This is bull! The real cause of car accidents is cars. If an engine disabler were installed in every car, imagine all the lives that would be saved!
Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood said using a cell phone while driving is so dangerous that devices may soon be installed in cars to forcibly stop drivers — and potentially anyone else in the vehicle — from using them.
“There’s a lot of technology out there now that can disable phones and we’re looking at that,” said LaHood on MSNBC. LaHood said the cellphone scramblers were one way, and also stressed the importance of “personal responsibility.”
The hosts of Morning Joe pushed the secretary about the possibility of requiring scrambling technology installed in vehicles.
“I think it will be done,” said LaHood. “I think the technology is there and I think you’re going to see the technology become adaptable in automobiles to disable these cell phones. We need to do a lot more if were going to save lives.”
The solution is to remove humans as drivers…
Humans Should Not Drive Cars
My boss got killed at age 40 leaving a widow and two kiddies. Car crossed over the middle line and hit him head on at 50 mph. She had been smoking and dropped the cig–over course SHE lived to tell the tale.
These issues are one of BALANCE!!! Not some absolute that too many idiots want to declare from their sofas.
What is the advantage to individuals/society in being able to smoke cigarettes at all? outside their homes? in their cars??? The answer is close to ZERO. What is the advantage to not having head-ons on major highways? I don’t know, but will accept it is more than close to ZERO.
Apply the same to cell phones and all other DESIRES/HABITS of we the people that need to be BALANCED against one another. Then make appropriate rules and enforce them uniformily.
Whats the benefit/
Whats the harm/
Whats the rule.
Silly Hoomans.
Have patience, we are slowly but surely moving toward a more perfect world.
I take comfort in the thought that our selfless public servants care so much for us all. Frankly, it’s a relief not to have to do all that thinking.
@bobbo
Well you could ban cell phones, cigarettes (and cigars, pipes, candy), coffee, radio, satnav, ….
Or you could just have an offence of dangerous driving – whatever the cause!
Stick a disabler in every US Representatives’ desk and lets see what happens to the fing incumbents in 2012.
Congress may pass the law but they’ll probably exempt themselves from it.
They can’t get a law passed to disable cell phones in prisons. To stop criminal gang members, serving time there, from arranging hits and running their family business. But law abiding citizens, driving around in their cars, are going to be subject to this? I don’t like people talking on phones while they’re driving. But what if you really need to, in an emergency? Such as, “help, I can’t stop my car!” Yeah, I can see why some auto makers want to put a stop to 911 calls like that. And what about cars, like some Fords, that have built in dashboard phones? That’s what the auto makers really want. They want you to pay to use a second phone, built in. Screw your own cell phone plan.
Yet another bean-head with a ‘marvelous idea’.
In the first place this offends FCC regulations on interfering with legally licenced wireless communications.
But. More importantly. Do you notice the modern tendency to come up with ideas and never never ever look for the downsides? To just brush them aside even when they are pointed out? This is probably the greatest and most common error found today. It shows just how unscientific and crude most people are in their thinking. The scientific approach requires that critical analysis be applied to any finding. When the unforseen possibilities or outcomes make the concept untenable you just drop it. Otherwise, you are nothing less than a politician – people who are never wrong, no matter what the contrary evidence is. Also. Big numbers claiming they are right (inductivism) does not aid correctness. Take a look at those still supporting the Euro concept for example. Massive evidence that a huge crash is on the way and the supporters (emperors clothes like) still cling to the idea playing along with it in the manner of the Titanic Band (my end of the ship isn’t sinking kind of thinking).
I’m not sure if a device to block cell phones while the car engine is running is a good thing or not but since the government uses cells phones to track people, listen in on them, and businesses use the information they send to do targeted advertising I would not count on this happening.
Any of you liberals EMBARRASSED yet at how your people are handling things?
Anyone?
That’s a bullshit! Disabling cell phones in vehicles is dangerous and stupid! Hands-free technology is what we need instead of this naphthalene insanity!
How come no one has ‘built in’ a phone into car like we have a radio/cd player/navigator? While they can be distracting, I don’t hear folks complaining about them…
I know we have hands free units… they are pretty good, but can be distracting in their use..
Come on carmakers/cell phone companies! I know we can do better than that.
Where’s my integrated heads-up facetime com unit for the car!
ha…
RSweeney, embarrassment should be of your concern considering that Ray LaHood, “the transportation secretary that wants to install cell phone disablers in all cars”, is a Republican.
#41 – Why would they be embarrassed? They agree with how their people are handling things.
Democrats sincerely believe that democracy holds back the country because the stupid voters keep voting in their own self-interest (thus thwarting Democrat power consolidation). They hope that the Democrat party will acquire such power that it will be able to completely strangle all opposition and that only when that is achieved will true and everlasting peace and prosperity follow.
They believe that all individual freedoms that interfere with their goal, or remind people of the old days when the government didn’t have a total stranglehold on daily life, must be destroyed. Such trifles cannot be tolerated. Too bad if it contradicts core Democrat platforms or promises, the good of the party always comes first.
#43 – And yet, when I look at the Democrat Obama administration… there he is! Yes, you are very convincing, he must really be a genuine and committed Republican.
This is a simple part of paving the way to mandate that technologies like Ford Sync and On Star are made standard in all cars. Not only can the car companies attempt to get some government cash, they can gouge the customer on the costs.
Should We Manage Cellphone Access in Certain Cases?
Cars don’t kill people… people kill people! All car drivers should be registered and required to take safety classes…oh wait, never mind. Use a car to commit a crime, go to jail! Seems as if I heard something like that before!
Is this not a case of over regulation, going a little too far?
A mobile phone may be a reason of a car accident; we can try to stop these accidents through the help of technology. As LaHood we should try scramble technology to prevent the car accidents.