Nice common sense observation. GPS is a tool. Resposible use is a good
thing and improves society. Just like guns for example.
cb via iphone.
_____________________
On Aug 6, 2009, at 16:01, Robert Carroll <carrollcompu...@gmail.com>
wrote:
Constance Warner wrote:
Great essay! I'd be in favor of ticketing drivers who mount GPS
units and other such devices on their windshields, and I hope it
soon becomes similarly illegal to mount laptop support brackets
inside cars--a truly terrifying prospect.
This is another black or white debate -- meaning that either all
electronic devices such as GPS units or cell phones should be
banned, or there should be no laws regarding their use in cars.
Neither situation is helpful.
First, there has not been a recognition in this debate that using
the devices, particularly the GPS unit, improves driving safety.
Who has not been driving behind an individual who is seeking a house
or business address and weaving from side to side on the road,
especially at night, to spy a posted address? Or seen drivers make
U-turns in the road because they are lost? If they had a GPS unit,
they would drive more safely. One anecdote: my grandfather-in-law
drove from his home in Connecticut to my home. On the Capital
Beltway he became lost and confused with our written directions and
simply stopped in his lane of the Beltway during rush hour and
awaited for someone to come to his aid. Naturally a large backup
happened, but the highway patrolman who eventually came directed him
to the right exit. Had he possessed a GPS, he would have not
stopped and created a dangerous situation.
Since the GPS device is a useful tool, some safe way must be found
for it to be accommodated in a car. I would prefer that it be
mounted on the dashboard either underneath the rear-view mirror or
on the left side of the steering wheel. But most GPS units,
including mine, are intended to be mounted on the windshield and
can't be mounted on the dashboard because of its texture. I hope
that future cars will provide a place to adhere a GPS unit to the
dashboard as well as provide an electrical outlet there to avoid a
long hanging wire.
In my opinion, these units are here to stay so claiming that they
are illegal and therefore must be banned is narrow-minded. Let us
engineer better solutions, not ban all improvements.
If drivers who mount GPS units on their windshields are ticketed as
Ms. Warner recommends, very soon there will be a change in the law
which permits windshield mounting.
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