Where's the Anti-Cell Phone Movement?

Wednesday, February 02, 2005

From Live Science:

"If you put a 20-year-old driver behind the wheel with a cell phone, their reaction times are the same as a 70-year-old driver who is not using a cell phone," said University of Utah psychology professor David Strayer. "It's like instantly aging a large number of drivers."

Cell phone distraction causes 2,600 deaths and 330,000 injuries in the United States every year, according to the journal's publisher, the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society.

So where's the cell-phone-control lobby? It's an epidemic problem. There's no reason to carry on a conversation while driving. It's stupid, could get you or someone else killed, and severely handicaps your attention and awareness.

Those who get into accidents resulting from cell phone usage should face strict penalties as if the driver was under the influence.

So just how guilty are you?