In 2008, 6,000 people were killed and more than half of a million were severely injured. This all occurred because of texting and driving: one of the biggest distractions on the road. People all over the country are doing it, and in my opinion, I think it should be banned in all states with serious punishments if caught doing it.


Many high-school students and new young drivers text, but adults do it 64% more. A recent study showed that many students text while drive because they just want to “fit in with the crowd.” Sixteen and seventeen year olds text a lot in their age group, but adults definitely out-do them in that department. Many say that they do it mainly for business purposes, along with my mother and father. New drivers on the road think they are good drivers and they have everything under control. They think they can handle texting while driving, but that is where they are wrong, because kids don’t realize they are doing anything to harm others or themselves until they get into an accident and experience it.


“I’ve always known it isn’t exactly safe, but until it was put in that context it didn’t register with me just how great the potential to destroy lives really is. I’ve done things like limit my texting to when I am on the highway and at stoplights, readily making excuses for why I can afford to look away a few more seconds on long stretches and when I’m stopped. But invariably my few seconds at the stop light turns into just one more after I’ve started, and before you know it those very restrictions I have put in place are over ruled by my impulsivity, excuses and justifications,” Kathryn Goetzke, a young reporter said.


There are many dangers to texting and driving. When drivers take their eyes off of the road for just 4.6 seconds at 55 miles per hour, that’s enough to travel the length of one football field. You could drive while intoxicated, or drunk, and it would be considered less harmful than texting while driving. Adults are more likely than teenagers to send or read text messages while driving.


“I rarely text and drive because if I did, I could get distracted and harm myself. Not only could it harm me, but other drivers on the road. When I do text and drive, it is mainly for business purposes,” said my father, Jeff Boyd.


Some states and phone companies are trying to help or stop the problem. Seven states and the District of Columbia ban all cell-phone use and 28 states prohibit it. If I had control, I would definitely out-law it in all states because it is very dangerous and it can kill many more people if it continues. Mobile-phone companies have taken its own steps to discouraging the use of cell phones while driving. Other small companies are also trying to help with the problem, and ban texting while driving to save people from getting in accidents and possibly dying.


“I think texting should just stay as it is. People have the choice to text and drive, and put their life in danger,” an 8th grader says. There definitely could be a counter-argument on that thought though, because wouldn’t you be harming the other people on the road?


Everyone definitely has their own opinion on this controversy, and of course I have mine. Most parents and drivers on the road would lean towards banning it as a law completely because it is very dangerous, but there are still some out there that don’t think of the damage they could do from texting and driving. Many students and teens are doing it, but adults definitely text more than them, mainly for business purposes. If you do text and drive, there could be many dangers that face you, but mobile-phone companies are trying to help and out-law this problem, along with other small businesses. When you do text and drive, it definitely doesn’t seem like a big deal. That is until you’re laying flat in an ambulance with paramedics huddling around you trying to save your life. Just think about it.