Teens plan to “text and drive” to foil cell phone ban
Jun 18DEAR STRAIGHT TALK: My son is 17. Starting July 1, he will be banned from using a cell phone while driving until he is 18. Today he informed me that he won’t talk on his cell after the law goes into effect. He will TEXT! He says all his under-18 friends plan to do more texting because they can do it on their knee out of sight of the cops. He says he’s just telling me the truth whereas his friends will lie about it. He works, pays certain bills, gets good grades, plays sports. I can’t follow him around and be his private policeman. But texting is so much more dangerous than talking that I’m flipping out! What should I do? If I threaten consequences, I’m afraid he will just lie about it. Please help.
Jason’s mom
Mariah, 16:
Tell your son that a senior in my high school just died while texting. Her mom texted her and when she texted back she ran off the road and was killed. Another senior ran a stop sign while texting and killed an elderly man.
Geoff, 22
Get him a Bluetooth. These wireless, hands-free, ear pieces will be hard for police to see. It’s MUCH safer than texting.
Katie, 15
I start driving in December. I probably will text at red lights and possibly use a voice-activated phone. A voice-activated, hands-free device should be allowed for everyone, no matter the age.
Laura, 21
It is no more dangerous to hold a cell phone to your ear than to eat while you drive. This law will only cause people, especially teens, to find sneakier (and more hazardous) ways to use their phones.
Nicole, 18
I don’t plan to abide by the new law. Convince your son to talk instead of text, it’s much safer.
Ashley, 20
People do stupid things while on their cell phones, so I think it’s a good law. I almost never text while driving and I have a Bluetooth — but getting it set up while driving can be dangerous, too.
Emily, 15
Being a responsible driver means following the law which I will do. Tell your son how you feel, but don’t force anything or he will just lie to you. Don’t get mad at him for telling the truth or he won’t be honest again.
Farren, 20
When I first started driving, I looked down to push in a CD and drove into oncoming traffic. Since then, I have respect for distractions. I don’t text unless I’m stopped. When I’m moving, I use Bluetooth and speed dial. If you must text, a free, super-easy, voice-activated service called Jott converts voice into text. The website is www.jott.com. Unfortunately, sometimes it takes a mistake to wake someone up.
DEAR JASON’S MOM: Yes, and it is these distracted-driver mistakes that the new California law is trying to prevent. Starting July 1, the law bans all but 911-emergency use of cell phones while driving for those under 18. Those over 18 must use a hands-free system and dialing/texting is allowed but discouraged. Your son’s honesty around texting is worth gold. I asked around and many teens have the same misguided plan. I advise parents to have an honest conversation with their under-18 drivers. Is your kid the type that will put his phone away while driving? Or is he the “invincible rebel” who will use the phone in an even more dangerous manner? The spirit of the law is to save lives. It’s a slippery slope to tell your kid to abide by the law while handing him or her a Bluetooth (or less expensive corded earpiece), but texting while driving is so flat-out dangerous that if my kid was like yours, I would do just that. Details of the new law can be found at: www.chp.ca.gov/pdf/media/cell_phone_faq.pdf.
Shelby
Personally, I think that this new law is a joke! The thing I find really lame about it is that it only applies to people under 18. When we’re driving and someone is stopped too long at a light or is driving too slow because they are on the phone half the time it is some one over the age of 18. I’m guessing that this law is going to cause more accidents because of the texting, and I bet that twice as many teens are going to be pulled over for talking on the phone then the people over 18 just because we’re younger and anyone over 18 will be allowed to slip by.
Lennon
No idea how to convince him not to text, but I can say that I sometimes do text in the car. But by no means is it comparable to having one’s full attention on the road. Most of the people I call while driving are on speed dial so I just have to give my phone a quick glance, if that, to call them. For the most part I do not place calls on the road. I do, however, receive them. I don’t know if hands free devices will really cut down on the accident rate as I am really not partial to having to search for a little button to receive a call, or have to put my phone on “ring” in order to hear incoming calls. As it is now, I keep my phone in my pocket, on vibrate, and when I get a call I fish it out and flip it open without taking my eyes off the road. I believe most people are perfectly capable and comfortable driving with one hand, and while two should be used when possible, is driving with a cell phone really more dangerous than punching in coordinates on your GPS? I highly doubt it. Try a car full of screaming kids, changing the radio (unless you have preset buttons like I do so you can change the station by feeling which button you’re on), eating, drinking, putting on make-up, etc. There are myriad more dangerous things that one can do while driving than using a cell phone, but they rarely pop up. I think this may be due to the newness of cell phones. Most adults did not grow up with cells phones and they sometimes have trouble using them and get confused. I can text virtually without looking, except for a few words and that is mostly due to the fact that I’m a very visual person: I like to see what my hands are doing.
And honestly, how are they going to enforce it? Will they just pull over people who look like they’re under 18? Sounds a little impractical to me. And how are they going to differentiate between texting and dialing? It’s all a conspiracy to get us to buy more stuff to give the cell phone companies more profit. I don’t know, I just don’t feel like I need something people only use when flying planes/helicopters, or racing in NASCAR. What’s next? Helmets? 3 point seat belts and roll bars for all cars? I think if cars are made too safe, there may be more accidents BECAUSE people won’t be paying as much attention due to the fact that they won’t get hurt if they slam into someone else.
Emily
I work with Placer County Peer Court and I have heard a lot of rumors about the new cell phone law. I would like to add that from my research of the law and according to DMV, minors are not allowed to use a wireless device AT ALL while operating a motor vehicle. Drivers under the age of 18 may not use a wireless telephone, pager, laptop or any other electronic communication or mobile services device to speak OR TEXT while driving in any manner, even “hands-free.” EXCEPTION: Permitted in emergency situations to call police, fire or medical authorities (VC §23124). Multiple violation can cause the minor’s license to be suspended until they are 21. It’s just not worth the risk!!
Janet S-E
This may be too harsh but if you contribute to the gas bill, insurance, registration fee or any other monetary aspect (car repairs or maintenance) of the car your son drives you have a right (and possibly a parental obligation) to set boundaries about acceptable behavior behind the wheel. Following the law would be one of them in my book. Up front your son needs to know if he does not abide by these guidelines and you become aware of it, those contributions will cease.
In my mind many of these problems with teens today stem in part from being over-praised growing up. “Great job” this and “super” that for every simple action has led to kids who think they need a sticker or reward for living and breathing. How about some respect for all of the privledges they have. Of course when they expect them privileges become entitlements. This means a parent cannot say the privilege of driving comes with the ability to abide by the rules of the road-the law.
Clear communication, lots of love, firm boundaries, and meaningful contributions made to the family (i.e. old fashioned chores without paying the child: cooking meals, mowing lawns wahing cars) avoid the entitlement factor. Best of luck!