Tuesday, November 9, 2010

Dnt Txt N Drv

Do u know that the act of 'texting while driving' is one of the most dangerous things a driver can do..Sad to say even my hubby does not think so. Most of the time i'm worried if he received a message and start texting. He will i guarantee take a wrong turn and end up going the long way or wrong  lane. He would slow down the car suddenly or brake without no apparent reason.. Sometimes sway to another lane. Me, i pray hard.

Please remember :-

"Distracted driving is a menace to society." -  U.S Secretary of  Transportation Ray LaHood

Eventho' its not a big issue in Malaysia but I believe it is a common behaviour anywhere and everywhere in the world. It strengthen my conscience when i watched `oprah winfrey's show' where she interviewed the victims.Below is an article i extracted from her site. My hope if i cannot convince all at least i can convince a few not to text while driving.

Oprah's No Texting Campaign
The Oprah Winfrey Show  |  January 15, 2010
  
Millions of people text, talk or e-mail on their cell phones while driving—a recent survey finds that 71 percent of people between the ages of 18 and 49 admit they text or talk on the phone while they drive.

If you think you can call, text and drive at the same time, you cannot. That message you can't wait to send could kill. Distracted driving is an epidemic that is sweeping through our country, claiming lives and destroying families.

In September 2008, a Los Angeles commuter train conductor missed a red light while sending and receiving more than 40 text messages. His packed train collided head-on with a freight train, injuring 135 people. The conductor and 24 others were killed, making it the second worst commuter train crash in U.S. history.

Weeks later, a school bus carrying 21 students was rear-ended by an 18-wheel semitruck. The bus was pushed more than 200 feet before bursting into flames. Twenty students escaped, but 13-year-old Margay Schee was killed. The truck driver admitted he had been texting and hadn't seen that the bus was stopped.

These accidents made national headlines, but so many others have been killed in communities just like yours. Nearly 500,000 people are injured and 6,000 are killed each year because drivers are talking, texting and e-mailing behind the wheel. "It is my prayer that this show, this day will be a seminal day in your life," Oprah says. "Let it be the end, the end of you using a cell phone or sending a text message when you are behind the wheel of a moving vehicle. And until we as a nation decide we're going to change that, those numbers are only going to go up."

signing off u can also watch a video on "A mother painful story of how a driver on a cell phone changed her family's lives forever" , "A father tells of the heartbreaking day he lost his son" and "A daughter speaks out about how a driver on a cell phone ran a red light and took her mother's life" . Just click Oprah's website on my blog.

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