no shit.....

[Howie]

never said i was in favor of more laws. im not.

but in my cup half empty world, there are not enough people exercising common sense or responsibility.
so.........when beck gets in an accident his first month on the job as an amtrak jockey, (or just being a clueless driver on his own time) i want there to be clear wording which leaves no doubt that he was negligent. no chance for him to claim that " i didnt know" or "my employer never told me i couldnt"

Your cup half empty world has merit.  Every time I'm on the road I see more people distracted by phones and other electronic devices as well as lunch, applying make-up, shaving, probably self pleasuring and who knows what else.  Usually I spot the (tickitable) erratic behavior first.  I think perhaps a ticket for failure to keep in lane, yield , or whatever else might be the way to go.  For the record, my phone goes unanswered when driving.

Do you really think Amtrak would hire Beck

[herm]

Your cup half empty world has merit.  Every time I'm on the road I see more people distracted by phones and other electronic devices as well as lunch, applying make-up, shaving, probably self pleasuring and who knows what else.  Usually I spot the (tickitable) erratic behavior first.  I think perhaps a ticket for failure to keep in lane, yield , or whatever else might be the way to go.  For the record, my phone goes unanswered when driving.

Do you really think Amtrak would hire Beck

i concede the point. my argument was flawed.

[Nitewaif]

I drive a 17,000 lb vehicle over the speed limit while looking at an alpha pager, talking on 2 radio's, looking up map grids on a laptop, and talking on a cell phone. I do it 14 nights a month for 12 hrs at a time and get paid for it.

I'm afraid I have to side with the camp that says texting/cell phones is not the issue.

It is merely the straw... poor camel

The main issue is cars that are too hightech

and

drivers that are too comfortable.

Driving isn't scary anymore.

Cars accelerate too quickly and stop too well.

The road noise is too quiet  and the cars will go straight with your hands off the wheel.

It isn't like the old days where you actually had to drive a vehicle and the act of driving occupied your attention.

here is a thought, get rid of the idea of insurance and see what effect that has on drivers.

I agree with Mom.  People are too comfortable.  Driving is too easy - people don't have to focus, so they don't allot the proper amount of attention to driving.  On top of that, you have all the extra shit in cars now so people are changing DVDs for their kids to watch and whatnot.  It's like a rolling living room, so people treat it that way.  Plus, car fatalities are waaay down compared to even 20 years ago with all the safety stuff.  People have a wreck that would've killed 'em in the old days and they walk away from it not considering they could've died.  It just isn't taken seriously.  Maybe more training and more $ required for getting your initial drivers license would help, I don't know what the answer is.  Tonight I borrowed a friend's truck, an old-ass Toyota 4-speed with no power steering.  I haven't driving anything like that since I got rid of my 240Z.  Maybe we should make it mandantory to learn on something like that.  And without the airbags and all, it HURTS when you do something stupid.