| Posted: May 28, 2007, 8:51 am - IP Logged |
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Interesting. This article is similar to a comment I posted when someone got so excited his arms went numb and he had to pull over. I wrote that people shouldn't drive and check their numbers at the same time because they get too distracted when they win.
I wonder if he was talking on his cell phone at the same time! I think they are also a hazzard on the road.
The article doesn't specify, but I'm assuming this happened in Michigan City, Indiana. Given that, I'm genuinely surprised the offending driver wasn't charged with the attempted murder of a police officer.
I'm not defending the guy, mind you; I believe that if you're driving a car, you should be doing nothing else besides driving your car. Any distraction is dangerous, as illustrated by this incident - they weren't even on the road yet, so a much more serious accident may have been averted. If you want to listen to a different CD, pull over and find the one you want; if you're hungry, pull over and get something to eat; if your phone rings or you have to make a call, pull over and use the phone (this goes for applying makeup, clipping your toenails and shaving, as well, all of which are offenses I've personally witnessed over the years).
However, if the roles were reversed in this story, and the cop had been checking his tickets, it would have turned out to be the other guy's fault anyway, for having parked in the wrong place (this is common Indiana cop logic - they can't be held responsible for anything they do, even when they're clearly in the wrong).
Talking on your cell phone while driving is illegal here, but I can drive to Fort Wayne on any given day of the week and find at least three different cops committing this offense. The way they see it, they're charged with enforcing the law, not obeying it (I'm not kidding; a cop actually told me that, and he wasn't kidding, either).
Come, Pinky; we must prepare for tomorrow night...
Jim