Thursday, March 13, 2008
Thank goodness the primary election is finished
I am so glad the primary election is over. The last Sunday I came home in the afternoon and found that we had six voice mail messages on our land line. I checked them and found that one was from me to Chris (my wife) and the other five were from candidates, their representatives or their mothers.
I resolved not to vote for any of them. I didn't.
I also take a dim view of candidates who cover lawns with their political signs. It is wasteful. I write them off.
I find the political bumper sticker crowd the most amusing. There you have your nice shinny car with your favorite political candidate flavor of the month and he/she is going to be stuck there for some time to come.
Hanging your allegiance on your bumper is like wearing it on your sleeve. It is out there for all to see. That might be great for a while. But I'm sure there is more than one political junkie out there who would like to take a razor blade to their bumper.
How do I link this to a column on the Web and technology? The other day I ran into a blog called the "Google Maps Mania Blog" which has on it a list of "100 Things to do with Google Maps Mashups."
One of the hundreds ways suggested to use Google Maps was to map 2008 presidential campaign contributions. The link takes you to the Political Base Web site. Address: www. politicalbase. com.
You can check on donations total for cities and down to communities where individual donations are noted on a Google Map.
I've established an area under the information area on the stardem.com Web site where I'll list interesting links. The 100 ways site and specifically the donation site are there now. If you find an interesting site, send it to me and I'll consider it for inclusion.
If you browse the paper on a regular basis, you'll find that we publish a weekly Bill Board story listing the interesting bills up for hearing in the coming week. I suggest you seek it out. You might find something that will directly affect you.
One leaped out at me last week as I posted it to the paper. The entry read as follows:
HB380: "Motor Vehicles-Use of Text Messaging Device While Driving-Prohibition" Prohibiting a person from using a text messaging device to write, send or read a text message while operating a motor vehicle. (Environmental Matters)
This is a well-intended effort to get people to do what should be obvious. There are complaints about people talking on cell phones while driving. It is considered a distraction when you dial or answer a phone. So hands-free and voice activated systems have been developed.
There are also complaints about the act of talking on a cell phone itself. That the very act of conducting a conversation is a distraction. I've written about instances when people have pulled out in front of me while they were chatting on a phone and obviously not paying attention to traffic.
Luckily these cases have only resulted in sharp braking and gnashing of teeth. A gesture is of no good since the perpetrator is oblivious to the danger they posed and often just keeps on blithely driving.
Others respond that talking on a phone is no more distracting than chatting with a passenger in the car. There is one difference. A car passenger should also be aware of the driver's traffic circumstances and hopefully would shut up if a hazard arose. The other party on a cell phone has no clue what is going on unless the driver says something.
Texting on a cell phone takes using the device to a whole new level. Unless your keypad is setup in Braille, you have got to look down at it to create even the most cryptic of messages. The same is true of deciphering a cryptic message sent to you.
Despite the obvious hazard involved, I'm sure there are few cell users who have not ever texted or read a text message while driving. I'm guilty. I personally feel that knowing there is a law against it will compel me not to attempt even the rare text effort. I know I should stop before composing a message. A law would help me make that decision.
I don't think I am alone in that assessment.
I return to the fact that it is well-intended legislation. I wonder how it could be enforced. Such activity is usually done below eye level (in the lap). How can somebody driving by realize what is going on?
Any thoughts?
As always, you can reach me at rpolkchespub.com.
I resolved not to vote for any of them. I didn't.
I also take a dim view of candidates who cover lawns with their political signs. It is wasteful. I write them off.
I find the political bumper sticker crowd the most amusing. There you have your nice shinny car with your favorite political candidate flavor of the month and he/she is going to be stuck there for some time to come.
Hanging your allegiance on your bumper is like wearing it on your sleeve. It is out there for all to see. That might be great for a while. But I'm sure there is more than one political junkie out there who would like to take a razor blade to their bumper.
How do I link this to a column on the Web and technology? The other day I ran into a blog called the "Google Maps Mania Blog" which has on it a list of "100 Things to do with Google Maps Mashups."
One of the hundreds ways suggested to use Google Maps was to map 2008 presidential campaign contributions. The link takes you to the Political Base Web site. Address: www. politicalbase. com.
You can check on donations total for cities and down to communities where individual donations are noted on a Google Map.
I've established an area under the information area on the stardem.com Web site where I'll list interesting links. The 100 ways site and specifically the donation site are there now. If you find an interesting site, send it to me and I'll consider it for inclusion.
If you browse the paper on a regular basis, you'll find that we publish a weekly Bill Board story listing the interesting bills up for hearing in the coming week. I suggest you seek it out. You might find something that will directly affect you.
One leaped out at me last week as I posted it to the paper. The entry read as follows:
HB380: "Motor Vehicles-Use of Text Messaging Device While Driving-Prohibition" Prohibiting a person from using a text messaging device to write, send or read a text message while operating a motor vehicle. (Environmental Matters)
This is a well-intended effort to get people to do what should be obvious. There are complaints about people talking on cell phones while driving. It is considered a distraction when you dial or answer a phone. So hands-free and voice activated systems have been developed.
There are also complaints about the act of talking on a cell phone itself. That the very act of conducting a conversation is a distraction. I've written about instances when people have pulled out in front of me while they were chatting on a phone and obviously not paying attention to traffic.
Luckily these cases have only resulted in sharp braking and gnashing of teeth. A gesture is of no good since the perpetrator is oblivious to the danger they posed and often just keeps on blithely driving.
Others respond that talking on a phone is no more distracting than chatting with a passenger in the car. There is one difference. A car passenger should also be aware of the driver's traffic circumstances and hopefully would shut up if a hazard arose. The other party on a cell phone has no clue what is going on unless the driver says something.
Texting on a cell phone takes using the device to a whole new level. Unless your keypad is setup in Braille, you have got to look down at it to create even the most cryptic of messages. The same is true of deciphering a cryptic message sent to you.
Despite the obvious hazard involved, I'm sure there are few cell users who have not ever texted or read a text message while driving. I'm guilty. I personally feel that knowing there is a law against it will compel me not to attempt even the rare text effort. I know I should stop before composing a message. A law would help me make that decision.
I don't think I am alone in that assessment.
I return to the fact that it is well-intended legislation. I wonder how it could be enforced. Such activity is usually done below eye level (in the lap). How can somebody driving by realize what is going on?
Any thoughts?
As always, you can reach me at rpolkchespub.com.
# posted by Richard Polk @ 10:35 AM 
