texing 20 year kills 13 people

[poppy]

Wait. Now we are debating if talking to someone in the car or using a GPS is as dangerous as texting and driving? What?

Texting and driving is very dangerous. Don't do it. Please.

[gardenmom5]

Well, I'm not sure about the no hands on phones rule.  When I use my GPS, I hold my phone in my hand and both hands on the wheel.  I glance at it just like my speed and mirrors.  It is not distracting.  I set it before I start.  I also use hands free phone during driving and I use "Hey, Siri" voice to text often.  I find it not one bit more distracting than the multiple conversations between kids and me during a drive.  I do not assume if someone is holding their phone, they are texting or checking FB or something.

 

Days of flipping through tapes and cds...that was my most distracted driving days.  Rewind, stop, play...  Glad that does not exist anymore.

 

I honestly don't know what the answer is.  Easy to make laws and so hard to enforce them!

 

there are phone holders on a gooseneck so you can get it exactly where it needs to be to easily see it.  then it can be plugged in, the cord's not in the way - we also use the verbal instruction.  dh named her cecily. . . . .

the man who hates smart phones and most electronics (he has a dumb phone) loves gps. . . . it was what finally sold him on me having a smart phone.  this was after I bought myself a smart phone . . .

[rjand6more]

there are phone holders on a gooseneck so you can get it exactly where it needs to be to easily see it.  then it can be plugged in, the cord's not in the way - we also use the verbal instruction.  dh named her cecily. . . . .

the man who hates smart phones and most electronics (he has a dumb phone) loves gps. . . . it was what finally sold him on me having a smart phone.  this was after I bought myself a smart phone . . .

My dh has one of those.  But how are they better than just holding it?  I mean, I drive with both hands.  It definitely does not reduce the risk/temptation of using it when it's in a holder.  I know someone who uses one to properly hold her phone so she can watch Netflix.:(

[gardenmom5]

My dh has one of those.  But how are they better than just holding it?  I mean, I drive with both hands.  It definitely does not reduce the risk/temptation of using it when it's in a holder.  I know someone who uses one to properly hold her phone so she can watch Netflix. :(

 

 

holding anything in your hand is part of your hand not holding the steering wheel.  unexpected things happen.

 

even if you put it between your steering wheel and your hand - it is increasing the distance your hand has to wrap around the steering wheel and reducing your grip. 

[maize]

Wait. Now we are debating if talking to someone in the car or using a GPS is as dangerous as texting and driving? What?

 

Texting and driving is very dangerous. Don't do it. Please.

I don't think anyone is arguing in favor of texting, we're just discussing other things that can impair driving ability and focus.

[mamaraby]

The accident photos are interesting. The truck looks like the driver wouldn't have made it, whereas I look at the big van and damage done to it and wonder how all but 1 passenger died especially since mossy had on seatbelts. The driver of the van, yes, there's a lot of damage there, but the rest of the van looks to have held up well. Just interesting. Nothing to do with texting/driving, etc. 😒

A lot of times, accidents younger people might walk away from are fatal to older people. Their bones are more likely to break due to the crash impacts which contributes to more internal injuries. But really, from what I understand, the stress to their system from the accident is just more than their body can handle.

[frogger]

I don't see any way that guy was "just" texting. I think he had to be high or drunk too at a minimum. Too many close calls, too much grass, too many medians. Any normal person would've sat their phone down after a close call....or two....or three...or four. I will be interested to see what comes out of the blood tests. I am glad they have the video though. It should help keep him from pleading some extenuating circumstance to say he wasn't at fault.

 

I wish this were true but the people I've seen don't seem to realize there was a close call or even if they do realize it their mind is not analyzing how close a call or how dangerous it was. I've honked at people that have had close calls or people are swerving around to avoid and though some people get angry most are just clueless. They look at you with an oblivious stare and go back to their phones because that is really what they are focused on.

 

 

 

Slightly off topic and not related to the quote. My husband was driving past a man going too slow in the middle lane of the freeway. As we passed I figured out why he was going too slow, slow being 55 or so (definitely fast enough to be deadly) when traffic flow was 70-75. He was playing a trumpet while driving! If you think you can make laws specific enough to hold back the stupidity of the human race, I think you are wrong.

[Word Nerd]

Very few people walk away from a head-on crash at high speeds, no matter what the vehicles look like afterward or how old they are. The impact alone can cause fatal internal injuries. If the pickup had been a smaller vehicle, that driver likely would have died too.

[poppy]

Very few people walk away from a head-on crash at high speeds, no matter what the vehicles look like afterward or how old they are. The impact alone can cause fatal internal injuries. If the pickup had been a smaller vehicle, that driver likely would have died too.

 

I am absolutely certain the size of his vehicle increased the number of deaths he caused. I despise it when people say they're buying their teenager--- statistically, the worst drivers ---- something huge to keep the kid safe. Trust me if your kid kills or maims people, that is not keeping the kid safe.  I was involved in a terrible accident once involving a 16 year old driving a 5,700 lb mega SUV.  She just made a split second mistake.   It was very, very bad. It was the goriest thing I've ever seen. I was in the hospital a long time too. It didn't have to be as bad as it was.  This Dodge the 20 year old is driving, I'm not sure what model it is but it's got to be at least 7,000 lbs.  If there isn't already, I think there should be higher penalties for irresponsible use of commercial weight trucks.

[Word Nerd]

I am absolutely certain the size of his vehicle increased the number of deaths he caused. I despise it when people say they're buying their teenager--- statistically, the worst drivers ---- something huge to keep the kid safe. Trust me if your kid kills or maims people, that is not keeping the kid safe.  I was involved in a terrible accident once involving a 16 year old driving a 5,700 lb mega SUV.  She just made a split second mistake.   It was very, very bad. It was the goriest thing I've ever seen. I was in the hospital a long time too. It didn't have to be as bad as it was.  This Dodge the 20 year old is driving, I'm not sure what model it is but it's got to be at least 7,000 lbs.  If there isn't already, I think there should be higher penalties for irresponsible use of commercial weight trucks.

 

That's definitely a factor too. It was a huge pickup.

[Guest]

"Cowboy Cadillacs" (aka, big trucks) aren't uncommon here in Texas, at all. Adults drive them, teens drive them. They are everywhere. Everywhere. Even our family has a dually sitting in our driveway, and we are "city folk". (Well, we were until recently, anyhow.) Point is, there's nothing unusual or out of the ordinary about this 20yo driving a big truck.

Edited April 3, 2017 by Kinsa

[JoJosMom]

Some of us live in areas where deer, elk, and moose wander across the highway.  Large vehicles are very popular here.

[shehmeth]

I don't see any way that guy was "just" texting. I think he had to be high or drunk too at a minimum. Too many close calls, too much grass, too many medians. Any normal person would've sat their phone down after a close call....or two....or three...or four. I will be interested to see what comes out of the blood tests. I am glad they have the video though. It should help keep him from pleading some extenuating circumstance to say he wasn't at fault. 

 

 

I saw the video and all I could think was that he was also impaired, drunk or high. His driving was just like those drunk drivers I have seen on the road here in FL. 

[OneStepAtATime]

"Cowboy Cadillacs" (aka, big trucks) aren't uncommon here in Texas, at all. Adults drive them, teens drive them. They are everywhere. Everywhere. Even our family has a dually sitting in our driveway, and we are "city folk". (Well, we were until recently, anyhow.) Point is, there's nothing unusual or out of the ordinary about this 20yo driving a big truck.

Yep.  When DD was in school I was frequently the only one in the parking lot not driving an SUV or a truck.  I felt very short in my car.  When I switched to a van I didn't feel so short.  I live in Texas.  Get further West and it is SUVs and Trucks galore.  Definitely not unusual at all.

[poppy]

I know big trucks aren't unusual . But I think if you choose to drive a 7000 pound tank, you should be more liable if you are a negligent /than someone who drives a 'typical ' vehicle weighing 1/2 as much . I bet this won't be a popular opinion but it seems rational to me. I'm not taking about no fault accidents, I'm talking about texting , drunk driving , road rage, etc. It's worse to stab someone with a machete vs a paring knife.

[frogger]

Bicyclists and pedestrians are killed with smaller vehicles. A pedestrian or cyclists is hit on average every three days in my city. I think if you kill someone with a car it should be manslaughter charges. If you kill someone while making a choice to drive impaired, it should be murder charges because you made a pre meditated decision unlike say someone wearing black bolting across the road at night and you accidently hit them. A girl ran over a cyclist in our city not that long ago because of drugs and got I believe it was three months. 3 months for taking a life! It helped that she was a young rich white girl with a lawyer for a father.

 

This is reminding me of our last thread. :) If you run over my child in a Prius and kill them or if you kill them with a large vehicle it doesn't matter. They are dead. You took a life and there has to be a penalty to deter this behavior.

 

I am tired of teens in Nissans going 15 mph over the speed limit through a neighborhood with an elementary school on either side of it.

[gardenmom5]

Bicyclists and pedestrians are killed with smaller vehicles. A pedestrian or cyclists is hit on average every three days in my city. I think if you kill someone with a car it should be manslaughter charges. If you kill someone while making a choice to drive impaired, it should be murder charges because you made a pre meditated decision unlike say someone wearing black bolting across the road at night and you accidently hit them. A girl ran over a cyclist in our city not that long ago because of drugs and got I believe it was three months. 3 months for taking a life! It helped that she was a young rich white girl with a lawyer for a father.

 

This is reminding me of our last thread. :) If you run over my child in a Prius and kill them or if you kill them with a large vehicle it doesn't matter. They are dead. You took a life and there has to be a penalty to deter this behavior.

 

I am tired of teens in Nissans going 15 mph over the speed limit through a neighborhood with an elementary school on either side of it.

 

bicyclists kill people too.  (especially when they're going just as fast as they possibly can, with no respect for pedestrians.)

just off the top of my head, one in SF and one in NYC that made national news -not just local.  neither were charged - but should have been because of the speed they were going when they crashed into a pedestrian who had the right of way.

[frogger]

Yes, size of vehicle is irrelevant.

 

 

One of the reasons cyclists shouldn't be on sidewalks is because they don't match the speed of pedestrians.

[gardenmom5]

Yes, size of vehicle is irrelevant.

 

 

One of the reasons cyclists shouldn't be on sidewalks is because they don't match the speed of pedestrians.

 

they run red lights too.  kill pedestrians in crosswalks - who are crossing with the light.

[frogger]

I'm not quite sure what your point is. There are irresponsible bikers? Of course, there are. There are also irresponsible car drivers, motorhome drivers, and pedestrians. Nothing like slamming on your breaks in the snow for people racing across a six lane freeway which I see a lot.

 

Statistics are not in your favor on who kills more people though. It is vehicles hands down. I think you perhaps have some kind of vendetta against cyclists.

[poppy]

Bicyclists and pedestrians are killed with smaller vehicles. A pedestrian or cyclists is hit on average every three days in my city. I think if you kill someone with a car it should be manslaughter charges. If you kill someone while making a choice to drive impaired, it should be murder charges because you made a pre meditated decision unlike say someone wearing black bolting across the road at night and you accidently hit them. A girl ran over a cyclist in our city not that long ago because of drugs and got I believe it was three months. 3 months for taking a life! It helped that she was a young rich white girl with a lawyer for a father.

 

This is reminding me of our last thread. :) If you run over my child in a Prius and kill them or if you kill them with a large vehicle it doesn't matter. They are dead. You took a life and there has to be a penalty to deter this behavior.

 

I am tired of teens in Nissans going 15 mph over the speed limit through a neighborhood with an elementary school on either side of it.

 

 

My thinking is, this 20 year old in- say- a Toyota RAV4 might have killed 5 people instead of 13.  Dead is dead, alive is better.

 

[frogger]

I agree Poppy which is why he needs to face 13 counts of murder rather than 5 and that takes care of it.

 

 

I do think Gardenmom5 was trying to prove your point for you. Lol Trying to say bicyclists are going to kill us all. I have never once , even as a pedestrian with toddlers been fearful of a cyclist killing us. Every time I drive into the city though I'm amazed that no one died as a result of automobiles weaving, stopping on the wrong side of the crosswalks, running red lights, not signaling and changing lanes into one that is already occupied, etc.

 

She may have convinced me you are right Poppy. But I still think accounting for number of murders would adjust for that though. If you drove a little car through a playground of children you could kill 15. I remember when someone drove into a crowd of people in a marketplace downtown Seattle. Size is really relative to whom you are hitting.