'Americans can't stay off the Internet, even when driving'

I can't say it enough: We are headed for some sort of reckoning when it comes to our national - nay, our global - Internet addiction. (And I am obviously as guilty as anyone else.)

http://www.theatlanticwire.com/national/2013/11/americans-cant-stay-internet-even-while-driving/71490/

From the story:

* 24 percent of Americans browse the Internet while driving.
* Among people ages 18-29, the number is 49 percent.
* 70 percent of people ages 18-29 text while driving.

Seriously, when none of us can drive without having to check, check, check, check, check what else is going on in the world via our device, we need to take a very long look at where we are as a society and how we're handling technology.

 

I've read about how vehicles have been designed to now allow you to connect to social media while you are driving. It's supposed to be similar to hands-free phone calls in which you either speak or push a button on the steering wheel.

Still, Whitman's point is well taken. The fact so many people are texting while driving is troubling. And really, whatever happened to just listening to the radio while driving to work? Isn't satellite radio enough for people who wants to keep tabs on what's going on? Where is it written that the Internet has to be the source we must get our info from?

I'm somebody who admittedly spends more time on the Internet than I should, yet even I find it's actually good to get away from it for a while and that I don't need to stay in touch with the whole world wherever I go. Driving is one of the times when I'd rather not be on social media or the Internet and spend more time admiring the sights along the way or just relaxing — and most of all, paying attention to the road if I'm the one behind the wheel.

 

We've got a huge attention span problem developing, I think, and this is evidence of that. I've caught myself on the iPhone just checking, checking, checking ... when I finally catch myself and just stuff it in a drawer somewhere. A lot of people are just finding it more and more difficult to be alone with their thoughts for any length of time. We need something new and shiny and rewarding ... now!

Caroline Tell writes a lot about these issues for the New York Times.

Here's a recent one on how people have no qualms about canceling social plans via text, even at the last minute:

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/10/28/fashion/let-your-smartphone-deliver-the-bad-news.html

Here's another one about how people are doing what I talked about with the sock drawer put-away:

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/09/22/fashion/step-away-from-the-phone.html

I don't know that I could ever ban devices entirely from the bedroom, though, because I get my newspaper on my Kindle Paperwhite. It is completely awesome to grab it from the nightstand at 4 a.m. and be able to scan the day's headlines before my workout.

 

Things that make you go Hmmmmmmmm

 

I just finished a safety meeting where we had a guest speaker who was 24 years in accident reconstruction and a general expert on driving.

He said that studies show that distracted driving is the equivalent of .08 impairment. Ther was a cite in his presentation but I missed it.

In BC the accident rate has gone up since distracted driving laws went into effect. It is being suggested that this is because drivers are holding their phones lower so they look away from the road longer.

This saftey expert said that distracted driving will be as big of an issue as drunk driving.

 

Driving is boring.

 

If you can't drive with one finger on the steering wheel, a cup of coffee between your legs and text with your free hand, you aren't doing it right...

I think we're not too far away from distracted driving killing more people than drunk driving.

 

Crashes are pretty damn exciting.

 

The bells are rattling off in zag's cave as we speak.

 

Texting and driving is one thing. OK, you're communicating with someone. Maybe even at a stoplight.

"Get milk, honey."

But surfing the Internet while driving.

I don't get it. Nobody seems to know anything about current events in America. We hear about that constantly. And yet they are constantly on the Internet, even while driving. We should be the most informed nation in history.

 

OK, that made me laugh.

 

We are more than informed though, where our facebook friends had happy hour last night.