanted to point out that COURTESY is what is lacking here. Lets remember that in our posts too please.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.

Latest posts

Back
Top Bottom