Texting and driving documentary: "From One Second to the Next"

Speaking of facts...

According to the CDC, 3,311 people were killed by distracted drivers in 2011. Note, this is all distracted driving cases, not just texting and is the most current-year data the CDC listed on its website.

http://www.cdc.gov/motorvehiclesafety/distracted_driving/


In 2010, 10,228 people were killed by alcohol-impared drivers according to its most current-year data.

http://www.cdc.gov/motorvehiclesafety/impaired_driving/impaired-drv_factsheet.html

While the CDC does mention that texting is potentially the "worst" distracted driving activity, it's not even close to being as deadly as drunk driving. Distracted driving in total doesn't even come close.


Please tell me again how texting while driving is just as dangerous as drunk driving.

 

Because, like you said, people spend more time drunk than they do texting and driving. For those few seconds the text is being read or relayed, it may be equal to or more dangerous than driving drunk. But, as noted, they are only a few seconds.

 

Which means texting isn't as dangerous as drunk driving.

Thank you for agreeing with me.

 

An excellent comparison. The local district attorney where I live gave a speech about how this has developed over the last 40 years. He chose that time period because that was when a drunk driver ran down two police officers, killing them both, and if I remember correctly, he only served 22 months in jail. He pointed out that the change in attitudes and laws regarding drunk driving have been incredibly important.

I'm not sure if I would agree with LTL that it is exactly as dangerous as drunk driving, but the data shows that texting while driving is dangerous enough that similar enhancements of the law and changes of attitude are warranted.

 

He's not. You' just aren't intelligent or honest enough to get what he is saying.

 

That's not what it means at all. You are concentrating on raw numbers. I'm concentrating on the ratio of deaths to time spent on the activity. Is a handgun more dangerous than a nuclear bomb? More people were killed by handguns last year than by nuclear bombs.

 

From another thread, a reminder of things being installed in cars that only add to the tapestry of ways in which we can be distracted while we drive:

 

Of course nuclear bombs are as readily available as a 12 pack of Bud...

Is 10,000 more than 3,000?

 

Drunk driving is the bigger overall threat, because people spend more time doing it.

Texting and driving is, arguably, a more dangerous activity, because accidents occur at a greater frequency while people are actually engaged in it.

Hence, the handgun to nuclear bomb comparison. Nuclear bombs are illegal for citizens. Handguns are not. This is even though handguns killed more people last year than nuclear bombs.

 

HOW DARE YOU COMPARE A TEXT MESSAGE TO A NUCLEAR BOMB

 

If there were 3,000 total distracted driving fatalities - including all forms of distracted driving, not just texting - the number of texting-related accidents is miniscule compared to the number of drunk driving accidents.

Which again means texting isn't anywhere near as dangerous as drunk driving. Is texting while driving a good idea? Well, no. I certainly agree with that.

But only an idiot would say it's as dangerous or deadly as drunk driving.

 

Is a handgun deadlier than a nuclear bomb?