Nevada Passes No Texting/No Cell Phone Law

Image from Harris May Injury Lawyers (of course)

Hmmm. For the most part, I am for this law. I very, very, very rarely talk on my cell phone while driving, and have only ever done so when answering a call (with maybe two very rare exceptions, in like seven years). When I see a person whip out their phone--as they're pulling out of a parking lot, going left, across eight lanes of traffic--I'm blown away by the stupidity. On those rare days where I answer a call while driving, I always question the wisdom of doing so. And I'd argue that there is never. Not ever. An excuse to text while driving. It is 100% of the time made of stupid.

But I wonder what I'll do now, if I hear (or feel the vibrations) my phone ringing? Will I pull over to answer the phone? Will that in itself present a new danger that I wouldn't have attempted before? Will I say, "Screw it, catch me, coppers!" Maybe. But even more rarely than I already use the phone while driving. I may have to invest in a better-than-Big-Lots-$8-Special Blue Tooth earpiece. But will fumbling with the earpiece that was laying in the console under your sunglasses, Altoids, air freshener and Chap-Stick be any safer? In any event, I hope this stops the moronic texters. If I'm ever arrested for texting while driving, it will be deserved, because I've officially taken leave of my senses.

[Excerpt]

Bill bans texting or talking behind the wheel

It will soon be illegal for you to text or use your cell phone while driving.



Last week, Governor Brian Sandoval signed into law a bill banning the practice. . .

Read more at: KTNV

Texting While Driving. Why?

Image from source, AOL

Texting while driving has been in the news a lot. There are public service announcements by Mark Salling of Glee urging people not to do it. I've even witnessed a few people doing it.  What I don't understand is why anyone would ever do it.  I remember one time when I wanted to use my phone's GPS system while driving, but I thought better of it, and pulled over.  Texting while driving has never even occurred to me as something I might want to do.

Now, I hear about "text addiction." And that teenagers are sending thousands of texts per month. Again, why?  I myself was late to the game when it comes to cell phones. I'd had one for a few years before I ever texted.  I'm like, "hey, this thing here is a phone, and I can call people with it."  Texting seemed kind of low-tech, what with it's tiny monochrome screen. It seemed like going back to the old computer BBS, only a little less useful. But being married to a flight attendant, I soon found that texting was very useful for those times when talking wouldn't be practical or possible.  These days, I might text a dozen or so times per week.

But how does this become an addiction?  And how could people be so addicted, that they'd text while driving? It's beyond stupid, and beyond my comprehension.  By the way, the first sentence of the excerpted article below is not true.

[Excerpt]

'TXTNG KILLS' Anti-Texting Thumb Bands Get Thumbs Up from Police



We've all been guilty of it at some point, especially the harried business travelers among us, but texting while driving is not only illegal in most places -- it can be fatal. Several campaigns are under way to encourage people to kick the habit, including a few smartphone apps. . .
 
Read more at: AOL

Late to the Party: I Understand Texting Now!

OK, I'll admit, while I'm in general pretty smart, I can be a little slow sometimes. I didn't get my first cell phone until around 2004. "Why would I need one?" I thought. But with The Other Half flying about 1/3 of the time, it has proven very handy. I use it much more than I ever thought I would, though I don't much like to talk on the phone. It's great for little things, like finding out if you need to stop at the store, or countless other things you may have forgotten to ask when going out the door.

But you know all that. You've had a phone much longer than me. I'm a little slow. And when it comes to texting, I was even slower. I could not fathom the popularity of texting, a seemingly very backward way to communicate when you're holding a phone in your hand.

Well, I've seen the light there too. Text messages are short and sweet. Perfect for when you don't think the person you want to contact might be able to answer the phone. Great to send just a nugget of information. I've used the texting feature on my new phone more than I've used the actual phone! And I've got to say, a text message can be sweet, even touching, in a way that a voice mail just doesn't capture. And that's coming from black-hearted, slow ol' me.

But I'm glad I got one of the phones with a full keyboard. I may be slow, but even I realize that typing on a keyboard is far superior to using a number pad. Do yourself a favor. If you like to text, or think you might, get a phone with all the keys. I have the Samsung "Rant," and so far it's great. Now, what other things am I missing?

Am I a Luddite? I Don't Understand Text Messaging

Photo from source, Wikipedia

This is just a short text message to say that I don't understand texting! I was very slow to get a cell phone (though I did have a telephone lineman sized phone in the early 90s for work). I drug my feet, not wanting to pay $60 a month for something I didn't think I would use.

But, with The Other Half being a flight attendant, and at all corners of our country on any given day, circumstances dictated that we needed mobile phones. "Belling the cat" is what I call it. Since getting the phone, I do use it more than I thought I would, but we rarely go past our allotted 500 minutes. Our initial service included everything of course, for a limited time only. But eventually, we pared down to basic cell service.

I wouldn't mind occasionally using the built in camera to send photos to my email, but mostly, the extra services are useless to me. 95% of the time, I am near a computer, where most of the cell phone services are much easier to use. And here I am, typing away on a 101-key QWERTY keyboard to tell you, I just don't understand using a 12-key, tiny phone pad to type text messages.

According to Wikpedia, 40% of cell phone users regularly use text messaging. What's worse, it has actually been deemed to be as addictive as cigarette smoking. OMG! Oops, I just committed probably the biggest problem connected to all of this texting.

And that is, the degradation to the written word. We've seen this coming for some time, with gamers using leet, with LOL Kitteh, and instant messaging on computers. Being a proficient typist, typing OMG takes more thought and effort than typing "oh my God!" Our English has gotten so jumbled, I fear what resumes are going to look like in a couple of years.

What I don't understand is, why is texting so popular? You're holding a phone in your hands, if you need to contact somebody, call them! Now, I understand that there are rare occurrences, like Mom is in an important meeting, or Dad is in court (again), and you simply must tell them that you've gotten your arms ripped off in a thresher. . .but then, how are you texting? Nevermind. I get that there are circumstances where it could be handy.

But usually it's not necessary. Usually, you are annoying the person on the other end. And often, you are texting somebody like me that doesn't have texting in their plan, and have to pay for the message, whether they read it or not. Nice. Knock it off!

Bound to Happen: Man Texting Runs Over, Kills Man

I can't count the number of times I've seen people flip open their phone and make a cell phone call while pulling into traffic. Often times, I've had to hit the brakes as they mindlessly twirl the wheel with one hand while dialing with the other. And many of those times, it has been a tiny woman behind the wheel of a huge SUV loaded with kids. Unbelievable.

So, it isn't too much of a jump from a voice call to a text message behind the wheel. I don't think I'll ever understand why texting is so popular. Just call them, why don't you? And from a stationary position please. Up until now, I thought the worst that was being done by texting was massacring the English language. Unfortunately. . .

[Excerpt]

Driver Hits, Kills Pedestrian While Texting, Police Say

A York County man has been charged with homicide by vehicle in the death of a pedestrian in York.

Brian Widmayer, 21, of Dover Township, turned himself in Thursday, York police said.

Widmayer's car struck and killed 43-year-old David Peters in the 600 block of East Market Street in May, police said. . .

Read more at: WGAL

Nevada Gov. Gibbons Busted Texting Girlfriend

Photo from source, TPM Muckraker

I had to post something about this, being a Nevada resident and all. It's not like we haven't had a bumper crop of corrupt politicians over the years. But this is the freakin' Governor. A governor who had a sexual harassment charge levelled at him in the waning days of the campaign where he somehow got elected anyway. A governor in the middle of a very sticky divorce. Irresistible, right? But text messaging? What, is he twelve?

[Excerpt]

OMG! Gov. Gibbons Sends 867 Texts to His Female BFF

Just when we thought the Gibbons' saga was over, it all starts again.

Throughout his very messy and public divorce with his wife of 22 years, Nevada Gov. Jim Gibbons has repeatedly denied having an affair -- despite being seen cavorting around town with two married women half his age and a suspicious friendship he had struck up with Kathy Karrasch, a neighbor of the Gibbonses and the estranged wife of a Reno podiatrist. . .

Read more at: TPM Muckraker