Well, okay, we don't need a think tank to tell us bad behavior is on the rise, but an organization called http://www.negligentdriving.com has rated the REASONS that we're having more vehicle fatalities, as well as the equivalent Blood Alcohol Content, based, so they say, on relative crash risk. Big picture? According to them, drunk driving is on the decline, and has been for at least the last ten years or so. What causes more accidents is people dialing cell phones, reading, or reaching for a moving object. For example, attempting to dial a cell phone, they say, is equivalent to you having a BAC of .08%, which qualifies as drunk driving in most states. Reading while driving? That they equate to a .09% BAC, and bigger than even those, moderate to severe drowsiness equates to a .11% BAC. I gotta tell ya, as much as I have ever kown about the effects of driving when you're sleepy, I really don't figure I would have equated it to that. The one on the list (in the latest Newsweek, BTW,) I have real trouble with is reaching for a moving object, which they equate to a .12% BAC. I don't doubt that the relative crash risk is that high, but the fact is in a lot of THOSE instances, the moving object is something that has been chucked by a toddler who was giggling momentarily, until they realized they couldn't get it back right away and is now crying. So now mom is reaching around, attempting to pacify a child who in all likelihood at this point is screaming to the point where he/she is red-faced and risking becoming hoarse. (well, maybe not, but *I'd* be hoarse trying to scream as loud and long as some of the children I have ever come in contact with,)
The list, of course, says nothing about really stupid stuff like attempting to dress, apply make-up or shave while driving. Perhaps they figured anyone guilty of those sorts of heinous transgressions of attention deserved whatever fate befell them. And don't tell me about Bluetooth, or driving wearing a hands-free setup; the fact remains according to other statistics that just talking on the phone while driving takes away from the focus you should be devoting 100% to driving. You see where I'm going with this; the ADHD guy is telling you to focus. Which might indeed be the pot calling the kettle black, but I haven't had any serious collisions lately, either. Risk can tend to be really, really expensive, overall, so I guess I have only to say this; do what you have to do in life, but always remember that taking unnecessary risks will probably cost you more somehow. Never figured on hearing myself say THAT.