Study: Kids are the biggest driver distraction
OK, anyone with kids probably said the same thing we did after reading the headline, "Duh." We hope LV, a British insurance company, didn't pay much for this study, which says distractions from kids cause even more accidents than mobile phones. They could have asked almost anyone with children what's more distracting and gotten their answer for free.The study also found that women are more likely to go into "automatic pilot" mode when driving. By that they mean women are more likely to arrive at their destination and have no recollection of their drive. Which is pretty scary,actually, but could explain all those SUVs on the highways drifting from lane to lane with no signals. Either that or all those 'utes have screaming kids in the back seat keeping the drivers from hearing their mobile phone properly.
WhatCar suggests providing games for the kids to play while traveling and taking multiple breaks to let them work off some energy. We say this might be good support for inventing some sort of Plexiglass wall to fit between front and back seats. Kinda like you see on Cops, but without the handcuffs. On the other hand...
[Source: WhatCar]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
Sheniferous 8:56AM (6/11/2007)
Pssh... Plexiglas...
...what you need is a car that has two individual "bubbles" one for the driver and navigator... and one in back for the kids. And maybe when you toot the horn... "la cucaracha" sounds... oh, you need a really big hood ornament too!
kinda like this car:
http://www.answers.com/topic/homer-dreamcar-gif
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Andrew 9:15AM (6/11/2007)
that's EXACTLY what i was going to post!
TheFrenchmanaz 9:38AM (6/11/2007)
I have a 6 year old boy and it is quite simple. When my son asks me questions or wants me to look at something he's doing or has seen, I tell him nicely that I am focused on the very important task of driving right now and that I promise to look when I stop at the next light or when I have a chance. It's as simple as that. Not only do I, the driver maintain my focus on keeping my son safe, but I also instill a lasting impression on my child that driving is not a task to be taken lightly for his safety and those of everyone else on the road. Parents who endulge their children while behind the wheel do the exact opposite. Unfortunately car manufacturers have done nothing but pander to these drivers who put my son at risk everytime I am on the road, by enabling them with more and more " the car will do it for you, so you can focus on reading your newspaper, jabber on your freaking cellphone " junk. Just like I forced my nephew to, I will force my son to drive only a stick, because this forces people to actually be engaged in the act of driving. Hey parents who use your kids as excuses for your incompetence. They are kids, you are the adult, act like one and protect the ones who are under your care. You buffons !
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brh 2:21PM (6/12/2007)
That's "buffoons," you twit and almost ANY idiot can handle a single child, it's when they've got you outnumbered that the real challenge begins.
TheFrenchmanaz 2:29PM (6/12/2007)
Always nice to have an educator on board. Sorry but while you may have time to proof read your posts, I make my point and if, from time to time, I make a spelling error, then so be it. You obviously understood, so get off your supremacy trip twit ! As for your comment regarding one child, sorry, while you are indeed correct that one child is easier then two or more, if your kids are locked into their seats as they should be, then all a parent must deal with is noise. If the situation gets out of control, calmly pull the f*&^ over when it is intelligent to do so and then deal with the situation. Excusing any more than shouting while keeping your eyes to the road is pathetic. When your driving, you are driver first, parent second. The former ALWAYS takes precedence !!!!!!!!!!!! Thanks for proof reading my material. I shall expect the same on this post.
Drewboy 9:47AM (6/11/2007)
What is particularly aggravating, is that my wife and I have noticed that it is drivers with kids also tend to be the same ones speeding and talking on the f'n cell phone.
I hate to say I wish bad on anyone, but there is that little part of me that'd LOVE to see them crash. I actually did see someone royally screw up their Ford Explorer while swatting at her kid and talking on the cell phone earlier this summer, she took both hands off the wheel and the car went along side a barrier, taking off the mirror and majorly damaging the side of the suv. I was grinning ear to ear.
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TheFrenchmanaz 10:24AM (6/11/2007)
Drewboy, I understand your point, but let's remember that drivers most times survive crash's, it is the kids who will suffer injury. What would make me smile would be to see those parents pulled over and severely fined. DUI's are a federal offense with mandatory 1 year sentence if your travelling under the influence with a child under the age of 11 ( I think ). As parents we are the ultimate responsible party for the welfare of our children who have no say in our stupidity. Again, I understand your point and imagine that no harm came to those children in that accident. Hopefully the stupid parent broke something serious.
Mattlach 10:10AM (6/11/2007)
I have a better suggestion than WhatCar:
Don't have kids!
Spare yourself (and especially the rest of the world) the trouble of your little brats.
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TheFrenchmanaz 10:24AM (6/11/2007)
Mattlach, how insightfull. It's a pity your parents didn't feel the same as you do.
Mattlach 10:56AM (6/11/2007)
They made a choice I would never have made.
If I were never born I wouldn't have been around to object. I don't have a problem with that.
My opinion is that - once created - life is sacred, but no one is under any obligation to create life, and I'd rather they just wouldn't.
I also don't understand why anyone would put themselves through that. I want to live my life for me, not waste 20 years of it dealing with a kid.
It also frustrates me how society is so excruciatingly biased towards those who decide to have families. Tax breaks for married couples, tax breaks for parents. And my money (via taxes) is going to pay for schooling of kids I don't give a damn about. Not to mention the annoyance of school buses and having to deal with the terrible brats in restaurants and on airplanes.
Parents tend to be incredibly rude in exposing the people around them to their annoying children.
People should be able to make the decision to procreate if they want to, but they should also have to pay for it themselves, and keep their little human projects out of the way of everyone else who doesn't want to have to deal with them.
TheFrenchmanaz 11:24AM (6/11/2007)
Mattlach, As a parent who is extremely careful of my childs behavior in public ( not to the point of stiffling his having some innocent fun ), I respectfully feel that you should direct your displeasure at the very many parents who are in fact guilty of a complete disregard for the general public when it comes to their children. I am even more conscious of people who do not have kids because I was not always a parent.
On your views regarding the advantages bestowed on parents by the govt, while I appreciate your opinion, the fact is that if we all thought like you civilization would eventually cease to exist and that is simply not an acceptable option. The fact is that while you see zero value in children, society does stand to benefit by even the slightest ( which is all it is really ) leg up given to parents. If you are so concerned about the waste in tax dollars, maybe you should point your disdain at all of the pork waste in our govt and the billions +++++++ wasted in Iraq. This makes the cumulative financial advantage bestowed on parents seem like a drop in the bucket.
Trust me I am not trying to convince you otherwise, but you make a comment like that, as a parent and as mentioned one who does respect everyone around my child, it annoys me that such a comment would be made. As mentioned you want to take irresponsible parents on like the ones for whom this blog is directed, I will sing right along with you.
Mattlach 11:46AM (6/11/2007)
I'd happily take on irresponsible parents.
Unfortunately my feeling is that the vast majority of parents these days are irresponsible, caring more about the self esteem of their children than being able to say no and admonish them. Exceptions are rare.
I have come to equate all parents to a group of fanatics that will go anywhere and do anything in the name of their children, regardless of who they hurt or what injustices they create along the way.
There are so many ways that parents have shunned their own responsibilities through legislation and instead inconvenienced everyone else around them.
If you are one of the exceptions, then good for you.
Take the following little story as an example:
Main road A goes from town A to town B and is a major commuter route. Parents wanting more convenience lobby for the building of a school on the main road. Suddenly said parents realize that a main road means lots of traffic, post school zone speed limits, and arrange for school buses that stop every 15 ft (god forbid the spoiled children have to walk) making the morning commute hell for everyone involved. Instead of enforcing safe behavior on their children, they shun the responsibility which now falls on drivers who have to suffer through stopping for school buses and driving 20mph in school zones...
This pisses me off to no end.
I guess that is the point we differ on. If the human race were to die off due to lack of reproduction, I wouldn't be too upset. I am opposed to hurting existing life, but I have no problem with not creating new life.
jordan 1:15PM (6/11/2007)
"People should be able to make the decision to procreate if they want to, but they should also have to pay for it themselves, and keep their little human projects out of the way of everyone else who doesn't want to have to deal with them."
By your account, you realize that without the current system we have set up, you probably wouldn't have the education you have now, because your parents possibly didn't have the funds to afford an education that "they had to pay for themselves," according to your philosophy. Or, go back another generation, and your parents might not have had any sort of education because your grandparents couldn't afford one just after the Great Depression (or thereabouts). That would've possibly put them in lower-class jobs comparative to what they're at now, and possibly been exposed to more life-threatening risks, and they could've died.
What I'm saying is that you're missing one of the biggest advantages of a taxed nation. There's a reason we are among the highest-educated people in the world. (well, technically, but it seems like we lack a lot of common sense)
geo.stewart 10:12AM (6/11/2007)
Soon to be announced legislation in NYC and California:
No more kids in the car. If your kids are found to be awake or conscious in your car, you will be fined $500 a violation. Repeat offenders will have their kids taken from the vehicle and impounded.
Other states to introduce similar legislation...
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bmoredlj 10:25AM (6/11/2007)
In my city, there are a lot of cars with four or five kids in them, with no one buckled in, including the driver/parents, and everyone kind of jumps and floats around in the car - which is more often than not a full-size SUV - hanging arms and legs out and fighting amongst themselves. I'd tell them to buckle up, but I'd only get a reply of incoherent profanity, so what's the point? Needless to say, in a collision, there's a good chance the entire family would be seriously maimed or killed, but who cares? Seatbelts aren't COOL!
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Mattlach 11:15AM (6/11/2007)
Not making their kids wear seatbelts???
There's a joke about natural selection and Darwin somewhere here...
Avinash machado 11:18AM (6/11/2007)
Well, Mattlach has a point. One of the greatest problems facing the world today is population explosion. It would greatly help if fewer kids were born. This is especially true in countries that are worst affected like India,China,Nigeria etc.
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Mattlach 11:24AM (6/11/2007)
We humans are so silly.
We claim to distinguish ourselves from the animal kingdom by our ability to reason, yet it seems every large decision we make is dominated by emotion and instinct.
Steve B. 1:55PM (6/11/2007)
Bah, Jonathan Swift was ranting about it hundreds of years ago. A real problem is the fact that:
A: Overcrowding of the population is an issue for other continents, not ours. We have adequate resources, and in reality, could use the extra hands. The problem is third world bogholes in which people pop out child after child with no means to care for them.
B: We absolutely need a continued growth in our population, or the entire system will crash like a deck of cards... Social security woes are just the beginning.
If the rate of reproduction dropped significantly, our country would cease to exist. The government has every reason to encourage reproduction!
doglet 12:05PM (6/11/2007)
lets make it illegal to drive with your kids in the car, that makes sense, right?
when will people learn that stupid people will do stupid things for stupid reasons and no number of laws can protect people from themselves.
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