Re: Ricochet and various wireless (was: Re: [PLUG] key-signing Thursday?)

[Noah silva <nsilva@atari-source.com>]

On Fri, 26 Apr 2002, Art Alexion wrote:

> I was going to avoid this topic, but I couldn't help it.
> 
> People have had conversations in cars since the advent of passenger 
> seats.  I think most drivers on long trips desire conversation to keep 
> them alert.
> 
> So why are phone conversations considered dangerous?
> 
> I think it has little to do with talking, and more to do with dialing 
> and responding to automated systems.

No, I think it has to do with talking.  Not so much with the phones
themselves, or even dialing (how long does that take?).  

Here's a scenareo for you:
We are driving down the road, I am talking to my girlfriend, a big truck
is coming fast towards us and kinda looks scary.  I will probably shut up
because I am in the car, I can see it, and if it is scary enough, perhaps
I fear for my life.  When I riding with my friend back from skiing in the
snow, I could tell when he was having problems and I shut up.  You also
don't usually talk to bill collectors and telemarkers and others who are
likely to piss you off in the passenger seat of your car (hopefully?).

On the phone, people don't have body language cues, nor do they have sight
to see there is the big truck coming, they don't know it's snowing unless
you tell them.  They don't know the intersection is busy unless you tell
them, and they might not shut up so you can concentrate unless you tell
them.

So it sounds like I am against talking on the phone while driving, right?

Well.. I think it's just like changing the radio station, etc.  It CAN be
dangerous, but that doesn't mean that it always is.  People even use
phones to ask for directions and so forth.  Of course someone blabbing on
the phone and not paying attention will have an accident, but theyu
probably weren't a very good driver anyhow.

 -- noah silva 
 
> Which also raises the question, "Why, at a time when phone menu system 
> use is growing, are all the keypads being designed into the headsets?" 
>   Those incompatible design combinations are an annoyance to use at home, 
> let alone while driving.
> 
> That's te real danger of cell phone use while driving.
> 
> Noah silva wrote:
> 
> > 
> > Now driving and talking is another matter.  I don't think there should be
> > specific laws against phone use in the car (because I don't favor adding
> > even more laws to our tangled web of contradictory laws), but I think that
> > it should be avoided.
> > 
> _____________________________
> 
> Art Alexion
> Arthur S. Alexion LLC
> mailto:arthur@alexion.com
> http://www.alexion.com
> 
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