Monique McTiernan-Black’s recent Letter to the Editor in the Times & Transcript is yet another reminder of how dangerous and potentially fatal texting while driving can be. Had Ms. McTiernan-Black, out on a run, not been paying attention for both herself AND the young woman texting while driving, there could have been the distinct possibility of the death of one, and a lengthy prison sentence for the other. Definitely something for the driver of that lethal weapon to think about.
A car, a motorcycle, all-terrain vehicles or a snowmobile can be and often are weapons of death. If the person operating such a ‘destroyer of lives in a split second’ is caught not exercising appropriate care and control as required by the law, then he should have his license revoked for a term no less than one year. Full stop!
The time has come for the courts to stop devoting so much time issuing slap on the wrist sentences and fines that clearly are not sufficient deterrents. The system of law, in place to protect all of us, needs to step up the game in a way that is truly attention grabbing and behaviour changing — heftier fines and longer ‘time out’ periods from driving. Accountability is the responsibility of each and every one of us.
I’ve been the victim of individuals who’ve been distracted — texting while walking. In such cases, being a student of human nature, I take those opportunities to educate and enlighten. My favourite MO occurs most often in malls, as I travel in my wheelchair down the center corridors, checking out shop windows. I’ll see a person approaching, ear glued to phone, oblivious to an impending collision. But I’m ready! I know full well what happens next. I slow down and wait. True to form, the ‘gotta make the call right this minute’ guy keeps coming, looking straight ahead, but clearly not seeing me at all. Then it happens! Wham! There’s a body in my lap! I caught a live one! I’m never hurt at all during these little tests of reaction times. But the phone chatter is clearly embarassed as everyone around us saw what HE did to poor little me!
The call ends as he peels himself off my lap. We have a brief conversation as I ask him to picture himself in a car doing what he was doing at that moment he ran into me. Finally! That lightbulb moment when the message of the lesson gets his attention. Had he been in a car, texting while driving or chatting while driving, he could have killed a Mom pushing a baby in a stroller, while her two older children waited at home; he could have killed a 3 children on their way to school on bright, sunny day; he could have killed a guy who was returning home with gift bags in hand after becoming a first time grandfather earlier that day. There’s no do-over for any of those catastrophic events. Ever!
Another tactic I use to educate is to be casually rolling along in my little red racer, sensing then confirming there’s a person close behind me; invariably, they’re glued to a cellphone. I slow to a crawl, but still moving forward. Bam! I get rear-ended by an uprightly mobile 20 something, wearing short shorts with legs up to there, long, blond hair, shiny with health. She’s smiling and chatting, fully engaged in conversation with the person on the other side of her phone connection. A boyfriend? A girlfriend, as they make plans for the weekend?
She falls directly into my chair as she bumps into my back. Thankfully, my long flowing hair is wound up in a bun or it would have been soundly pulled as she reached out her hands to save herself. So, I was rear-ended by one of the ‘pretty people’ in full view of passersby. She was more than a little embarassed. Yes, my friends, both these events occurred and are not products of my writer’s imagination.
After a bit of light conversation, I asked about texting while driving — she was all apologetic and informed me that she’d never do that. I wondered! As she walked away, I noted that the cellphone was once again at her ear and she casually sauntered along the mall corridor with not a care in the world.
How many people in New Brunswick have been killed because of driving while texting? How many were the drivers? How many were their victims? Innocent parties to their vanity and thoughtlessness? In how many such accidents of texting/chatting while drivingwere both the driver and others killed? How many survived but will spend the rest of their lives as paraplegics? As respirator quadriplegics? As single limb amputees? As double limb amputees? Permanently living with a traumatic brain injury?
Will someone near and dear to you be the next victim of death or permanent injury by distracted driver? Will you?
Carla MacInnis Rockwell is a freelance writer and disability rights advocate living outside Fredericton, NB with her aging Australian silky terrier and a rambunctious Maltese. She can be reached via email at carmacrockwell@xplornet.ca
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