Well there is part of your problem right here. Cocky kids that have to be cool and go against authority. This is what’s helping lead to the demise of our future. With everything going on in the country today, all I ever hear is everyone’s complaints. A lot of people just do not take personal responsibilities for their actions. Suing fast food companies because you’re fat, cigarette companies for making you smoke. Next it will be suing phone companies for making texting so easy and addictive for kids who just don’t know any better. Parents constantly find excuses as to why their kids are the way they are. Teachers are constantly a scapegoat for their child’s bad behavior. When these kids grow into teens they know exactly who to lay blame on for all their problems and bad decisions…everyone but themselves. Now I haven’t exactly figured out how to not make this mistake with my own kids, but I try to show them that I take responsibility for my mistakes. If I punish them and find out later they were telling the truth, I apologize. And yes, it’s humbling to do but it shows your kids that you are human too and that’s okay to be wrong once in awhile as long as you apologize and learn from your mistakes. Now I’m sure that the government makes some dumb decisions but it does not always mean you should decide to just ignore the laws put into place for public safety. You have to realize they usually only make new laws like that after too many people have been injured or died and it can no longer be ignored that we as people just don’t always make the best decisions.
Blog #13 – Response 4 to: “When I left that morning, it was definitely not my intention to hurt or harm anyone. And I took two lives.” – Reggie Shaw April 2, 2010
People have to realize that even with the best of intentions, bad things can happen. So why would you want to do even more to contribute? Nobody means to cause harm to anyone while on the road, but you have to worry about yourself, the cars behind you, in front of you, the kids playing on the curb, the semi five lanes in front of you, the list goes on and on. So does the number of distractions that can cause you to not be fully aware of the vehicles around you. Reggie Shaw was texting his girlfriend when he hit another car and killed two men. This is becoming a commonplace event in the world of statistics. So many individuals have the opinion that the rules don’t apply to them or that they can handle multitasking better then the next guy. Sometimes people don’t even know how they got from point A to point B, they can’t remember the time in between. None of us are immune to the dangers on the road, or in the world for that matter. For this reason you must make a moral decision to do your best not to be one of the selfish that just do whatever they want because they can. We are all guilty of indulging in some type of senseless distraction. I frequently try to put my lipgloss on at red lights not even thinking twice about using one hand to rummage through my purse before I get to that light. We’ve all dug into our purses or pockets for our ringing cell phones because we just had to know who is calling us. It just takes being more aware of what can happen in a split second that will change your life forever. You must believe that it CAN happen to you and you want to do your best to avoid it. Don’t do what others do, do what’s right.
Blog #12 – Response 3 to: “We have to do something about this. Life is precious.” – Lee Gonzales March 26, 2010
Who here does not see their child as the most precious thing in their lives? We do whatever we can to protect them but do not always think to protect them from themselves by not wanting to scold them or take away something they find important such as their cell phone. Now I’m not condoning helicopter moms but parents have to open their eyes to some dangers that are not so obvious, or they may not even know is going on. There are so many issues right now that are affecting our children and at such a young age! Pill addictions are starting in grade school, texting while driving, oral sex on the back of the school bus, girls getting pregnant at 12!? As much as you would like to think that this only happens in the bad part of town think again. The biggest offenders are often living in the suburbs. Parents have to get their heads out of the sand and educate themselves and their kids about what’s going on with their children in this whole different world then when they grew up. It also takes community awareness to help control these dangerous situations. Schools should be bringing in teens that have been there and lived to tell about it. Mentor programs for children would be an excellent idea. They are cutting so many school programs and it is going to drive the adults of the future down the wrong road. We have a responsibility to protect our children and prepare them for the world that we brought them into. Our kids are indeed our most precious treasure in life. Don’t let them down by being afraid to open your eyes and foresee the dangers ahead.
Blog #11 – Response 2 to: “I really believe that people know how to drive safely but choose not to. If they choose not to you don’t have a training problem you have a management problem. And in a family guess who the managers are? Mom and Dad.” – David Melton March 26, 2010
I agree with this statement wholeheartedly. We all know what we are supposed to do in most situations. Whether we do it or not is another matter. In this case when we are talking about driving, there is a multitude of decisions that involve choosing the right way or the quickest way. We know we shouldn’t speed but if your late for work that rule doesn’t apply. Not passing in a no passing zone or passing several cars at once. In that case you’re just asking for a disaster. Seatbelts…it took forever for people to realize that seatbelts save lives and I still know people that don’t use them. And who is watching all this behavior? Our children. Even when we don’t know it they are always watching us and learning from us. If your kids see that you don’t always follow the rules it is hard to convince them that they should do it. I know it isn’t easy in life to always be a straight arrow but when it comes to driving the consequences are too great to be lax. You would feel terrible if your teenager’s death could have been prevented from wearing their seatbelt or not using their cell phone knowing that they were never told it was not a safe thing to do. Senseless and preventable deaths happen everyday. You hope the other drivers on the road are driving safely and they are hoping you are too.
Blog #10 – Response 1 to: “Sociologists call it pluralistic ignorance. It’s this concept where reality applies to everybody but me” – Keven Wehr March 23, 2010
People seem to think that things apply to every one else but them. Why is that? Do they feel they are more responsible then everyone else, or that they can handle the situation better then most? Most just think that nothing bad will ever happen to them or their family, just to other people. Unfortunately this is why a lot of people do not take proper precautions and safeguards against common dangers they should be worried about. No one would take YOUR children, so you let them play by themselves in the yard alone or walk to a friend’s house at a young age. YOU won’t get lung cancer, so you smoke even though you tell your kids not to. There is no worries of YOU being distracted in the car because you are an excellent multi-tasker. These are just a few of the examples of what people tell themselves in order to get out of feeling personal responsibility towards an issue. For some it works for them. For many others they will eventually learn a hard lesson in life, they are not invincible and should not have thought it couldn’t ever happen to them…whatever that might be. But how do we change this narrow minded thinking that runs rampant through teenagers and young adults that don’t realize yet what a harsh and unfair world that we live in? Education is key. Don’t keep your kids from knowing what goes on in the world. We try to shield them from anything bad but doing that does not prepare them for reality. It’s our job as parents to prepare our kids for the real world, the good, bad and the ugly.
Blog #9 – Article 8: Texting While Driving – Why Do People Do It? (McClatchy Newspapers) March 15, 2010
Gina Kim of McClatchy Newspapers in Sacramento, CA discusses the dangers of texting while driving. I found this article to be like all the rest. Of about 90% of the American adults who thing texting while driving should be outlawed, 57% of those people admitted to doing it themselves. With 300,000 texts being sent per minute in the U.S. it is only reasonable to assume many of those people are in operating motor vehicles during a commute, gridlock or a busy highway. With all these articles I have read the facts are very clear – dialing your phone or texting triples your risk of an accident. You can only focus on so much at a time and when you are operating such a potentially deadly weapon as a 1 ton moving object, that should be your biggest priority in my opinion. But as the title states we want to know why people still do it. The answer is quite simple. It is for the same reason as they do anything else they know they shouldn’t do. Many people think that the rules apply to everyone but them. They are more responsible or a better driver and can handle texting while driving with ease. The ‘it won’t happen to me’ attitude is a common view had by people that are now in jail for killing innocent people by not paying attention on the road. It just doesn’t make any sense…but then again a lot of things in this world don’t make a lot of sense and texting while driving is just another example.
Blog #8 – Article 7: Driving While Texting – Do You Know the Cost? (CNN.com) March 12, 2010
Craig Howie, a writer for CNN reports on the growing problem of texting while driving. Four states are actively attempting to ban driving while texting and in 17 states young or inexperienced drivers can be stopped from using cell phones even if they are using a hands free kit. But a solution may be in sight with new technology from Virtual Management, Inc. developing the Electronic Virtual Assistant (EVA). This new device will feature a live transcribing service that will send and recieve your emails or text messages via voice mail. Research is still being done so that eventually you will be able to just speak to your hands free set which will be sent as a WAV file to the recipients cell phone. In turn any texts or emails they send you will come through loud and clear without having to be distracted by looking at the screen. Well, I think that even thought it would be best of course to drive with no distractions, that is sometimes hard to accomplish…especially during long car rides. So with that being the case, I think that Virtual Management is on the right track. As long as they make it affordable so that everyone can utilize it would certainly be a must. I can see this eventually becoming a feature built in to most cars. I might consider using this technology if it was available at a reasonable price. It would be kind of cool to have my email read to me and be able to respond just by talking. Texting is overrated anyways. I had texting and used it alot. Now I don’t and life goes on… People need to focus on the more important things they could be doing with their lives.
To learn more about EVA click here
Blog #7 – Article 6: Texting While Driving: Parents Role in Prevention (Parent-Teacher Association Organization) March 12, 2010
This article was written by Randy Craig, Editorial Manager of National PTA, a not-for-profit association of parents, educators, students, and other citizens active in their schools and communities throughout the United States. He talks about a parents role in stopping their teens from texting while driving. Open communication, looking closer at phone bills, and setting a good example is a great way to get started. Also, using common sense like not calling your teen when you know they are driving as well as asking them if they are driving when you call. David Melton, director of transportation consulting services for the Library Mutual Research Institute for Safety, encourages parents to take a ‘commentary drive’ where parents take teens to an unfamiliar route. While the parent drives the teen should text while trying to describe two things: What they see and how they would respond. Then parents should point out all the potential hazards the teen is missing. I think this is a great idea. It would absolutely show the teen how they are missing many important things such as children running into the street. It would also show the parent how dangerous their teen would be behind the wheel while texting and hopefully they would do more to prevent it such as taking away their ability to text through the service provider.
Blog #6 – Article 5: Yep, I Text and Drive–You Too? (The Tech Observer) March 4, 2010
It took me awhile to find someone who would openly admit in their blog that they text while driving and have no intention to stop. Kevin Maney tells in a blog found on www.portfolio.com, how texting is no more a big deal then eating while driving, scolding your kids while driving or putting on makeup while driving so why make it illegal? He admits that even if it was illegal he would do it anyway as it would be hard for a police officer to enforce without staring into your car window. He states that he does his texting responsibly only doing it at red lights and dead-stop traffic. He dreams of the day Mercedes comes out with a keypad mounted on the steering wheel so he can text all day long. This is the perfect example of someone that feels they are above the statistics and nothing bad could ever happen to them. If he texts someone at a red light, is he not going to be curious to check their response after the light’s turned green? In my research it seems to me that people who text and drive think they have some kind of great multi-tasking ability that is superior to the average person. They do not realize how much they are missing on the road (a child who’s ball rolls into the road for example) until it is too late. You have to weigh the risks and consequences. Is it really that important to check your phone knowing you could possibly injure yourself or someone else? It happens everyday, but not to you right? Tell that to your victim’s mother. For those of you that must text and drive check out the info below.
Free Mobile App Stops Texting While Driving - DriveSafe.ly
What is DriveSafe.ly?DriveSafe.ly is a mobile application that reads text (SMS) messages and emails aloud in real time and automatically responds without drivers touching the mobile phone. DriveSafe.ly is the solution to texting while driving. |
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DriveSafe.ly is proudly powered by iSpeech.org
Blog #5 – Article 4: Reggie Shaw’s Sad Message “Never text and drive” (Utah State University’s Hard News Cafe) March 4, 2010
Reggie Shaw, an athletic and studious 19 year old from Utah served 30 days in jail charged with two counts of negligent homicide for killing two men while texting his girlfriend and driving. Reggie states “When I left that morning, it was definitely not my intention to hurt or harm anyone, and I took two lives.” This prompted Utah officials to signn into law a House Bill prohibiting drivings from using a cell phone for text messaging or electronic mail communication while operating a vehicle. If caught they will face jail time and a hefty fine. Studies conducted at the University of Utah found texing while driving to be comparable to driving with a blood alcohol level twice the legal limit! Reggie was also sentenced to 100 hours of community service and frequently travels to schools to inform teenagers of the dangers of drunk driving. I think that is a excellent idea to show Reggie’s raw emotions for being a part of something he thought would never happen to him, a common misconception made by teens. While browsing the many videos available on the subject I found a few examples of driving simulators that show how distracted you can become when texting behind the wheel. I would like to see this as a mandatory part of driver’s education classes in the future along with PSA videos such as Reggie’s. And for those of you who already do not text while driving you must also spread this message as the two men killed that day were innocent bystanders to someone else’s mistake. Somebody’s son, father and husband.
To see the actual people involved in the Reggie Shaw tragedy watch the video below.
