Cell phone users

[Toecutter]

I participated in a study at NIH when I was in college. It was the easiest money I ever made, I got asked out by a nurse (no, not a male nurse), and I learned something.
The principle investigator talked to me a bit about the study when my participation was over. He said I, as with most of the people in the study, actually had my best scores with the equivalent of "one drink" in my system. That said, it's a rule with me - beers or bike, pick one.

So, did the investigator mention anything about how well your drunk score stacked up against others of the same or lower levels of intoxication? Like, was your .XX better than anybody else's sober?

That's the whole point of my example.

 

[odot]

Wow, you'd think that MADD took control of the website and wreaked some serious havoc on the poor ************.

 

[Silver Penguin]

Until we change our whole culture, we're not going to see the end of cell-phones and other distractions while driving. The automakers have worked hard to make our driving as easy as it possibly can be. We have automatic transmission, automatic climate control, satellite radio and all kinds of other mod-cons.

At the same time, we're spending more time in our cars (a generalization, for those without FJR's) and less time in our living rooms. Hence the car becomes a surrogate living room. All the things that used to be done exclusively at home, are now done while driving. People eat, drink, shave, apply make up, read, watch TV, talk/text on the phone, have sex. Is there any wonder that there are accidents? Not content with multi-tasking one item along with the driving, people are attempting to do multiple things.

IMHO, this behavior cannot be eradicated by legislation. It's what the people want, and what the people are doing, and will continue to do. For the more vulnerable road users, it's bad news. I wish I had an answer to propose but I don't. Until some wise person comes up with a solution, pedestrians, bicyclists, motorcyclists and drivers of small cars must take extra care to avoid confrontation with this kind of driver.

And since we, as FJR forum members represent the nation's brightest and smartest, we can lead by example. On the days when we're not riding our bikes, we must pay 100% of our attention to our driving, in the same way that we do on the bike.

Jill