Study Says Listening To Sports While Driving Is Dangerous, So Let's Ban That, Too
from the how-far-should-we-take-this dept
A new study from the UK says that people who listen to soccer matches on the radio while driving behave more erratically and dangerously than non-listeners. Indeed, says one of the researchers, "It is widely accepted that the distraction of talking on a hand-held mobile phone may lead to accidents but other activities may have a similar impact – such as listening to sport on the radio." Since the UK's already banned talking on the phone while driving, will it now push for a ban on listening to sports while driving? After all, if "other activities may have a similar impact", they're all worthy of their own bans, aren't they? Here's a novel idea: instead of creating bans on one single activity after another, just crack down on unsafe driving with existing laws, regardless of the cause.
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Filed Under: driving distractions, sports
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Extreme Facepalm: Driving Edition
We must be vigilant in our request. Blood alone moves the wheels of History and we must make it so! Bonsai Trees must be securely fastened in the back seat of the vehicle to protect the vehicle operator from the temptation of "Pruning While Driving". We must never acquiesce, for it is together that we can prevent "Pruning While Driving"! Do it for the children or you're worse than Hitler!
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Introducing any sort of penalty for listening to sports, music or any other audio distraction would be unenforceable and/or stupid.
If this is the direction they wish to push driving laws they should ban in car entertainment systems, and make sound proof glass partitions (between the driver and other potential passengers) mandatory. So as to completely prevent any possibly distracting conversations from occurring.
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I read somewhere
Snarky Friday answer ==> Maybe they should switch to a "real" sport, like American football! The handy yardage markers make it much easier to keep track of while driving!
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Re: I read somewhere
They who? Citation, please.
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What a great idea. All we need to do is hire 1 police man to follow each of us as we drive to see if we are being unsafe, right? Come on Carlo, do you think the police are actively IGNORING dangerous driving? Your comments are meaningless.
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Re:
He isn't saying to have one cop per person, you nonsensical moron. What he is saying is to have the judges stop giving nothing more than a meaningless slap on the wrist for unsafe driving. Cracking down simply means to give actual penalties to people that violate the existing laws. Little things like speed limits are so ignored now as to make them useless.
I totally agree with Carlo and think that is exactly what needs to be done. People that ignore existing laws - will ignore new ones as well!
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Re: Re:
Since Techdirt doesn't conduct identity investigations, you're also anonymous as far as I'm concerned. Talk about blatant stupidity. Hey pot, let me introduce you to kettle.
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Re: Re: Re:
What? You're doubting my identity?
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Snarky Friday Reply -> We could fit some tennis players with full army issue body armour and call it "American Tennis", once its a "real" sport perhaps that would be legal to listen to while driving.
kidding..I hate football, American or otherwise..tennis isn't too bad though
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Problem solved!
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Let's ban scratching your nose while driving.
Let's ban sneezing while driving.
I say we ban politicians who bring forth stupid law-suggestions. I have a stake here that desperately needs something to be burned on.
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Re:
Oh, wait... we've already got that one.
Well, it's a stupid law. Let's repeal it.
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"Sorry sir, I thought you might be swerving back there, but now that I've got you pulled over I see that you're listening to NPR, which is pretty distracting. License and registration please."
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Re:
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Re: Re:
"Here's a novel idea: instead of creating bans on one single activity after another, just crack down on unsafe driving with existing laws, regardless of the cause."
Try actually reading the articles before commenting on them.
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Roadside Fine
Dangerous Driving is a serious offence involving arrest, charges and court fines and/or jail time.
Driving while using a Mobile Phone is, I think, usually treated as a relatively minor offence and handled with a roadside fine.
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Kill my mother
Though it's simple to see that existing laws in general do not distinguish between different types of driving, it is also simple to obviate that fact. In fact, though protesting to the contrary, this article really seems like the author really wants to be able to use his cellphone while driving. Although it has been demonstrated that a driver that uses a cellphone is four times more likely to have an accident, and that same driver is therefore four times more likely to kill my mother as she is walking across the street, some people think that a ban of unsafe practices is unnecessary.
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a Link
but lets say they were equally dangerous, its still not illegal to use a hands free kit so people who were 4 times more likely to hit your mother will still be 4 times as likely to do so ...while using their hands free.
I actually don't drive, so my opinion may be invalid but I can think of many things that people do on a regular basis while driving that are far more dangerous than talking on the phone. That being said if it is indeed fact that not allowing mobile phone use will reduce accidents then I'm all for it but only if it is because of the phone use and not because the drivers are incompetent regardless, because incompetent drivers are just as likely to kill me while eating a sandwich.
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Now that would be useful.
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Modify existing technology
Not that far off from the systems we already have. Coming soon to a country near you?
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Other Activities
One of the other activities that has been found to have a similar impact as driving while phoning is driving while drunk. So, Carlo, are you suggesting that drunk driving laws should be abolished?
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Re: Other Activities
Driving under the influence is a big difference from driving with distractions.
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Re: Re: Other Activities
Then why don't you look? They've been widely reported. Too lazy to Google? Here's a page to get you started. http://www.psych.utah.edu/AppliedCognitionLab/
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Re: Re: Re: Other Activities
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Re: Re: Other Activities
Depends on the distractions.
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Re: Other Activities
Heh, he didn't have much of an answer to that one, did he?
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Horse and carrage
Lets just go back to the stone ages where walking was the popular sport. But then; they just might want to put a ban on walking so we might as well all sit on the street corner and vegetate.
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