Cell phones

[onimity]

Oakleaf, I could not agree more.

So many of the drivers that put me in danger on a daily basis do not even seem to know that they are doing so because they are so focused on their conversations. I regularly have people pull out in front of me that are chatting away and never even look in my direction. And if you asked these people if they were distracted they'd probably say 'of course not' because they didn't even see the bicycle they almost hit.

I mean no personal criticism of anyone here, but I think it is sad that our culture is such that our only time to connect with the people we love or the people we need to communicate with is when we're hurdling ourselves down the road at absurd speeds, when we're engaged in our most dangerous activity of the day. Our lives are so complicated that we must do everything at once and in doing so we give everything a fraction of the attention it deserves. I just don't understand it.

Anne

[Blueberry]

I mean no personal criticism of anyone here, but I think it is sad that our culture is such that our only time to connect with the people we love or the people we need to communicate with is when we're hurdling ourselves down the road at absurd speeds, when we're engaged in our most dangerous activity of the day. Our lives are so complicated that we must do everything at once and in doing so we give everything a fraction of the attention it deserves. I just don't understand it.

Not to thread drift too much (as if we haven't already ), but I couldn't agree more with this. I've been trying for more than a year to find a different job with less stress, fewer hours and more time to spend with those I love and do the things I want to do. But, I still have to pay the bills, so I have to keep this one until I can find something else. There seems to have been a major cultural shift away from quality of life. Our upper firm management just suggested that the partners would really appreciate it if the associates worked through Thanksgiving and Christmas so that they would have larger bonuses. And implied that those who don't will not be thought well of. Nope, I'm not going to - but who knows if I will have a job in January.

[Mr. Bloom]

There seems to have been a major cultural shift away from quality of life.

I agree here - it's a "more, better, faster, with less" world. Economics calls this "improved productivity". "Improved Productivity" results in lower prices. This is a reality, so it means we have to be more productive in the time we have to maintain a quality of life outside work.

However, I'm sorry to say that we're not willing to pay the price to make it otherwise...are you willing to have higher prices for everything you buy to justify lower productivity...some are, but most would say probably not.

I, for one, need the time that I spend in the car to get things done by phone. Neither my life nor my work stops because I'm in the car...and I do not feel that the world is less safe as a result...

Our upper firm management just suggested that the partners would really appreciate it if the associates worked through Thanksgiving and Christmas so that they would have larger bonuses. And implied that those who don't will not be thought well of.

I really hope they said that as a joke I believe in productivity...but this is productivity motivated out of greed...and I'm sorry you're challenged by that environment...

[Blueberry]

I really hope they said that as a joke I believe in productivity...but this is productivity motivated out of greed...and I'm sorry you're challenged by that environment...

Sadly, I'm *sure* it wasn't. One of the many reasons my eyes are wide open, and I've been in touch with the south seas....

CA

[Zen]

...and I do not feel that the world is less safe as a result...

That's frightening that someone as intelligent as you truly believes that..
numerous studies cited here
Reminds me of the anecdote of last words being " I wish I had spent more time at the office"

[Mr. Bloom]

That's frightening that someone as intelligent as you truly believes that..

From the first study:

"The study found that when 18- to 25-year-olds were placed in a driving simulator and talked on a cellular phone, they reacted to brake lights from a car in front of them as slowly as 65- to 74-year-olds who were not using a cell phone."

Well, there you go...I'm 45

But, sincerely, I understand your perspective...but this very example is in a controlled, simulated study where the driver is forced to be on the cell phone in simulated conditions. In other words, it places them in a risk situation regardless of whether they would typically operate in those conditions outside the study.

Thanks for acknowledging that I'm intelligent...but because I'm intelligent, I wouldn't be on the phone in difficult or high traffic conditions where I feel pressed. Silver will attest that in really high traffic conditions I either ask the kids or her for silence if I really need to concentrate...it doesn't happen often, but I know when I need to concentrate...

In addition, it's counter-intuitive, but I recall there being bona-fide studies out there that also "prove" that men driving with radar detectors have fewer accidents...Soooo... I just don't buy the "studies" because someone has done them...I only know how I feel about my abilities and limitations...

BTW - I LOVE Click and Clack!

[OakLeaf]

Just try the experiment I posted above. *Then* tell me talking on the phones don't give you tunnel vision.

I admit that, like you, I am one of the 80% of drivers who considers myself an above average driver. But I've done that experiment, I *can* see with my whole eyes when I'm not talking on the phone, and I *don't* talk while driving any more.

And if you consider "someone putting brake lights on in front of you" to be an exceptionally high risk situation, I've got nothing to add.

[onimity]

Exactly, OakLeaf, I think the problem is not so much that people are engaging in behavior that they know is dangerous as it is that we all over-estimate our abilities to do more than one thing well at a time. Like I said, the majority of drivers on cellphones that fail to yield to me on my bike don't even seem to *notice* that I'm there. So I think it's easy to be oblivious to the danger until you actually hurt someone or cause an accident.

A lot of people will tell you that they are absolutely ok to drive safely after a drink or two too.

CA in NC, your employer sounds like a few I have encountered. I worked in the tech industry over the boom years when the rage was to bring in food, games, even beer (!) too keep people at work. It seemed like a nice bonus until you realized that the point was to chain you to your desk. It just isn't worth it. A bigger paycheck is rarely so much bigger as to compensate for lost time, enjoying your family and the like. I hope everything works out well for you, and mostly that you soon find an employer that is closer and knows that a balanced life leads to a happier and more productive employee.

Anne