Is it democracy they don’t understand, or the English language?

Published by Tom

July 5, 2009

Drivers back bans for using mobiles | Metro.co.uk.

So, I glean from the linked article, less than a third of motorists are nanny's boys who think the state should ban – for an unemployment-inducing six months – those caught using a mobile phone while driving. Hurrah for common sense, you might think. After all, phoning while driving is still legal throughout the civilised world. That it's illegal in Britain is hardly worth mentioning. After Labour's creation of one new crime a day for more than a decade, almost everything now is. In Britain, the list of lawful activities may soon fit around the circumference of a pound coin. Something like this perhaps;

"Vote Labour, pay taxes."

I am sure it will sound better in Latin. But I digress. How does the Metro report the views of a small group of busybodies notable mainly for their irrelevance?

"Drivers back bans for using mobiles"

So then, according to this journalist, the views of a few craven submissives aching for the firm crack of the state's whip are more important than those of the majority of drivers? To be fair, given how few Labour voters it needed last time to produce a thumping majority in Parliament, one can forgive some confusion as to whether this democracy thing involves living with the choices of a majority or a minority.

7 responses to “Is it democracy they don’t understand, or the English language?”

jameshigham

July 5, 2009

It’s one of the few bans which makes sense. Have you see people, especially young women, driving along putting on makeup and talking on the mobile? The expression ‘wide berth’ springs to mind.

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Tom Paine

July 5, 2009

Would you legislate one by one against everything bad drivers do in the hope that, when all errors are illegal, good driving will be inevitable? Law is a very bad educational tool. Why not simply charge people with careless driving and let them take responsibility for the choices that led to it? That said, my post wasn’t about whether driving and phoning should be illegal or not (too late for that). It was about the swingeingly increased penalty some think it should attract. A six months driving ban. You can’t be saying that would be reasonable, surely?!

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jmb

July 6, 2009

Yes two issues indeed.
Firstly, the use of cell phone while driving, which is actually illegal in many more countries and states than the UK. Whether they are all civilized could be argued. A list. . My preference would be that they be restricted to hands free use while driving and every phone has that capability, even my dinosaur. However, a study in Australia, where hand held cell phones are banned, found that in a one year period, some 46,000 people aged between 18 and 65 had been involved in a crash in the past year while using a mobile phone in the two states (NSW and WA). Mmm. Not working out so well, is it?
So that brings us to the second issue. The penalty for non compliance with the ban/law.
Yes, a six month ban on driving does seem extreme when it usually takes several convictions for driving while under the influence to warrant such a penalty. I would think a hefty fine might be a satisfactory solution, progressively increasing for a repeated offense.
Assuming you agree on a ban of some sort, which may well not be the Libertarian point of view in this instance, what would you propose as a penalty? You have highlighted the problem so how about giving us a solution?

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Diogenes

July 6, 2009

A law banning a common activity needs to be justifiable in all cicumstances. In my opinion, if someone is stopped by a level crossing there is no sensible reason to prevent them making a quick call while stationary. Ergo this law is poor.
There is no connection between my level crossing man and someone texting in the fast lane so assessing a scale of punishment is not particularly useful.
In a case of careless, reckless or dangerous driving, evidence of phone use is fair enough but as a crime in its own right, sorry its not good enough for my statute book.

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Moggsy

July 6, 2009

Knowing the problems lots of drivers seem to have just changing the radio channel… have you noticed how they often sort of swerve towards the side walk/pavement when they do? Well I am not sure some of them are up to working a phone and driving at the same time.
Some drivers who talk to their passengers seem to spend more time looking at the passenger than the road, that does not make me feel safe.
Still I guess you are right about the penalty being pretty harsh. A hefty fine and some points ought to be enough.
I figure you also have a good point about all the (mostly unnecessary) legislation passed since Labour came to power.

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Tom Paine

July 6, 2009

Labour’s standard trick for some years has been to take some behaviour which is already criminal and make a new offence out of it. It’s as pointless as having a new offence of “committing murder on Monday afternoons”. Obviously that’s a bad thing, but it’s already illegal!!
Good people like yourself and James are – inexplicably – taken in by this trick. You see the “criminalisation” of a bad thing and you applaud. “Driving without due care and attention” is already an offence in the UK. If there is an accident, and mobile phone use is involved, then that should obviously be part of the prosecution’s case. The punishment should then be based on the carelessness of the driving, rather than the specific behaviour. Commenters here have given other examples of dangerous behaviour while driving (putting on makeup, etc etc). Should every such behaviour have a specific offence? Do none of you care how many laws there are? Can’t you see that this puts citizens at a huge disadvantage to authority, given that even practising lawyers cannot hope to keep up with the enormous volume of legislation?
Laws work best when they are clear, simple and in line with public sentiment. Labour’s use of law as a propaganda tool is disgraceful and dangerous. It undermines respect for the law and it puts every citizen on the back foot in dealing with authority. Lest I be accused of not answering the question like a politican, I would say that – if mobile phone use while driving must be an offence in its own right then a £50 fine is quite adequate.

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Diogenes

July 7, 2009

http://gizmodo.com/5308695/question-of-the-day-do-you-text-while-driving
This is a pertinent poll with some quite scary results.

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