FTFA: The Sauers described their daughter as intelligent

..

Sympathy for her parents.

Teens fail to appreciate the fact that they're driving a two-ton piece of steel 70 MPH and that should require some attention, signaling, courtesy, etc.

Anybody wants to see a lulz-worthy freak out should ask a cop or an EMT in a social situation what they think about texting and driving. It's actually really funny especially if they're about 3 beers deep.

"killed after rear-ending tanker truck at 80mph while texting"

Thank God she didn't hit a smaller car/truck. I'm not saying it's good she hit anything but at least she only offed herself from what I can find in the article.

I don't feel bad for people who make bad choices and suffer the ramifications. Sorry.

0Icky0:
apparently you have never been pulled over for having a defective headlight..... especially when none of them were defective.

Pert: /been driving 20 years

Time to pull over and take a nap.

This is the precise reason I have already told my teen that when she drives, the rule is purse and phone in the trunk at all times.

ideamaster: apparently you have never been pulled over for having a defective headlight..... especially when none of them were defective.

Nope. Never have. Perhaps you should move to a more civilized country.

remotecody: The nannies are going to use the GPS in the phones to disable data and texting at higher speeds so passengers will be shut off as well.

Thanks.

This.

0Icky0:
I am open to any recommendations you have. The united states has just been down hill since all these changemongers took over.

doglover: soupbone: I'm a hell of a defensive driver BTW.



I'm going out on a limb and saying you don't often drive after 11:00 PM. Would I be right?

Why the hell would you?

Fade2black: Also very cute that the parents feel their bad parenting and bad judgement from their kid will now result in affecting us all.

Yes, texting while driving is bad. But yes, it weeds out the idiots.

Survival of the fittest.

I'm sure the publicity will have an effect.

remotecody: The nannies are going to use the GPS in the phones to disable data and texting at higher speeds so passengers will be shut off as well.

Wouldn't that disable GPS/maps functionality as well? Good luck with that one, dude.

No, the phone manufactures will let navigation and telephone function but disable other functions. It isn't hard... all it takes is some nanny state law and a dead kid as a poster child. After you get over 10mph or something, your phone will automatically go into travel mode. Only hands free phone, 911, and navigation will function.

And like I said... Passengers will be swept up in that too. People on Trains... Buses.. etc.

I'm not saying it is smart... Just that a state will do it eventually.

I sound fat: I normally would get all annoyed by these crusading parents who are trying to make everyones life change because thier daughter was too stupid to realize she was endangering her life even AFTER she realized she was endangering her life, but...

Should we even need laws for this? Common sense dictates you dont take you eyes off the road long enough to check facebook, even at 20 MPH.

/ if it were illegal, would it have stopped her from doing it?

If it's made illegal, that'll fix it. I'm sure.

Spawn_of_Cthulhu: remotecody: The nannies are going to use the GPS in the phones to disable data and texting at higher speeds so passengers will be shut off as well.

Thanks.

This.

There will be a hack for it.

Whatthefark: Texting while driving is just one more thing for a parent to worry about. I've drilled it into my kids head about texting while driving and they know I'll kick their butts if I find them doing it. It's one of my absolute rules that if broken carries a mandatory punishment. I can't control what other drivers are doing though and I see people texting behind the wheel all the time.

/This graphic PSA got my kids attention. (new window)

Awesome

Pert: Just found this elsewhere:

"Investigators weren't able to find signs that Sauer applied the brakes before her fatal crash, but, after checking cell phone records, they did discover she was posting about every 90 seconds during her drive, according to Idaho State Police Lt. Sheldon Kelley."

Link (new window)

Jesus Christ, it scares the hell out of me that there are people like this out there on the road. I had assumed that this was a one-off incident and really bad luck, but I'm afraid I've lost all sympathy for her now.

Here's a thought - we only let people ride 250cc motorbikes for the first 3 years after they pass their driving test. That ought to get them to develop some road skills, removes the temptation to text whilst on the road and will also reduce the likelihood of them killing anybody else.

/been driving 20 years

I like this better than disabling phones for everyone. The problem is, of course, that you'd end up with sixteen-year-olds on bikes getting splattered by soccer moms putting on makeup in minivans, and then you'd have parents saying, accurately, "Well, if he'd been allowed to drive a bigger vehicle, he might have survived."

bunner: belhade: These texting laws are a self-fulfilling prophecy. If I didn't have to hide my phone in my lap and could just hold it up on the steering wheel, then I could use my phone and drive at the same time. But noooo, assholes mean I have to keep looking down every five seconds, then out the window in case that's a State Trooper pulling up next t



Yes, that was a State Trooper pulling up next to me just now. Goddamit.

It has a killer app, you know. You can call people and just talk. While watching the road. All the time. Seriously.

I haven't found Fark's voice app yet...

One Bad Apple: OK airbag coming out


/Sorry

Brilliant. Apology accepted.

/at least this girl won't be driving in front of me anymore
/in a fast German car . .

buzzcut73: The Idaho State Patrol regrets to inform you that you daughter is dead because she was stupid.

Great balls of fire....

yobbery: What ever happened to common sense?

It's technology Über alles and the techiest schmo is "teh winzor!" because we actually believe that some small appliances we knocked together to make life more convenient will make us invincible, rich, smart and wipe our asses for us. "I cannot abide having no web presence just because I'm ass deep in traffic!" Vanity is a nasty little b*tch.

Because dumbasses just love to play chicken with the train and if they stick to only typing on a phone while driving through railroad crossings, that's okey dokey. However, they have NO business playing fast and loose with the safety of ANYBODY else for their amusement, deep seated need to txt their BFF or to relate some jive ass "hipster cred" coffee shop yarn about "sneaking one past the man".

I have no problem with this stance because, as far as we know, "oops" doesn't quite do the Lazarus gig and, obviously, none of this is about a "need" to get in touch with somebody while on the road. You can do that with a simple call. It's about seeing if you can get away with something stupid. The odds aren't as good as they seem.

It's Russian roulette for people who want to point the gun at you while they play.

Sgeo: We need computer-driven cars.

Lets say you're the sole owner and president of a large company, with enough money to do that. You buy out an existing auto company, you hire programmers to write the software, you do the development and testing and when it's all said and done, you have built a car that can drive itself, park itself, etc, and you're ready to sell it.

So you start selling cars.

Are you willing to bet your company and your life savings that there will *never* be a car wreck in your car? Because I guarantee, the first time someone dies in your automated car, you can count on lawyers getting involved. The family will be screaming how it's your fault that their son or daughter or mother or father or whatever got killed, and how you therefore owe them several million dollars. And it'll happen with every significant accident.

So in addition to all of the normal design, development, testing, manufacturing, distribution, and sales stuff you would have, you also have very large legal bills, even assuming you win in court.

In order to make a profit in that situation, you're going to have to sell your cars for three or four times as much as the other automakers. Are most people going to be willing to pay that much more? I don't think so.

I like the idea. I think it could actually be safer, as computers don't get distracted, they don't get sleepy, they don't get drunk, they just do their jobs. But I don't see it happening in the US, where a burglar can sue (and win) because he cut himself on the glass he broke to get into your house, and old ladies can sue and win millions because they spilled hot coffee on themselves.

FizixJunkee: But what about the innocent person(s) in the truck that she slammed into? Do they deserve to be removed from the herd?

It does sound to me like they were driving at 15-20 mph on the highway, which is a pretty stupid thing to do. If that's the case, I'm not putting them down as 100% innocent in this case.

TiiiMMMaHHH: FTA: The truck was crawling up a hill.. she wasn't on the highway. which just makes her pudgy-faced, myspace angle, duckface making self that much more intelligent.

Are you saying that since there was a hill, there was no highway? Highways aren't level, nor are they completely straight. They go up hills, down hills, and they curve around various things.

Medic Zero:
for someone that just used sarcasm, i find it ironic that you failed to recognize it.

JuggleGeek: FizixJunkee: But what about the innocent person(s) in the truck that she slammed into? Do they deserve to be removed from the herd?

It does sound to me like they were driving at 15-20 mph on the highway, which is a pretty stupid thing to do. If that's the case, I'm not putting them down as 100% innocent in this case.

TiiiMMMaHHH: FTA: The truck was crawling up a hill.. she wasn't on the highway. which just makes her pudgy-faced, myspace angle, duckface making self that much more intelligent.

Are you saying that since there was a hill, there was no highway? Highways aren't level, nor are they completely straight. They go up hills, down hills, and they curve around various things.

ummm... i realize this is fark, but that's a pretty stupid interpretation of what I meant. Momentum is the point. If a truck is 'crawling up a hill', then it's overall speed when approaching said hill was low, hence the loss of momentum, and the lowered speed. A truck of any size travelling at, say 60mph, is only going to diminish to around 35mph TOPS heading up said hill. Clearly, this was a back country road, as evidenced by her NOT being in a passing lane.

This person was driving completely insane for the conditions. Add that to the OMFGLOLJK'ing she was doing while doing 80 in presumably a 55mph zone, and you've got a darwin award. No sympathy here; just thankful it was a truck and therefore she was the only one to die. Damn, that was too much 'splainin to do.

HISTER!!

TiiiMMMaHHH: i realize this is fark, but that's a pretty stupid interpretation of what I meant.

I didn't know *how* to interpret what you were saying, which is why I asked. I still don't really see how you can assume that if the truck was going slow, it means it wasn't on a highway. To me, since the article doesn't say, there is no pure evidence either way, and an assumption that anyone driving 4 hours and obviously trying to hurry would be more likely to take a highway than back country roads.

This person was driving completely insane for the conditions.

From here "Driving and facebooking is not safe" text, it sounds like she *knew* she was being an idiot, and she did it anyway. I think we're in agreement on the lack of sympathy and being glad she didn't kill anyone else.

Well THAT took care of itself rather quickly!