GUNS: Cell phones are lethal weapons

Cell phone distracted driving kills 10 times more people in the U.S. than mass shootings (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention), but you won’t find pundits and politicians enraged by this because it doesn’t do much for them in the polls. If they really want to protect people, why not use their national exposure to lobby for increased fines for distracted driving?

Today if you’re caught texting and driving your wrist is slapped. Why isn’t Joe Biden meeting with the CEOs of Motorola and Apple? Imagine if the mass shooting rate increased by 10X (to match the body count of cell phone distracted driving). What level of outrage would we be in? This kills innocent people who happen to be at the wrong place (including kids).

If the goal is to protect the innocent, it seems reasonable to address the issues that kill the highest number of innocent people. Anyone capable of simple math can see the pundits have FAR bigger fish to fry than assault rifles. In the U.S. about 100 people die every year in mass shootings. About 1,000 people die every year from cell phone distracted driving. If you’re concerned about protecting innocent people, this should be your cause.

But on the other hand, if protecting the innocent is not really your primary motivation (maybe you just hate guns, possibly want your own TV show or just like to argue), then stick to mass shootings and push to ban assault rifles. It’s a great way to get attention.

SCOTT SERRANO

Pocatello