Two States Take Aim at Distracted Walkers, Runners

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Hey you, with the headphones...can you hear me? HELLO!?!?! I just wanted to stop you so I could give you this $100 ticket. Can you hear me now?

After targeting drivers who paid more attention to their phone calls and text messages than the road, lawmakers in Arkansas and New York are now looking to crack down on pedestrians equally distracted by their own electronic gadgets.
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cant say id argue, see many people on bikes, walking, jogging, walking dogs who don't hear cars coming up behind them yet the driver is at fault when they get run over?

wasn't there some guy who got flattened by a train walking on tracks with an ipod on?

makes sense, however 100$ is silly, but start handing out 1 hour community service just for the inconvenience. i don't know how they will force you pay the fine, not like the can hold your drivers lisc hostage like driving related fines
 
A law against pedestrians who wear headphones....
...
..
.

Totally not a waste of time and tax money. :confused:
 
While you are at it, lets fine the def, hard of hearing and the blind, oh and lets ban ball playing not in an sufficiently enclosed area and no wheeled vehicles for kinds under the age of 18.

This is just absurd and a chance to find revenue through tickets. I am not doubting people need to pay attention but I don't think there is anything wrong with what was outlined in the article in the article. If anything you need a public safety campaign and possibly higher fines and notices of said fines for accidents resulting from MISUSE of those devices.

Even though its more rare, what about people walking while reading a book, note, or map?
 
Next we should fine people wearing loud clothing as it is distracting to others.

Next, a fine for being ugly in public as it is distracting and brings down property values.

Next a fine for being too pretty in public, it is distracting and detrimental to others' self esteem.

Then, you shouldn't even have a phone in your pocket. The vibrate could cause you to start and jump into traffic or trip and fall. Police will be given the right to randomly stick their hands into peoples pockets. Hot women start to complain about profiling.

Eventually blinders are mandated, as peripheal vision is distracting and lowers productivity while the citizenry should be busy paying taxes as the banks probably made some more bad bets (and the world WILL END if the banks don't get their trillions!).

Hormone suppressors will finally be given, because all of that libido is further causing people to do stupid crap.

If I walk into a damn tree or a fountain that's my bad. $100 fine is just a blatant grab for money. And community service?! Have we gone mad?! I think I'd probably most identify with the label of "progressive" but this kind of thing is insanity.
 
bigstusexy said:
While you are at it, lets fine the deaf, hard of hearing and the blind,?
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thinking the same thing,

lets start fining folks in wheelchairs for riding on the sidewalks..

pretty much a big waste of time and money trying to pass any law like this in NYC
 
If any accident resulting in miss use of these devices it should fall under WHO was miss using them to place fault under. For instance if a drive hits a person who decides to run in the middle of the street for lack of situation awareness due to listening to music which is too loud should not be able to sue or file for liability.
 
Trimlock said:
If any accident resulting in miss use of these devices it should fall under WHO was miss using them to place fault under. For instance if a drive hits a person who decides to run in the middle of the street for lack of situation awareness due to listening to music which is too loud should not be able to sue or file for liability.
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+1
If you want to be stupid, it shouldn't be my obligation or the governments to protect you from your own actions. It's not like someone walking down the street with headphones is a danger to others, it's mainly a danger to themselves. Just like standing on the top rung of a step ladder, where it says "do not stand on or above this step". If you do, then fall and injure yourself, it's YOUR fault.


Anything else is just another government money grab.
 
I was about to say "don't they have a $10B deficit to work on, rather than a stupid fringe issue like this?" ... until I realized that this is one way to increase their revenue and close the budget gap.

Still. They're idiots. I've got health insurance. If I go running with my ipod and get hit by a car because I'm not paying attention, it'll be my insurance that pays for the bills, and I should be liable for any damage I do to the car.

Whatever happened to personal responsibility?
 
If you aren't paying attention and get hit by a car, that's you own damn fault. Your injuries or death should be punishment enough.
 
Mohonri said:
I was about to say "don't they have a $10B deficit to work on, rather than a stupid fringe issue like this?" ... until I realized that this is one way to increase their revenue and close the budget gap.
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That's all there is to it. Making money off of stupidity. It works. Easy money.
 
Mohonri said:
Still. They're idiots. I've got health insurance. If I go running with my ipod and get hit by a car because I'm not paying attention, it'll be my insurance that pays for the bills, and I should be liable for any damage I do to the car.

Whatever happened to personal responsibility?
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Do you even know what "insurance" is? How the fuck is insurance paying your medical bills being "personally responsible"? Personal responsibility would mean paying out of your own pocket for those bills. Do you think everyone else who's insured by your provider should have to suffer rate increases because of your cavalier attitude about personal safety?
 
Anyone who gets run down from being unaware of their surroundings and survives should be shot.

It's called natural selection and our damn society has broken it.
 
Putz said:
cant say id argue, see many people on bikes, walking, jogging, walking dogs who don't hear cars coming up behind them yet the driver is at fault when they get run over?
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For walkers and runners there should be no cars coming up behind them, because they should be on the left side of the road, and cars on the right. Not everyone follows this guideline of course, but it exists for a reason.

If you are out in the middle of the road without looking for cars, then that's just plain stupidity. It has nothing to do with headphones. 3-year-olds are taught to 'look both ways', so I think "mature" adults should be able to handle it.

Now biking through a busy city with headphones on, I agree is just being reckless. The speeds involved are so much greater, and they share the same side of the road. Biking on a trail in a public park though, I don't really see a problem with headphones. The only thing that could possibly be coming up behind you would be another bike, and they are virtually silent anyway.
 
Yeah I imagine somewhere there is a paradise where they shroud their womens sinfully distracting bodies out of concern for public safety.
 
Hamish Campbell said:
Do you even know what "insurance" is? How the fuck is insurance paying your medical bills being "personally responsible"? Personal responsibility would mean paying out of your own pocket for those bills. Do you think everyone else who's insured by your provider should have to suffer rate increases because of your cavalier attitude about personal safety?
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Eh, I've paid a couple hundred a month plus for many years for health insurance I've never used and I'll be damned if my insurance doesn't pay my medical bills when it becomes necessary. I didn't give them a couple hundred thousands just so they can buy yachts and private planes.
 
Attempting to de-mp3-player the running crowd will start a holy war of epic proportions! (And yes I did run 11 miles this morning, without any music!) And the runners won't let it go down without taking the bicycle creeps with them.

States are broke and looking for easy $$$.
 
Azhar said:
Eh, I've paid a couple hundred a month plus for many years for health insurance I've never used and I'll be damned if my insurance doesn't pay my medical bills when it becomes necessary. I didn't give them a couple hundred thousands just so they can buy yachts and private planes.
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Insurance is a scam!
 
Hamish Campbell said:
Do you even know what "insurance" is? How the fuck is insurance paying your medical bills being "personally responsible"? Personal responsibility would mean paying out of your own pocket for those bills. Do you think everyone else who's insured by your provider should have to suffer rate increases because of your cavalier attitude about personal safety?
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Lol wut? Thats what an insurance is. And if you don't agree with it, then you better stop using it. Jeeeeeez, such a ridiculous statement, when you are both paying for that service.
 
good god this is fucking retarded. This is just a way for a city to make money by giving out more useless tickets (akin to parking tickets). You want to make a statement, make it no fault of a driver who hits a "distracted" walker, but not one who's doing something, hell I know I often day dream while walking, is that ticket worthy if I'm not using any sort of electronic device.
 
Instead of this they should only fine people who die as a result.

Anyone remember when America used to stand for freedom?
 
Arkansas and New York on the same page on anything is highly suspect.
 
Oh yes government, please, please, please save me from myself. Oh thank you government.
 
When they figure out it won't work well, they'll just levy a new $100 mp3 player tax ... to go along with your shiny new bicycle license plate ... ;-)
 
I run with headphones on, and every time I give the finger to someone running the stop signs they then yell take your headphones out. As if I can't hear them. First let's stop people from rolling through stop signs and stop lights. Most people I see with headphones on are also running on the sidewalks or very aware of their surroundings.
 
travanx said:
I run with headphones on, and every time I give the finger to someone running the stop signs they then yell take your headphones out. As if I can't hear them. First let's stop people from rolling through stop signs and stop lights. Most people I see with headphones on are also running on the sidewalks or very aware of their surroundings.
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Amazed one of those drivers hasn't gotten out of their cars and attempted to flatten you. This is regardless of who was at fault, btw. Sorry, that statement makes you look like an ass.

Seems many people just act, and have nothing in mind of the consequences behind their actions.

Granted, perhaps it's not a popular idea to legislate common sense and decency; However, something has to be done, because the new American credo, and way of life has really, apparently, turned into this:

"I DO WHAT I WANT."

Oft-times, followed by,

"WHEN. I. WANT."

My beef is bikers in downtown streets...So many of them will go down the middle of one-way streets, INTO traffic. Or they'll will swerve and cut other drivers off in traffic. Lay on the horn at them? They flip the bird. Seen more than a couple of cases here in Chicago where the driver of a big SUV goes and hits them, and backs over them a couple of times in a fit of road rage. Was this right in the least? Most absolutely not.

Have seen many behaviors that might explain why something like that would happen though.
 
We already get punished if we run into the road without looking because of music. We get hit by a fucking car.
 
If you get hit because you were too stupid to pay attention to your surroundings, you deserve it. It's called survival of the fittest.
 
The New York proposal doesn't seem too unfair. If you walk across the street or ride your bike on the street, they want you to get your head out of your gadget and pay attention. Sounds like you'd still be fine on the sidewalk though.

The Arkansas one is just stupid though to even prohibit the use of gadgets on a sidewalk near a street. Too far guys.

Don't think either law is needed, but the New York one I could live with.
 
Great. Let's ticket everyone who's used a Walkman for the last three decades.
 
Increase military spending

Increase taxation, mandatory minimum setences, ticketing and what is defined as illegal activity

win each election, four more years!
 
travanx said:
I run with headphones on, and every time I give the finger to someone running the stop signs they then yell take your headphones out. As if I can't hear them. First let's stop people from rolling through stop signs and stop lights. Most people I see with headphones on are also running on the sidewalks or very aware of their surroundings.
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I do the same here in DC. Drivers suck, big time. They run all sorts of lights, and have nervous break downs when people are using the cross walks. Pedestrians have the right of way, period. If I've got a walk sign I'm going, your ass has to sit.

People think having a car gives you the right to break the law. It doesn't, you get the bird and if you get pissy I'm calling the cops with your plates and telling them you are running lights downtown in major crosswalks.
 
sd11 said:
I do the same here in DC. Drivers suck, big time. They run all sorts of lights, and have nervous break downs when people are using the cross walks. Pedestrians have the right of way, period. If I've got a walk sign I'm going, your ass has to sit.

People think having a car gives you the right to break the law. It doesn't, you get the bird and if you get pissy I'm calling the cops with your plates and telling them you are running lights downtown in major crosswalks.
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BS. Cars have the right of way. Physically, not legally.

If it comes down to it, and you "do battle" with a pickup truck moving along at 30 MPH, I can guarantee you that every single time the truck will "win". Yeah, you might have the legal right of way, but does that really matter when you are a gimp the rest of your life because of your principles?

Personally, I don't want to become a cripple. So I treat the vehicles as having the right of way. Consider the average people you meet every day. They're dumb as rocks. No way am I going to chance my ability to walk on their mental aptitude. This is one of the few battles I'm willing to cede for my greater benefit.
 
I think they should pass a law that lets you collect $100 for each one you see with bother ears in use of electronic device and RUN OVER!
And $500 for those knocked off the road while driving and talking on the phone without using hands free device in their vehicle. HEY JIMMY....Lets make a BIG old bumper for the Pickup truck!!!! :p :D

Fucking Idiot Liberals.
 
LOL @ "earphone police".

Why would it be illegal to use headphones while crossing at a crosswalk where you have the WALK sign? That would be asinine.
 
Hamish Campbell said:
Do you even know what "insurance" is? How the fuck is insurance paying your medical bills being "personally responsible"? Personal responsibility would mean paying out of your own pocket for those bills. Do you think everyone else who's insured by your provider should have to suffer rate increases because of your cavalier attitude about personal safety?
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You're dead wrong. I take personal responsibility by purchasing health insurance coverage. I do so in order that when a large, unexpected medical bill comes along, I don't have to go into bankruptcy. I am taking steps to mitigate risks to my future financial situation. How is that not personal responsibility?

Your post explains a whole lot about your positions on Obamacare.
 
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