Reason #968 That You Know The Texas Legislature is Nuts
Get this —
Republicans in the Senate appear to have blocked a measure to outlaw texting while driving, saying the law would be unenforceable and infringes on personal liberties.
Yeah, but transvaginal ultrasounds don’t.
That just how we roll in Texas.
How about the seat belt law, speed limits, mandatory insurance, mandatory car seats for babies, state required auto inspections? Liberty! Dammit! We need us some more liberty!
i hate required vehicle inspections. why can’t we be like many other states with random inspections?
1Personal liberties should be infringed when the person is in charge of a fast-moving vehicle capable of killing someone. That is known as “personal responsibility.” No wonder Texas leges don’t get it.
2Nothing says “Freedumb” like a neighbor who doesn’t believe in fences. Ya hear me, Cliven? ‘Cause if you don’t, please come on over to MY 2nd Amendment barbecue featuring your moocher cattle.
Texting and driving, another problem with a 2nd Amendment solution. Amirite, Texas Lege? Freedumb! Freedumb!! Freedumb!!!
3Ain’t Texas the place where weapons are allowed in the capitol but feminine hygiene products,which could be used as missiles,aren’t?
4“the law … infringes on personal liberties.” Cause Freedom, y’know!
5LynnN, since personal liberties aren’t infringed when the person is in charge of a deadly weapon capable of killing someone, then texting while driving is just… well, it’s not more random…. it’s not less deadly…. Okay, I don’t really know what the difference is. Texting while shooting… Shooting while driving….
I’m sorry, I’ve lost control of the sound. And the Texas Lege have lost control of their minds, but they’ll hardly be missed.
6https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/236x/67/e9/e1/67e9e17d6d6fff5d2e29e69f27060dc8.jpg
7It is useless trying to explain anything to these zombies. Next up on the schedule: allowing open carry for the dead.
8I would like the personal power to remove all Rs from office at all levels. That would be liberating for me.
9Corinne, I think we need some Rs in office, if only as a moderating influence. My husband and I decided that we shouldn’t both be deeply into the same hobby or fandom at the same time, so there would be someone to stand back and say, “You want to spend how much on what, now?” We need Rs for the same reason, and the Rs need the Ds.
But those Rs have to be SANE. Good luck finding any in office who are. It’s like nice Nazis– the top of the heap is corrupt.
10epo, good one 🙂
11It’s time for all Texas legislators to have rectal ultrasounds. You know, to find their heads.
12“I’ll Give Up My iPhone When They Pry It From My Cold Dead fingers”, Unknown Texas Legislator.
13Lunacy, dammit! We need us some more Lunacy! That’s just how we roll in Texas.
14Eh. Vaginal ultrasounds only affect women, not, you know, actual people. Men may text while driving, and we can’t prohibit that, because it might inconvenience them. Go, Texas, champions of Freedumb!
15I’ve been writing for a while now about how we punish people who injure and/or kill others who carelessly handle motor vehicles, but not those who carelessly handle firearms. I never dreamed that legislators would say: “Darn it, he’s got a point – let’s legalize careless driving!”
16OK
The auto insurance providers AUTOMATICALLY get access to the driver’s cell phone records following an accident. If any text usage then no payout on insurance claims for repair/replace of driver’s vehicle. AND if injury/death incurred to others, the information is AUTOMATICALLY forwarded to police.
‘Cause business!
17Are they just trying to reduce the population and think they are immune to reckless behavior???
18RepubAnon, you need a license to operate a motor vehicle; you’re supposed to have shown that you know how to handle it safely and responsibly, so there’s a punishment if you do it wrong. No such license for firearms, so anything goes!
19The larger problem – of which texting is just part – is distracted driving. Unfortunately, legislatures in Texas and other states are trying to take simplistic approaches to a complex and rapidly evolving problem. Are car phones, even hands-free, any less of an overall accident risk than texting, whether visual or with speech services such as Apple’s SIRI? What about onboard navigation, or even looking at a map? What about infotainment systems? In our high-stimulus 24/7 digital environment, many people have begun to regard the mere acts of steering a vehicle and the situational awareness of looking out the window as inadequate to keeping them mentally occupied. The distraction issue isn’t getting any better, and now we see research into driverless vehicle systems as one attempt to address it. So far, state laws are nothing more than blind attempts to pin the tail on the donkey.
20Yep, Umpty Dump, distracted driving. I think driving with a car full of small children is more dangerous than driving while talking on the phone. Voice of experience. But texting? No way.
21Yes and I see folks eating breakfast and shaving (!) or putting on makeup (!!) while driving ALL the TIME! I’d poke myself in the eye with the mascara wand for sure, and thank someone, I’m not shaving my face yet, those folks were menfolks! No laws against any of that!
22Marge, seven words that children learn almost instantly to ignore: “Kids! Don’t make me stop this car!”
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