Teenagers text. It’s as natural to them as eating, drinking, and thinking about sex.
In fact, they text while they eat, drink, and (yes) have sex.
They also text while they drive.
So do their parents.
But at least a group of teenagers is trying to do something about it.
Zach Slater — a Staples senior who serves on the Yale-New Haven Hospital youth board — brought the “Txtng Klls” (“texting kills,” for those of you > 18) movement to his high school.
Sponsored by Allstate, it asks teenagers to take pledge not to text while driving.
They back up their pledge with a thumbprint. It’s a natural: Thumbs are the primary texting digit.
At Staples earlier this week, the Teen Awareness Group got several hundred students to pledge with their thumbs. In return, they received thumb rings saying “Txting Klls” — hopefully, a vivid reminder whenever they text.
Blue thumbprints on the poster -- and a thumb ring on the "thumb."
TAG also distributed surveys — asking students about their texting habits, as drivers and passengers — to help Zach with a research project.
A couple of hundred students responded. Results are being tabulated.
Thumbs-up to Zach and TAG for tackling this important issue.
what a FABULOUS undertaking…KUDOS to zach!!!
Cool Idea
This recent WestportNow.com piece and the accompanying comments demonstrate exactly how important this issue has become for all of us.
http://www.westportnow.com/index.php?/v2/comments/30266/
I am so pleased that there actually are a lot of very responsible young people around here. Thanks.
Why would anyone need http://www.westport.now to compliment, ratify and/or amend what is written here? This is it! The pulse of Westport.
It’s http://www.westportnow.com, I believe.
Having been banned from Westport Now for having the nerve to put links to a Westport Patch posting in a comment on WN, very happy to see that Dan understands the importance of links to complementary sites.
Indeed, kudos to Zach and TAG. Insurance statistics show that your chance of having an accident increase by 40% if you are on the cell phone and/or texting while driving. Unfortunately, it has become the culturiological norm to text, cell call at all possible opportunities. It seems like an addiction to me. Perhaps they should include the parents in their pledge?
Good work, Zack and TAG. Now, if someone would start thumb-printing parents!
Yes! Parents are worse than kids.
(1) http://mashable.com/2010/06/18/texting-while-driving-stats/
(2) http://www.technobuffalo.com/blog/mobile-devices/its-not-just-kids-texting-while-driving/
@The Dude
The online newspaper sometimes complements (rarely compliments) 06880 and vice versa. Additionally ratification and/or or amendment is rarely necessary in such references.
@Hush
Amen to your plea to the supposed adults of Our Town relative to mobilemania phone habits. They actually present a far more serious problem. Unfortunately they are far less likely to accept anything said to them by others than their children. A pathetic lot these self-important, entitlement obsessed, $75k+ SUV driving, bottled water swigging, double parking, McMansion dwelling, helicopter parents.
When will they ever learn?
Agreed, justfine. You sound like Jeffxs and his MSM’s. But such practices have become a culturiological part of our lifestyles, especially here in Westport. Hard to legislate and change. Much like Prohibition. FYI: I own a Vovlo stationwagon, use a Brita, live in a 70’s split level and do not hover except over 10 dollar Nassau putts.
Has anyone noticed how many more car crashes there are lately – just look at – westportnow.com – does anyone think it it might be due to texting or cell phone use?
The car manufacturers have installed every possible device to distract drivers from the road and run up prices on their automobiles. We sit idly by and pleasure ourselves with these bells and whistles. The text and cell phone
devices are just an extension of this ploy by Corporate America to take our money and then keep our addictions satisfied. I did note (with glee!!) that Westport’s finest was out in force on North Avenue today (10/18) to catch speeders and cell phone violators. And did they have a field day!!
Dude: You have a choice; you need not buy the devices. You need not be distracted. GM is not forcing you to buy anything; on the other hand Uncle Sam is.
I don’t think the government is making you buy DVD players for both the front and back of your SUV. Instead, they are making you buy airbags that might just save your life. My point is that we are puppets for Corporate America and don’t even know it. We are too caught up, like school kids, on who has the latest toy for our automobiles and consequently, we must have it.
Please, you can’t believe that Galbraith “Affluent Society” twaddle. If you have even a room temperature IQ, you should not be a puppet. Unlike Geraldine, the devil does not make you do it. The government is forcing me to buy many things beyond safety devices for cars; corporate America is not and cannot.
75 would be close to some IQ’s when it comes to cars. To reiterate, we are not even aware that we are being screwed i.e. no mortgage payment until year two of the note?? Hello. Then it takes Uncle Sammy to slap some hands to make them stop. Your conception of freedom of will is naive. We are consumer robots with no earthly idea of why we need half this crap that pollutes our lives.
If you don’t read the mortgage document, whose fault is that? A fool and his money are soon parted. BTW Uncle Sammy demanded (CRA) that the sheeple be fleeced.
Jeffxs: You assume that every one is as smart as you. Many can’t even read the documentation at closing which comes back to education . . . a very sore point with me. Yes, you are correct that the government, with the pointed direction of our leaders dating back to Bubba to W, wanted everyone to have a house in America. Truth being that more rent here than have a mortgage. Fannie and Freddie followed their lead, looking the other way or actually participating in the debacle we are experiencing today. I still like Barney though.