Should there be a law against using hand-held cell phones while driving?

Stupidity is even harder to legislate than morality.

yes

....and any woman caught applying mascara while impeding traffic in
the passing lane should have her license revoked and little old shriveled up people who cannot see over the top of the steering wheel should be disallowed from driving and people who swerve all over the road because they are trying to retrieve their sunglasses(pen,lighter,pager,hamburger,soda pop, roadmap) that fell on the floor should have to go to drivers education again

car radios should be removed also

nope

NO, sometimes you just need to talk at the same time.

king: Whoa! I have to stop you on the radio thing. I listen to the radio in the car. So does my dad, and my step-grandfather, AND my friends.

No more than there should be a law against smoking, drinking coffee, changing the radio station, or turning and looking at a baby in the back seat. All of these things can be dangerous while driving, but rather than outlaw them directly the laws of most US states makes getting into an accident punishable if negligence is found to be a cause, rather than just prematurely assuming that everyone who does these things does so outside of their ability to handle their vehicle.

I once joked that next, there'd be cellular fax machines, and to my horror it came true a couple days later (as does everything I think up without nullifying, I've realized in recent years)

phi: not literally, but I appreciated the thought
twisty: My theater teacher said "I can do mascara at 65 mph" and it seemed reasonable. I live in LA,ca,usa. My vacation followed, and after a couple weeks in Fairbanks,Alaska,usa with family I looked back and it seemed insane to even consider it.
k_o_c: I can't imagine driving without a radio. But once I was delivering a Citroën sport-maserati and I had to go hours without adjusting the radio, because a twitch of your wrist would put you in the next lane. Now in the Citroën DS (I owned several) you could practically assemble a peanutbutter sandwich.

In Spain it's illegal to use them while driving.

there shouldn't need to be a law

Romkey: bravo!

Some study showed that people on cell phones are as likely to get into accidents while driving as people who were deprived of sleep for 24 hours. It's just not safe. They should pull over, chat, then drive on, for all of our sakes.

And the other people should pull over, take a nap, and then keep going; but sometimes that's not practical.

Of course! If people are not supposed to be driving with a broken arm then why should people with cell phones be allowed to drive with only one arm? If it is against the law to drive with head phones on the why should it be legal for people to drive with cell phones stuck to their ears? Besides that, in my opinion people drive like crap and they just piss me off when they are driving with no concerns for the road, just because the conversation they are having is more important than safety for everyone on the road.

OH! Tourists should be banned from driving in small towns, unless they drive like they know where the hell they are going. 5 miles an hour on main street is just too damn slow, especially for us locals who are actually getting to and from somewhere in every day life.
Actually, tourists should just have their cars blown up into a billion bits.
Or if tourists must drive, drive with respect for the locals for christ sake.

gullm: what peanutbutter sandwiches?
RKey: Bravo
I had to do an entire bicycle vacation with a broken hand a few years ago, starting my first day out. I crossed the golden gate bridge SF,ca,us and slid out doing 30mph on a gravel downhill curve with 160 lb.s of art supplies, etc. Someone replaced my tube, discussed algorithm's, then left me his boat for the night. I hadn't another accident till a week ago when I was bringing home a 20's sax
*OH LOVE, she's questioning.*
i'd just bought for $50 and strapped on the rear of my bike. Gonna cost more now. I just got a call from the owners of the explorer mirror i shattered with my forgotten honky-tonk cell phone. Yea, I left a note. nearly half a months income. what I laughingly curse myself for, is 2 days earlier, i got the crazy idea to sideswipe a car. usually i immediately cancel such ideas, since a few years agowhen i accidentally wished the destruction of my stepfather's new car. amazingly he was unscathed the next morning when a cement mixer clipped the drivers door pillar before rolling over his trunk.
Live and learn. Glad i've got credit cards.

K_R: HA!

Brian: Whoa! I use a cell phone in the car, so don't my friends so it should be legal (Q.E.D). I use the radio too but where do you draw the line? A friend of mine totaled his car while adjusting the radio.

KOC: A friend of mine totaled her car while conversing with passengers..

Jody: you seem to be implying that people who haven't slept in 24 hours should pull over, sleep, then drive on.

The one underlying theme in almost all traffic accidents is that someone was driving! Maybe that should be illegal?

topper, not all traffic accidents involve someone driving.. the most common and obvious element is the vehicle. Ban the car!

I woke up at 1 pm yesterday, now it's 7pm today, i've been doing 36 hour days lately. Just spent 15 hours at my freinds antique store creating filing for a chaos that became 4" of 1940's movie stills, old intaglio's, pin-up's, christmas cound down calendars, etc.; repairing things; and doing my metaphysics consulting to those who drift in. She is humbling. I have to be a most discriminate angel offering any practical advice or even expressing vocally a feeling for her or she'll fly off the handle. We got totally in synch with our thoughts, before she snapped, & closed up shop without a thank you.
I once had a fender bender years ago when thinking about a recursive mural on the wall of a pizzeria we passed. As a teen I taught a friend how to drive in my Volvo 544. I figured at 40 mph she chickened out on making a turn into the 20' upcoming single lane. In a blink we were on 2 wheels riding a landscaped island, and somehow I was sitting beneath her getting the thing back on the ground. Later in '61 23 window VW van, I could swear I made my own gravity & stopped time [my stereo lost sound while writing that sentence] to get back on the road. Oh this is fun. Remote control.

Volvo 544... I love that car, not that I have one, but still.

My last car was 67 P1800. What a mess. God warned me. Bored 1800 w/2000 head & beefier weber. No way to smog. Owner lied every step.
The 544 was named Beowulf. 'Volvo' means 'it rolls'.

Besides the citroën's, the Saab 96 was my favorite.

Boat AKK

Are you suggesting on some level I take a boat to AK,us to start my vacation with the kids & ex? or is there an (amphibious?) car I'm unfamiliar with, or is one of these cars a boat, or Clinton (oops wrong survey), or me.

i think after your first accident from using a phone, there should be a law against that person....

Not that anyone ever obeys these laws. My dad did get pulled over for not wearing his seat belt in New Mexico, though.

In my country there already is a law against it. Thats why I use a hands free set. It might look like a Borg implant but it stops the police pulling me over when I'm talking in the car.

icurok: What country is that?

There is where I live.

vos: UK (england)

To many people get into accidents and die because people are talking on the cell phones and only are using one hand to drive.

Too many mime's get misunderstood communicating over cell phones with one hand. (someone has to laugh)

No but there should be a law against idiot drivers?? Don't ya think?

It drives me nuts when someone in the car in front of you is talking on the phone. Yes, there should be a fine.

Of course not... jsut like there shouldnt be laws against drunk driving. I mean, think about it... if a man is driving like a maniac, it doesnt matter why hes doing it (drunk, high, talking on his cell phone, just a bad driver) the bottom line is that he is driving like a maniac, and should be punished such, not for the cause of such.

Exactly right.

Yes. Another distraction while driving we don't need.

i think cell phones should be able to be used while driving as long as people are paying attention

there is here in the uk