Morning Brew: August 28, 2006

Morning, Sameer:

Reading the article closely reveals the accident was more the result of the oncoming vehicle, which had veered into the wrong lane trying to pass another car, and showed evidence of drinking (a bunch of empty beer bottles).

While I absolutely agree talking on your cellphone is always a bad idea, it's always possible she couldn't have avoided a drunken driver, even without her cellphone.

Yeah, it definitely is sad that the accident ended up the way it did, and nobody likes to see such bright futures ended so soon, especially to drunk driving.

I wasn't trying to assign blame at all; instead, I was just pointing out how bad things usually happen when people talk on their cell phones while driving, their fault or not.

Fair enough. I wasn't sure if you were or not, so thought I'd just go for it.

Definitely a terrible story; it upsets me that "dangerous driving" is the only legal description for what that drunken driver has done.

It seems to be a combination of a few factors, and remember that a few beer bottles at the scene of an accident hardly constitutes a taxicology report. Not to blame but perhaps this woman and her passenger would have lived had she been focussing more on what the person in the other car was doing. It's a real shame that people are so obsessed with their cell phones that they sacrifice their attention to the road and most importantly to other drivers.

*toxicology

Sad news all around, but I guess the moral of the story here is that if you're driving, worry about driving, and not drinking, phoning, or anything else.