This is a video that has gotten world wide attention since first released on youtube.
It has been shown partially on the NBC Network News as well.
Caution ...this is graphic and may be disturbing but makes it's point very clear.

[media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DGE8LzRaySk[/media]

 

Not even going to lie, I lost it at the sight of the baby.

Be careful out there folks. This stuff is no joke.

 

the babies are always the hardest to deal with....don't text and drive...hopefully it will become law here in IN soon...

 

Texting... talking on the phone....hell even Bluetooth should be illegal. If you are on the phone in any way shape or form, you are NOT paying attention to the road. When ever I get a call and Im in my car I do 1 of 2 things...Tell them I will call them back or put them on hold till I stop.
I have lost a friend who was hit by a girl who was texting. He was sitting in a turn lane on a busy intersection here ( Rt 64 & Rt 59), the girl rear ended him and pushed his car into cross traffic. A 53ft Semi-Truck hit him on the drivers side of his car at 60mph. The EMTs said he died on impact from a broken neck before his car was crushed.
Its hard to tell that story, and I relive it everytime I hear or see something like this. Please be safe.... we all have our moments in our cars when we drive a little eratic or speed, but most of us have control and are paying even more attention to the road. When you are on your phone, thats what the main focus is.

Bryan

 

I would have to agree with most of what Bryan said, especially in light of his own personal example.

I will only point out that blue tooth should remain legal. After all, if not, then what? Are we going to outlaw radios and passengers in cars? They are distractions too.

But texting is just plain stupid, and everytime I see someone do it I just want to smack them. Same with the people putting on make-up, reading a book, eating a Big Mac, etc.

I know I am not a perfect driver, but at least I TRY to pay attention.

 

Last month I was sitting at a light in my XF. Light turns green, I start to go and look to my left. Here comes a lady driving a SUV talking on the cell and not noticing that she had a red light. She blew past at 60 mph and never noticed.

Had I not looked I would have died.

A good friend's daughter was T-boned by a minivan. Lady with 3 kids in the car was talking on the phone and didn't notice the red light. My friend's daughter was air lifted to trauma center and spent 2 weeks in the hospital; could have been a lot worse. Don't know what happened to people in the minivan.

We have to pass laws about texting and using cell phones while driving!

 

Valk,

Excellent post. I am a convert! I dont support in the least texting and driving but have done it on occastion but vow never to text and drive again!

It is stupid and dangerous!

Thanks

Nate

 

I found this description of the video on a computer website:

Computerworld - A dramatic Web-based video depicting four deaths caused by a young driver who was texting at the wheel has provoked a debate over the best ways to curb distracted driving in the U.S.
Some experts favor more laws banning texting while driving, while others favor technology that disables wireless service in a moving vehicle. However, psychologists see a valuable place for dramatic presentations like the latest graphic video produced by police in Wales, arguing that such tools can have an impact in educational settings, especially on young drivers.
The four-minute video, produced by local police in Gwent, Wales, has gone viral, attracting more than 1.5 million views on YouTube alone. YouTube has restricted viewings to those over 18 because of the bloody, graphic nature of the video; it's also requiring people to register before viewing it, although the video has been posted at the Gwent police Web site and elsewhere without restrictions. However, YouTube's restrictions have worked inconsistently, sometimes requiring a registration and other times not.
In a statement on its site, the Gwent police department said it is hoping the video can be used in schools across the U.K. to deter texting while driving. The Gwent police helped facilitate the filming of the video, including the auditions of 300 teenagers from Wales, "because we want to stop ALL drivers, but particularly young and new ones, from causing accidents," the statement said.
In the video, a teenage girl named Cassie Cowan texts on her cell phone while driving with two other girls. Her vehicle crosses the middle of the road, colliding head-on with an oncoming car. The two cars careen off the road, the girls exchange glances with bloodied faces, then a third car violently strikes Cassie's car in the side.
Much of the video is devoted to the aftermath at the scene, including Cassie screaming at her apparently dead friend, and footage of victims in another car, including an infant and a young girl, who asks why her parents won't wake up.
NBC's Today show broadcast portions of the video and questioned an advertising executive about the effectiveness of such a disturbing public service announcement in the ongoing debate over texting and driving.
Today noted that the dramatization is too graphic to be fully shown on most U.S. television stations, but the video has provoked some experts to debate the most effective means of curbing texting, which is already illegal in 17 states and the District of Columbia.

 

too graphic to play in the U.S., didn't they allow Saving Private Ryan and Pearl Harbor to be played unedited in the last few years on regular t.v., this should play just like those videos of the people driving around with a car full of beer.

YouTube - Cars Full of Beer and Alcohol Crazy Drunk Driving Commercial

 

A little fake blood and some blank stares are not graphic in my book. Real people die in horrific accidents every day because of the carelessness and stupidity of others. The video should have shown some mangled flesh and shattered limbs. Death by car accident is not pretty.


I wish we had a way to reach out to other drivers and rattle their cage when they are doing something stupid. Even a simple honk of the horn is considered too aggressive by some people. If I could afford it I'd have a locomotive horn installed and I'd use it regularly.

 

They are attempting to pass this law in the City of Austin as we speak, errrr type, which for my part I have no argument with what so ever. Texting while driving is never a good thing and should be outlawed.
A couple of days ago I witnessed an Austin Police Officer on I-35 the busiest freeway in all of America, driving 60mph, keystoking his on-board lap top !!! So will the new law if passed outlaw the use of laptops in police cruisers ? Something tells me .... NOT !

 

Anything that goes on in a car will distract the driver. Eating, talking to passengers, slapping you child, whatever. But Texting, or even using the Garmin, requires one to take their eyes of the road. Attention span not withstanding, that should be the primary criteria for any legislation.

The beauty of laws against Texting is that we can often determine if someone was texting at the time of impact. Sadly the beauty of texting is that we can detemine if someone was texting, which dosen't help the victims.
At the same time, we cannot determine that someone was grabbing a french fry at the time. Both are stupid acts, not the fault of the driver but the greedy Corporations that sell the phones and the Big Macs

It is a new world order. Responsible governments now work to protect the foolish and the lazy. At the expense of the rest of us.

Here is a well known natural law.
"Danger is Mother Nature's way of getting rid of stupid people."
It appears to be the mission of Congress to repeal that law.

roadster with a stick

 

exactly, smart have stopped breeding and the stupid or now living long fruitful lives and breeding at insane rate with other stupid people.

 

I think we just passed a texting law for those under 21 or some such (Not sure what age has to do with it in this case- but...) - a law very hard to enforce - it is not like a seat belt where you can see that it is not being used esily from the drive by. I swear sometimes I can sit at a light or in a parking lot , and watch person after person after person drive by with a cell phone glued to their ear - trying to steer with one hand - obviously not many standard shifters out there - It just drives me crazy - 90% going by on the cell, and probably 90% of those just chit-chatting - not emergency or very important call , not even an important business call - it is just inane BS! (excuse me).

 

On another note, a city next to Dallas was the first in the country to outlaw talking on cell phones in active school zones. Now, just about all the cities around here are doing the same. I know a lot of people use their phones while driving for work purposes. But I wouldn't mind it if they outlawed talking on cell phones and driving PERIOD!

 

I know the whole of New York State has had a law against cell talking and driving for many many years (hands free OK) - I guess If I wasn't so lazy I could look it up. - It was always a bit of a pain to me when I was up there visiting as I kept forgetting - but I know it has been around for a long while.

Shawn

 

That should go over well with the armed forces of the world.

 

We had a fatality here in Knoxville due to texting. A 16 Yr old girl was texting her boyfriend and here vlast text was, "I love you", before she ran off the road.
As tragic as that is, trying to cite someone for this is very difficult because you have to prove they were texting and not dialing a number or looking at there contacts.

Having said all that, WE CAN'T EVEN GET PEOPLE TO STOP DRINKING AND DRIVING!! This is just another "feel good: law that will do nothing.

 

Shawn, that is correct. Cell phone use in NY while driving is illegal, though it is often done, even by the cops.

Last summer there was a fatal accident on the interstate near where I live and it was determined the driver at fault was texting at the time. As a result, just this week our county passed a law banning texting while driving.

 

Reposting here because today I saw the potential for a bad accident due to someone texting while driving.
Luckily the other driver was alert and skilled enough to avoid the collision....


This is a video that has gotten world wide attention since first released on youtube.
Caution ...this is graphic and may be disturbing but makes it's point very clear.

[media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DGE8LzRaySk[/media]