Text and Drive Cause of Death Behind the Wheel - Essay Example

Text and Drive Cause of Death Behind The Wheel Introduction It would not be a mistake to suggest that in the of thedevelopment of the human civilization technology has played an important role. Indeed, the primitive forms of it can be traced up to the very dawn of the society. Gradually, as people accumulated knowledge about the world they made their life more comfortable. Nevertheless, it is obvious that any technological advancement has a negative side to it: in case it is abused, it may lead to terrible consequences. Thus, the advances in transportation provided people with freedom and the development of telecommunication allowed people to stay connected all the time. However, the reality shows that when these two technologies are combined and abused, they often result into the dangerous practices of driving. This paper will prove that texting while driving should be recognized as an extremely negative phenomenon that should be prosecuted as a serious crime. The present state of affairs At the present moment the use of cell phones while driving a car is limited. Thus, it is prohibited to answer a phone call and hold a phone in one’s hand. In other words, the use of a hands free set is positioned as an effective as well as legal alternative to talking on the phone while holding. In addition to that, in the majority of the states texting while driving is also prohibited. However, it is not recognized nationwide as a negative practice that should be banned. Therefore, drivers as well as pedestrians in different states are in different conditions: there is no doubt that it is much safer to walk across the roads in those states where texting while driving is banned. The history of the policy It is quite obvious that the invention of a cell phone took place relatively recently. Indeed, at first this kind of device was big and it did not allow people to send messages. However, as the technology advanced, texting has become one of the primary activities that people performed. When the price of an average phone dropped, the number of owners of this device sky rocketed. That is the time when using a cell phone and driving was combined. The government did not see it as a great threat, but gradually more and more accidents happened because the drivers were distracted by their cell phone and some of the states started recognizing them as one of the major threat to safety of the people on the road. The proposed change This paper puts emphasis on the severity of damage that is caused by the practice in question and proposes two changed. First of all, texting while driving should be recognized as an extremely negative phenomenon and should be banned nationwide. In spite of the fact that there are stated that outlawed it, the remaining ones should follow their lead and make sure that people are not allowed to text when they are behind the steering wheel. Secondly, the violation of this rule should be prosecuted as a serious crime. In spite of the fact that at the present moment people are mostly required to pay fines; however, it may be more beneficial to replace this measure with a stricter punishment since this would be the only effective way to cope with the problem in question. The arguments for making the regulations stricter The impact of texting while driving on safety The justification for making the regulations stricter can be easily understood when one takes a close look at the impact that the practice in question has on one’s ability to drive. Thus, because a driver does not keep one’s eyes on the road properly one might drive as long as the length of a football field without looking ahead which significantly increases the risk of a critical situation. Indeed, it was found that those who text while driving are twenty three times more likely to crash into a different object on the road if compared to other drivers ("The Risks of Texting while Driving", 2015). There is no doubt that this risk can hardly be ignored. Moreover, such number can be explained by a simple fact: a driver does not pay attention to the road and the distance that the car covers without proper control is roughly one of a football field ("Texting and Driving Prevention", 2015). Any driver would refuse to drive one’s car across a football field with one’s open: a person will be afraid to hit an object on the way. However, the drivers who regularly text and drive do not understand that they take the same risk on a daily basis. Indeed, while some might be lucky and have never experienced any thing dramatic during their driving, there is not proper way to predict the future and make sure that one day it does not take their lives away. That is why the negative extent of the impact of the practice in question is obvious. The nationwide recognition will makes the roads safer People all over the country have and use cell phones, but not all the states recognize this practice as illegal. The study shows that the majority of the drivers aged from 16 to 29 admit that they text while driving on a regular basis (Neustein, 2010). In other words, the phenomenon in question can not be recognized as a trend that is spread among the young people for whom communication in the social medial is extremely important. Keeping in mind the number of people who own and drive cars as well as belong to the above mentioned age group, one might suggest that this should be recognized as an epidemic that should be taken care of until it has had a devastating impact on the country. If one takes a look at the legal framework around the country, one will be able to see that more than half of the state restrict texting while driving. Nevertheless, there is another part of the country that fails to recognize the problem. There is no doubt that the consequences of outlawing any kind of use of cell phone while behind the steering wheel are positive; so, why should almost half of a country be exposed to such a dangerous practice? It is beyond any doubt that banning texting while driving will not bring the chance of dying on a road to an absolute zero; however, it will significantly reduce the number of death and will safe many lives. That is why the practice in question should be recognized as an illegal one across the country. Texting while driving is objectively a serious crime Finally, one should note that the public fails to see that texting while driving is not something that is against the modern etiquette: it is a serious offence that costs many life. Thus, the society has a freedom to decide what actions should be recognized as (Scarpitti, Nielson & Miller, 2009). Over the course of the history many activities that were originally legal became outlawed and vice versa. That is why the current state of affairs with regard to texting while driving might change dramatically. In spite of the fact that this might be a difficult change to accept, the society should recognize this practice as a negative one as it is not just about convenience and effectiveness of driving: it endangers lives of the other people and this is something that the government should control. The statistic shows that texting while driving is responsible for almost one fifth of all fatal crashes on the road (Dembroski, 2013). Indeed, alcohol intoxication should perceived by the public is the number one reason of car crashes is outlawed by the government; why would not the latter apply the same approach towards other significant factors that influence driver’s attention? Of course, there is a great different between the effect that alcohol has on one’s body and the effect that texting has; however, the negative outcome of may be compared, especially if it leads to a car crash and possibly taken lives. In other words, banning texting while driving is nothing, but the next logical step in the policy that is performed by the government with regard to the public safety on the roads. Conclusion Having examined all the arguments that were made in the paragraphs above, one is able to make the following conclusion: texting while driving should be outlawed nation wide and the punishment for it should become stricter as this is a serious crime that has a tremendously big negative effect on public safety. To begin with, using a cell phone to text while behind the steering wheel significantly reduces the amount of control that a driver has over the vehicle. Secondly, only the nationwide recognition of this practice as a negative one will lead to effective counter-measures against it and contribute to safety on the road. Finally, the consequences of texting while driving might be as negative as of other crimes; therefore, it is rather reasonable to make the punishment for it stricter. References Dembroski, K. (2013). Paper chain paperback. New York, NY: Lulu. Neustein, A. (2010). Advances in speech recognition mobile environments, call centers and clinics. New York, NY: Springer. Plotnik, R., & Kouyoumdjian, H. (2008). Introduction to psychology (8th ed.). Australia: Thomson/Wadsworth. Scarpitti, F., Nielson, A., & Miller, J. (2009). Crime and criminals: Contemporary and classic readings in criminology (2nd ed.). New York, NY: Oxford University Press. Texting and Driving Prevention. (2015). Retrieved May 11, 2015, from http://www.stoptextsstopwrecks.org/#facts The Risks of Texting while Driving. (2015). Retrieved May 11, 2015, from http://www.digitalresponsibility.org/risks-of-texting-while-driving Read More