Stupid Drivers: Texting While Driving

[Thorin]

Each day on my way to work, I observe drivers on the road doing stupid things.  This morning, I watched a young woman send several long text messages, barely glancing up and narrowly avoiding the truck in front of her several times.  I wish people would realize that Texting While Driving Is Dangerous!

Texting while driving takes much of your attention away from what you?re supposed to be doing. It?s very dangerous. What?s worse is that the life you may be endangering may not be yours, but someone else?s.

If you really need to communicate and you have a companion in the vehicle, it?s better to ask that person to read or send text messages instead.

[Lazybones]

I have seen this several times while driving around the greater Vancouver area.

[Thorin]

...says the man who was taking pictures while driving in the mountains at night

But seriously, everything we do that's not driving is a distraction from us driving.  The question is, how much of a distraction?  I think that anything that actually makes you stop looking out your windows is a really bad distraction.  Rooting around for a child's soother on the floor to give it back to them so they stop their Awful Damn Screaming is just as bad as focusing your eyes on a phone.  Either one should be done while the vehicle is not moving.  However, picking up a soother is pretty quick.  Tapping out a whole message will probably take longer than the red light, and most people that start a message will finish it rather than put the phone away when the light turns green.