Don't text & drive from AT&T |
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Tom Sewer
Junior Executive Joined: 28 Dec 2011 Location: USA Status: Offline Points: 153 |
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Posted: 17 Sep 2012 at 5:54pm |
Sorry if these have been mentioned. I ran the word "text" through the search engine and didn't find anything. Apparently, AT&T launched these things in 2010, so they probably have been mentioned, but they're worth mentioning again. There are these commercials, these "Public Service Announcements," that explain what text message a person was staring at when they got into a wreck. One features a guy with severe brain damage. He holds up a phone that reads "where r" and says, "This is the text message that changed my life forever." Another features a fat girl who was texting her fat sister. "This is the text from me that my sister was looking at when she died in a car wreck." Another has a cop going, "When I arrived, I found her cell phone laying in a pool of blood." Or something like that. Keep in mind that they always hold up the same phone to show off the deadly message. The fat sister says, "This is the phone that she was using in the accident." I'm guessing that it's some sort of AT&T brand phone, judging from the AT&T symbol above the screen. You get to see their logo over and over and over. This "texting while driving" thing is a fairly complex issue, and I could go on and on, but I will be brief and say that you shouldn't be operating a vehicle if you can't glance away for a second. On the other hand, people who steer with their knees while writing a book to their awesome friends really don't need to be endangering me. This whole issue makes me wonder why they don't ban radios from cars. You don't see any commercial saying, "My sister died when she glanced down to change the station from KROCK to KJIZZ." Don't get me wrong, nothing provokes my middle finger more than seeing someone drive like a douchebag, and when I get a good look at them, they're on the phone. I hate that. So on the one hand, people swerving around like Mr. Magoo need to go, but on the other hand, I don't need a ticket for hundreds of dollars (and increased insurance rates) because I answered a phone call during an emergency once. There should be a middle ground like with alcohol, where there's a "legal limit." The laws were sane for awhile. Where I live, you could only be fined for talking on the phone while driving if there was some other moving violation. Or the first ticket for it was low, but the second one was high. Now, if you're caught, with no other moving violations or accidents in your whole life, and it's your first time, the cop can slap you with a $500 ticket and ruin your perfect insurance, even if you were trying to talk someone through how to disable a nuke while trying to get to the nuke that you're trying to disable. Just as an example. This whole "hands-free" thing is utter B.S., too, because of the shades of gray mentioned above. Driving through town, it's not good. But driving in practically a straight line down the freeway, who cares? Well, apparently the automatons that patrol the freeway care, because rules are rules. But headsets are just another way for the corporate government to push product. God bless the economy? Sorry that I'm not falling for the propaganda, AT&T, but simply seeing dramatic pictures of a car accident isn't going to make me turn off my brain and believe the okeydoke. I can still recognize a nanny state police law despite the timeworn tactic of exploiting grieving loved ones. It's so tacky, and makes AT&T the monster in this situation, not me. I'm not exploiting anyone. I'm not the one using death for product placement. Sure, you can't hold a phone up to your ear for 2 seconds while driving in a straight line, but a soccer mom distracted by 4 rowdy kids and a dog on her lap with GPS on the dash while fixing her hair in the mirror and everyone's watching TV in the car... that's just fine. It's the uneven laws that bother me. The flat laws despite circumstances. These commercials annoy me mostly because of the product placement, but also because they boil everything down into black & white / evil & good, while taking everything to an extreme, like most other PSAs. But usually, PSAs get celebrities to charismatically charm me into agreeing with their issue. Here, they have some ugly slobs to try to get me to cry over their misspelled texts. And I do, but for all the wrong reasons. Wait... did I say that I was going to be brief? I should have said boxers. Get it? Briefs and boxers? Two types of underwear. k bai P.S. I wrote this whole post on my phone while driving. Take that, society. |
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"Today's Tom Sewer, you get by on him." - Tom Sawyer by Rush... sort of.
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Tiz
Revolutionary I donated! Joined: 15 Apr 2008 Location: Virginia Status: Offline Points: 15588 |
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Another features a fat girl who was texting her fat sister. "This is the text from me that my sister was looking at when she died in a car wreck."
......... What if it were 2 skinny blonde chicks? OMG LOL Virginia has a cell phone use law, not sure about texting. There is a law firm that has one on these scare tactic commercials about texting & driving. IMO, a text message can wait until you pull over before replying. I don't want to be plowed head-on in to by some teen texting and crossing the center line. My last stereo had a remote so I didn't have to take my eyes off the road, but it got stolen. We(Virginia) have both loud radio noise and seatbelt laws but you can't be pulled over for just those offences.
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Thor
Revolutionary Joined: 16 Apr 2008 Location: Rockaway, NJ Status: Offline Points: 63906 |
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I can do what I have to do with my car stereo without having to look away from the road. With texting, you have to look away. Until they come up with texting in Braille, you have to actually look at the texts you receive. It's even worse with typing/sending a text.
Just the other day, I tested myself on how long I take my eyes off the road in 40 mph traffic. Rough estimate---one second, maybe two. Longer than that is just too much.
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Tiz
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It's hard for me, I drive a stick shift. If in traffic, I don't even like getting a call, much less a text. As for my stereo, I just adjust volume or click between presets while driving.
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Hezadancer
Junior Executive Joined: 06 May 2008 Location: Around Status: Offline Points: 3770 |
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The fat girls version was turned into an exploitable image meme. I couldn't find a repository for all the different images but here's a typical offering:
Also for every teen texting or talking I see plenty of adults doing it too. |
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It's ok, I'm in marketing!
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Thor
Revolutionary Joined: 16 Apr 2008 Location: Rockaway, NJ Status: Offline Points: 63906 |
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At least adults are more likely to have driving skills. Young people are still out there trying to prove to everyone, including themselves, that they do. That's why, 9 times outta 10, when you see someone driving in that daredevil manner (speeding, weaving, cutting across 2 or 3 lanes at once), it's a young person doing the driving. Add to that, the whole texting thing...
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eribean
Junior Executive Joined: 10 Aug 2012 Location: United States Status: Offline Points: 531 |
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Heh... around here could be anyone. Saw a middle aged Indian man holding up traffic the other day, texting. He was about 200 yards behind the guy in front of him in bumper-to-bumper traffic. It pissed me off and freaked me out. I stayed the hell away from his car.
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"Oh, and just because I like humans, it doesn't mean that I like you personally. That's important to note."
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Hootman
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I understand that Asians, especially Koreans are the worst drivers.
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Tom Sewer
Junior Executive Joined: 28 Dec 2011 Location: USA Status: Offline Points: 153 |
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Hezadancer, thank you for that.
I looked it up on knowyourmeme, and it's mentioned... but as a rejected submission. There are still some lulzy pictures there. http://knowyourmeme.com/memes/this-is-the-text-i-sent |
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"Today's Tom Sewer, you get by on him." - Tom Sawyer by Rush... sort of.
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Tom Sewer
Junior Executive Joined: 28 Dec 2011 Location: USA Status: Offline Points: 153 |
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Are you making fun of my Asianness? Hate speech! Hate speech! Admins! He's making fun of my Asianfullness. And how did you know that I was Korean in particular? This is creepy! Stop stalking me! EDIT: I forgot to say, "Just kidding, I'm White and born in the States." |
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"Today's Tom Sewer, you get by on him." - Tom Sawyer by Rush... sort of.
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Tiz
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http://www.textinganddrivingsafety.com/texting-and-driving-stats/
Young, old, American,Asian, Belgium, makes no difference to me.
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Tom Sewer
Junior Executive Joined: 28 Dec 2011 Location: USA Status: Offline Points: 153 |
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That's a very accurate video. It's very difficult to text while driving in an obstacle course.
I'm not sure what this has to do with sitting at a red light and texting and getting a ticket for it, but it's still an accurate video. What I mean by this is, yes, it's distracting and shouldn't be done in most situations. But it bothers me that I could get the same punishment as someone who's careening through the crowded city as someone who's, for instance, texting while at a red light, or in the middle of nowhere. |
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"Today's Tom Sewer, you get by on him." - Tom Sawyer by Rush... sort of.
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Hezadancer
Junior Executive Joined: 06 May 2008 Location: Around Status: Offline Points: 3770 |
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Worst I saw was while driving behind a guy. Who knows the age, maybe 35ish. He was talking on his phone with one hand, and WAVING HIS OTHER HAND AROUND making gestures as if he was talking to someone in person. No hands on the wheel, going 80 on the highway. I had no remorse going faster than that to pass him and get the f**k away. |
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It's ok, I'm in marketing!
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Ad nauseous
Revolutionary Joined: 15 Apr 2008 Location: Connecticut Status: Offline Points: 23601 |
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LOL my favorite one is "LOL just farted :P it smells" |
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One good thing about TV-you could always turn it off
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Hezadancer
Junior Executive Joined: 06 May 2008 Location: Around Status: Offline Points: 3770 |
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My favorite is a GTA 4 referenced one where the text is "Niko, it's your cousin Roman, let's go bowling".
I laugh far harder than I should at that. |
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It's ok, I'm in marketing!
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Ad nauseous
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LOL he can be annoying at times can he? |
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One good thing about TV-you could always turn it off
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Synesthesia
Junior Executive Joined: 16 Jul 2009 Status: Offline Points: 2088 |
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It doesn't matter if she's fat.
Futhermore, texting while driving is STUPID. There's no reason for it. I saw a woman this morning texting away. There was a garbage truck in front of her. She switched to the other lane, but if there was a car coming towards her she would have been screwed. She could have even crashed into the garbage truck and crush the two garbage men. It's so dumb! I see this all the time walking down the street. People texting while driving on a busy street. It makes me very angry. |
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Is this love big enough to watch over me?
Big enough to let go of me Without hurting me, Like the day I learned to swim?-Kate Bush The Fog |
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sgtrock21
Junior Executive Joined: 18 Dec 2011 Location: Oregon Status: Offline Points: 6884 |
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EEEEts All so REEEdEEEculous
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sgtrock21
Junior Executive Joined: 18 Dec 2011 Location: Oregon Status: Offline Points: 6884 |
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EEEEts All so REEEdEEEculous
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sgtrock21
Junior Executive Joined: 18 Dec 2011 Location: Oregon Status: Offline Points: 6884 |
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A few years ago I noticed that many drivers were no longer signaling turns and lane changes. I thought that was a very strange trend until I began observing that these drivers could not pry the cellphone away from their ear for 2 seconds to flip the turn signal lever. About 2 years ago Oregon made handheld cellphone use while driving a primary offense. Suddenly drivers started signaling again. A few months later the idiot media reported that that law enforcement was not really enforcing the cellphone law. In less than a Month, no more signals!
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EEEEts All so REEEdEEEculous
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sgtrock21
Junior Executive Joined: 18 Dec 2011 Location: Oregon Status: Offline Points: 6884 |
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EEEEts All so REEEdEEEculous
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EMCEE
Junior Executive Joined: 07 Feb 2010 Location: IL Status: Offline Points: 2731 |
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I'm sorry, but if it takes you more than a 1/2 second to read the word "Yeah," you deserve to die.
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Reader, suppose you were an idiot. And suppose you were a member of Congress. But I repeat myself.
- Mark Twain |
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Synesthesia
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You should NOT be reading in a car while driving at all! I have the attention span of a kaleidoscope of drunk butteries. Do I drive? NO! You have to pay attention to the road. I live where deer and turkeys will run in front of the car.
Also children. |
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Is this love big enough to watch over me?
Big enough to let go of me Without hurting me, Like the day I learned to swim?-Kate Bush The Fog |
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EMCEE
Junior Executive Joined: 07 Feb 2010 Location: IL Status: Offline Points: 2731 |
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QFT. Put down your phone and drive. Your calls and texts can wait. |
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Reader, suppose you were an idiot. And suppose you were a member of Congress. But I repeat myself.
- Mark Twain |
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Thor
Revolutionary Joined: 16 Apr 2008 Location: Rockaway, NJ Status: Offline Points: 63906 |
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At this point, with all the warnings out there about texting-driving, I don't feel sorry for anyone who gets into an accident while doing such. There's no excuse at this point.
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