Comments on: Representative Curt Hanson Supports Ban On Cell Phones While Driving

By: Iowa Lawmakers Reject Efforts To Ban Same Sex Marriage | Fairfield Voice

Iowa Lawmakers Reject Efforts To Ban Same Sex Marriage | Fairfield Voice — Thu, 11 Feb 2010 18:55:34 +0000

[...] of Iowans think the issue of same-sex marriage doesn’t deserve lawmakers’ time, rating it below texting while driving, puppy mill legislation, gun control, payday loans and [...]

By: Mark_Bell

Mark_Bell — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 02:40:35 +0000

Talking on a phone (hands free or otherwise) is more dangerous than talking to a passenger. The passenger is generally aware of the traffic and other conditions and conversation often slows or stops during critical driving situations, if you are on the phone the other party has no idea that you are passing, merging, turning or otherwise have an increased workload and continues the conversation unabated.
The "hands free" laws are a joke, it's not what your hands are doing that make you dangerous, it's what your brain is doing.

By: egc52556

egc52556 — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 17:59:10 +0000

Don't get me wrong. I'm not saying that it's safe to text or chat or butter my bagel while driving. I'm just curious that perhaps the ban-laws aren't effective on their own. Nevertheless, I'd rather have the ban-laws than not.

By: Lyricd

Lyricd — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 05:52:50 +0000

Another study, funded by AAA, found that while cell phones do distract some people, more crashes are caused by other distractions. The study found 29.4 percent of accidents caused by distracting activities were due to activities of a person, object, or event outside the car, and 11.4 percent of accidents were attributed to radio controls. Does that mean we should be banning billboards and audio systems?

People do all kinds things while driving. They eat, fix their hair, put on lipstick, light cigarettes, and we even saw someone curling their eyelashes. If we must always drive with two hands on the wheel, should we outlaw picking your nose? Just putting on my sunglasses or drinking a sip of coffee takes a hand of the wheel. The radio is a big distraction problem; I'm constantly distracted trying to push the tiny buttons to avoid commercials.

http://abcnews.go.com/2020/story?id=123815&pa...

By: Lyricd

Lyricd — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 05:48:35 +0000

There are many things that can distract us while driving. I don't think it is reasonable to ban all of these activities. The Utah study is very flawed.

Should be ban all of the following?

1. Eating
2. Applying makeup
3. Fixing hair
4. Smoking/Lighting cigarettes
5. Having kids in the car
6. Talking to passengers.
7. Adjusting the radio
8. Using the GPS
9. Thinking
10. Driving when sick

Additionally, many people enjoy different levels of reaction time and driving skill. Should we ban people with below avg hand/eye coordination? Should we ban anyone with depression or mental illness? What about people with a tendency to daydream?

As Will pointed out — we draw the lines where we think it is reasonable to place them, but cell phones are not any more distracting or dangerous than any of the items listed above, in my opinion, and I don't welcome the loss of integrity associated with a law that focuses on one of myriad driving distractions. It's insulting and dangerous to imagine that each of us is incapable of using technology in a responsible manner.

By: Lyricd

Lyricd — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 05:25:50 +0000

Here is the study that showed cell phones are more dangerous than alcohol. After reading it, I'm not convinced. The standard errors are high enough that the differences in breaking response time, following distance, recovery time, and speed could all be identical, with differences showing because of errors in measurement.

It is also thought provoking to see that all three groups did not differ significantly in an any category including the alcohol impaired group (excepting the "breaking force" measurement; the impaired hit the breaks harder).

http://www.psych.utah.edu/AppliedCognitionLab/Dri...