Here's a statistic that's hard to argue with in any believable way.  According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), those drivers who have a BAC (Blood Alcohol Level) of .08 or higher have an **8** times greater risk of being involved in a fatal or serious injury crash than those who do not have this amount of alcohol in their systems.

Drivers who text while driving have a **23** times greater risk of a fatal or serious injury crash than those who are not texting and driving.

We have certainly managed to villify the intoxicated driver and turn them into societal lepers.  Once convicted of DUI, this driver can  be denied employment, a driver's license, and be responsible for ultimately paying many thousands of dollars to the State and others for their transgression.  The texting driver, while provably far more dangerous will be assessed a fine without any other sanctions.

I am not an apologist for the intoxicated driver but there is something very wrong with this picture.  As mentioned in an earlier blog here on Patch, I put together some pretty convincing video taken from patrol car dash cameras of texting drivers. It is enough I think to convince even the most  tolerant person that texting drivers are a danger to themselves and others.

If you text while driving, please stop it.  Before the State steps in and places you in deservedly the same category as the driver we all shun...the drunk driver.