Gordon Forgey

All law enforcement agencies are gearing up.

They are following a long-held holiday tradition.

They will be conducting emphasis patrols looking for impaired drivers.

In the old days, that meant drunk drivers.

Now, it means much more than that.

Now, new concerns involve drivers on marijuana and other drugs.

Additionally, dangers persist with inattentive drivers. These include those texting and using cell phones.

We have seen the dangers of all these different types of drivers. Accidents, some fatal, have marked the highways in and around the Palouse.

Socially, a stigma exists for those driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol.

Yet, it is not necessarily considered bad form to use a cell phone or to text while driving. Campaigns and laws to eradicate the practice have not been successful. Social pressures are less on these types of behaviors than on drinking and driving.

That may be because “inattentive driving” does not sound that bad. It does not have the same weight as “drunk driving.”

It may also be because in most cases it just takes a few seconds to text a quick message whereas a drunk is drunk from the start of the trip to the end. Still, we have seen the tragic outcome of those few seconds.

We need new terminology for those who text or chat into their cell phones, endangering their lives and the lives of others on the road.

Criminal? Threatening? Murderous? Suicidal? Abhorrent?

Gordon Forgey

Publisher