In the Race
Now, here, you see, it takes all the blogging I can do to keep in the same place.
If I want to get somewhere else, I must blog twice as fast as that!
You see, I'm in
the Red Queen's Race...
Turn off The Phones!
By Janet Evans
Sunday, Oct 5 2008, 09:10 AM
"Engineer sent text message"
When I saw the headline referenced above last Friday, I admit I thought twice about it, but uncharacteristic for me, I actually took the optimistic route with it and thought it was a positive story. I thought the railroad engineer actually texted a call for help, or texted some information. The slight inkling I had at first that he was texting while operating the train left my mind quickly. Well, my first thoughts were correct, although, they actually were just the tip of the iceberg.
Yes, he was texting...last month on a commmuter train in Los Angeles. He did it just seconds before the train ran through a red light and crashed. 25 people were killed in that tragedy...his fault. And guess what...he had been texting not once, not ten, not 20 times..well you won't believe it, throughout the day...
From the Daily Journal
Through cell phone records, the preliminary report has determined that the engineer sent a text message 22 seconds before the train ran through a red light. Further investigation discovered the engineer had sent or received 57 messages while on duty the day of the crash. That is an average of seven messages per hour during an eight-hour shift. When was this guy conducting the train?
Secondhand texting resulted in 25 deaths. Will it take cell phone-related deaths to equal alcohol- or smoke-related deaths before someone calls for a ban on cell phones?
Continued HERE
You know, I really don't care if people want to talk on their cell phones, but I do care if they aren't able to drive correctly because they are doing so. Too many aren't signaling because they don't have a free hand. And when they're texting..their eyes aren't on the road. Many cell phone users aren't going the proper speed limit, either.
All it takes is for your head to be down or your eyes to be off the road for a couple seconds...and you can kill one person, a whole family, cause a multi-car pile-up on the highway...who knows what can happen.
Do I want a cell phone ban? No, I don't. Do we have to have the government tell us what to do about everything in our lives? Can't people just use some common sense? But they can't do that, and that's why there will end up being a ban on cell phone use in cars.
