Wednesday, October 07, 2009

Quote of the Day

Toledo City Council would be wise to remember this quote as they consider another law to prevent behavior they don't like.

"We lay it down as a fundamental, that laws, to be just, must give a reciprocation of right; that, without this, they are mere arbitrary rules of conduct, founded in force, and not in conscience." --Thomas Jefferson

We don't need a law to prohibit texting while driving because we already have a law to cover that when it is a problem - it's called distracted driving and it's already illegal. Yet, despite already having a law, people still do it.

This new law won't prevent texting while driving any more than speed limits prevent speeding. And it leads to the question of whether the city is going to try to create a law for everything that could distract a driver (like putting on makeup, eating, having a dog in their laps, shaving, fiddling with the radio/cd player, etc...) or just rely upon the law already in place that clearly imposes a penalty for not paying attention while driving.

1 comment:

Roman said...

How about a law that could be a bonanza for attorneys?

Repeal all traffic laws and pass one new one: "Do not do anything stupid."

This would clog the legal system with cases trying to figure what is stupid, but would provide full employment for the legal profession.

The council/mayor wants to point to some legislation and say "I was trying to save lives."

It is too bad that common sense is not common!

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