Texting While Driving - Free Essay Example

Brandon Zarecky CC/Formal #3 Prof. Galati March 27, 2010 Texting While Driving The average Joe is sitting in his Honda on Interstate 90 when his cell phone goes off. Of course, hearing the recognizable text message vibration or ringtone creates curiosity, so Joe thinks, â€Å"Maybe it’s my friend telling me about a change of plans for tonight, or parents, or something is wrong? † Although traffic looks like it is going to be moving soon, and knowing that it would only take a few seconds to respond, Joe does. Then before he knows it, the Blazer in front of him stops too fast and causing the grill of Joe’s Honda to hit the back end of the Blazer. Texting behind the wheel is dangerous because it takes the driver’s eyes off the road and lowers the driver’s mental focus. Vision is the main thing that everyone counts on while driving, texting and driving at the same time reduces that (Guevin). No matter where the cell phone is placed, whether it is on the dash board or on the steering wheel, the eyes are usually not where they really need to be. Everyone’s eyes are supposed to be on the road in any situation at all times. In just that split second that it takes to glance at a text message, a crash could occur. Yes, some people claim to be able to text without looking at their phones, thinking they are safe but they are clearly not. Just because someone’s eyes are not on the phone, doesn’t mean that driver’s focus is on the road. A common saying about listening abilities also applies to vision here: â€Å"Just because you can hear me, doesn’t mean that you are listening to me (Magid). † Even though someone is looking at the road doesn’t mean that driver is paying attention to what is going on. A typical texting person’s eyes might be on the road, but the mind’s focus is on what he or she is going to reply in the message. Meanwhile, while they trying to make sure they hit the right key or letter on their phone, they are not noticing everything going on in traffic. In some states texting has become illegal while driving. The law is intended to save drivers from suffering the consequence of other texting drivers, which is said to be worse than drunk driving. The law sounds helpful, but how exactly will police officers enforce it? As the United States regulators step up scrutiny of the dangers of texting while driving, software makers are scrambling to develop cell phone applications that block texts or minimize the distraction of texting (Lavallee). But as long as drivers do not hold their cell phones above the window, the police will never know they are texting. Sure, some people will be careless and forgetful, and that will get them caught. Police officers may have to come up with a clever way to catch people texting on the road. They could possibly set up cameras along the road, but the cost would be too high to fully enforce that idea. The potential law will require authorities to redirect some of their resources from preventing and solving other serious crimes. Many texts can be or may be urgent, but the law states that they are not important enough to be answered, which can lead to many unanswered emergencies. In that case, the law would improve the situation an extreme amount if it could be enforced in a cheap, time efficient way. There is a big need for a way to stop or at least decrease the number of people who text while driving and a law could provide that with the right resources. The law would save lives, reduce the number of wrecks, and reduce reckless driving (Lavallee). As everyone knows, text messaging has revolutionized the way people interact with one another. It allows everyone to talk to anyone at anytime. People come to value the relationships that texting is able to establish with their peers, too much for them to let a law get in the way of it (Common Sense Media). In a way, they seem to think that their freedom of speech is being threatened, but the law is there, only to protect them while they are driving. Teenagers are definitely the main group of people who text while driving, with around fifty percent of them actually admitting to it (Lavallee). Not surprisingly, though, the biggest influence on how teens drive is their parents. Almost two-thirds of high school teens say their parents talk on a cell phone while driving, half say their parents speed, and a third say their parents don’t wear a seat belt (Lavallee). Cell phone related crashes make up eighty-five percent of all automobile crashes, so some sort of solution need to be thought of (Inbar). A study done by the Nielson Co released in early 2009, says that â€Å"the most avid texters are thirteen to seventeen and they average 2,272 text messages a month. † This breaks down to about eighty messages a day. This was the nationwide average for 2008, but thanks to the rise in unlimited text ing plans, this number keeps going up (Magid). Texting when driving also interferes with family relationships, because by doing it, you’re risking an accident and possibly death and devastation to your family. This is then more elaborated by a Professor of linguistics at American University Naomi S. Baron states that â€Å"texters† have difficulty being â€Å"in the moment† with other people because â€Å"they are constantly being summoned by someone else in another place, it is a part of a larger phenomenon of where your mind is, and if your mind is always on your phone, it’s not on other things† (George). Drivers who text while driving are not â€Å"in the moment† that is taking place on the road in front of them. One doctor claims that excessive texting should be taken more seriously. Psychiatrist Jerald Block says that â€Å"text messaging is one of at least three known forms of compulsive computer use (Common Sense Media). These com pulsive behaviors can result in very serious health and social consequences. Consequences like those range from fatigue, depression, social isolation, poor work performance, and of course poor driving. One major reason that texting teenagers suffer from fatigue is that many of them send and receive texts in the middle of the night. If that is mixed with driving, then that creates more reason to believe that it is very dangerous to text while driving (Guevin). Many parents, as stupid as this may sound, feel that the benefits of text messaging outweigh the harm. They value having the capability of being in touch with their children at all times, even if they are on the road driving. They see the benefit of cell phones offering instant communication, which is also helpful in arranging rides and checking up on children’s plans, totally overlooking the fact they are possibly doing harm to their children if they happen to be driving an automobile (Common Sense Media). Usually al l parents are aware of the benefits in text messaging, but the dangers of it while driving cannot be ignored and forgotten. According to a study by the Pew Research Center, â€Å"a quarter of U. S. teens say they text while driving. † Nearly fifty percent say that they have ridden in a vehicle with other teen drivers who are texting (Madden). This is becoming more dangerous and possibly fatal. The Washington Post gets its data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). Their statistics show that drivers younger than twenty had the highest distracted driving fatality rate among all age groups last year (Magid). Now there couldn’t possibly be any more kinds of distractions when it comes to texting while driving, but there is. With the popularity of the texting age has come another dangerous trend, sexting. According to The National Campaign to Support Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy, sexting occurs when cell phone users electronically send nude o r semi-nude pictures of themselves (Lavallee). A study done by this organization shows that twenty percent of teenagers actually admit to being involved with sexting, some even while driving! Almost a third of those teens exchanging sexually suggestive content are expecting to date or â€Å"hook up. That gives some of those teens another distraction if on the road. Even though the majority of people in this age group believe that sexting can have seriously negative consequences, many however, do not know that it is also very illegal (Inbar). The studies that have been done and the statistics available provide enough reason to believe that there really is no good reason to text while driving. In the case of legitimate emergencies, drivers should pull off the road to send or receive messages. Not only is it just the teenagers out there, but also many parents. While many teens and their parents feel that text messaging is a necessary technology twenty-four-seven, the dangers of thi s belief is undeniable. Texting while driving has proved to be too much of a concern and cause too many problems on the road. It would be good to know that society and the police are doing everything they can to try putting some sort of end to this popular yet fatal activity that all kinds of people are involved in. Unfortunately, there is not much effort to establishing a law for this. The law makers should most definitely pass a law made that takes this hazard away and makes driving safer for everyone.