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What is the Deal? Do you need to buy a birthday, anniversary or holiday gift? Visit the Galleria! January 26, 2003 What is the deal with Drunk Drivers and Cell Phones? By Jan A. Larson My wife was involved in an automobile accident last week that was caused by a drunk driver who was also talking on a cell phone. Fortunately, she wasn’t seriously injured and no one died in any of the five vehicles that were involved. Four of the vehicles were stopped at a light when the fifth, driven by the aforementioned driver who was too busy and too impaired to be concerned with driving, slammed into the first of them causing a chain reaction. Three of the vehicles, including my wife’s, were totaled. The driver got out of his car, apparently uninjured, and helped extricate one driver from her vehicle before the police arrived and determined he was impaired. He spent a night in the hoosegow. He may be invited to spend some more time there as well. There is absolutely no reason why people continue to drive under the influence of alcohol these days. There have been years of public service announcements pleading with people to not drink and drive and to select a designated driver. States have lowered the standard for the level of alcohol in the blood that constitutes “legally drunk.” Yet there are always those that figure they can “handle it” but end up killing himself (or herself) or someone else. While driving under the influence of alcohol is a risky behavior, today it is more common to see vehicles weaving out of their lane or driving excessively fast or slow due to the driver talking on the phone. Is this really necessary? Is our time so much more valuable now than it was 10 or 20 years ago? I doubt it. Day after day, drivers take to the road with driving the last thing on their minds. Get in that extra sales call on the way to work. Ask the wife what’s for dinner on the way home. All the while endangering the lives of fellow drivers. Have you ever tried carrying on a conversation with someone in the car when you’re navigating heavy traffic looking for a street sign or particular restaurant? The human mind simply cannot handle the dual tasks of navigating through traffic and talking at the same time, never mind trying to do both after belting down a few shots with the boys at the bar. Some localities have restricted the use of cell phones while driving. To that I say, “Here! Here!” Driving is not a task that can be done on a part time basis. Opponents of restrictions on cell phone usage claim that there is little research on the correlation between cell phone usage and automobile accidents. I’d be willing to bet there hasn’t been much research done on the correlation between jumping off cliffs and ending up dead either, but it doesn’t take an Einstein to figure out there is a connection. Let’s not wait until there are 20 years of accidents and deaths to figure this out. No one needs to be in such a hurry to live their lives that they can’t wait until they get to the office to make that call or pull into a parking lot before calling to ask if there is going to be beef for dinner. The danger to oneself and others while driving under the influence of alcohol is undisputed. The danger of driving while talking on a cell phone is disputed, but don’t be fooled, it is a dangerous practice. The combination of cell phones and alcohol is deadly. The driver that caused my wife’s accident is lucky. Everyone involved is alive. Others won’t be so fortunate. -- Send feedback to the author. The "What is the Deal?" column will appears weekly on the Pie of Knowledge website. Guest submissions are welcome and encouraged. To submit an article to "What is the Deal?" click here. To subscribe to the "What is the Deal?" mailing list and receive early notification when a new column is available, click here. The Pie of Knowledge will never, ever divulge email addresses to any third party for any reason unless so ordered by a court of law. Contributions to the Pie of Knowledge are greatly appreciated. 
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