[Borodog]

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Re: Question two. A study done at Harvard found that the use of cell phones while driving increases productivity by 42 billion dollars a year; however, using cell phones while driving also results in the loss of 42 billion dollars a year as the result of death, injury, and property damage. Therefore, using cell phones while driving should not be a concern since it's not "worth it" to change the behavior.

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Surely this a great arguement for legislating for hands free sets to be compulsory in cars. You get all the benefits and non of the downs.

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As an aside, this is the kind of thinking that leads to so many crappy laws.

This is actually not the case at all; "common sense" is completely wrong here. It is NOT the fact that you are holding a cell phone with one hand that makes it distracting, it is the fact that you are having a conversation at all. Hands free sets make no statistically measurable difference. The frequency of distracted driving accidents caused by cell phone use is way down on the list behind (in no particular order, since I don't remember it) eating while driving, having a conversation with passengers in the car while driving, playing with the car radio or other controls while driving, distractors outside of the car (e.g. a hot girl walking down the street), and at least one other I can't recall (possibly grooming while driving).

I'm too lazy to dig up the link; it was a study by UNC researchers within the past 5 or 6 years.

If you really want to reduce injuries and deaths due to driving, mandate one of two things: helmets and 5-point harnesses for everyone in the car, or a big rear-facing spike attached to the center of the steering wheel. People would drive very carefully indeed in the latter case.

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