Speed Bump by Dave Coverly for August 15, 2013

I’m not a fan of texting while driving and find it quite inconsistent considering all the things we do in cars that are distractions. But I understand the desire that your fellow drivers not be texting while driving as for many people they put a lot of concentration into texting and text a lot. This presents a continuous distraction rather than a couple seconds, even though that’s all it takes some times. Creating a law is just going to far in my opinion. Some places are so strict, i.e., London you can’t even text at a full stop if you are behind the wheel. That’s just stupid. Peer pressure is good, in the end people will still do it just like speeding and running lights and stops.~More egregious is not being able to be on the phone at all in any facet. Consider GPS. I have it on my phone, don’t need the device. But some places you can get ticketed for being on your phone despite it being GPS related yet a dedicated GPS is just fine. Inconsistent and stupid.~I can talk to people in my car, but not to someone on the phone, even hands free in some places. The distraction is essentially the same. Inconsistent and stupid.~Can’t operate a phone in any fashion in the car in some areas, but you can still do your make-up, change stations on the radio, change CDs, heck you can even look at the window at stores and signs. All of these are distractions that take your focus off the road and the car in front of you, but they are not against the law. ~Too many laws like this, like Bloomberg’s proposed drink size law, are just inconsistent and stupid and an overreach.