Texting is stupid.
But I have seen drivers on the interstate reading the newspaper.
So as the saying goes, you can’t fix stupid.
As for using the phone, I there is no doubt in my mind that the phone has prevented far more wrecks than it has caused.
Those of us who have done a lot of driving know that the greatest danger to the motoring public is drowsiness; falling asleep at the wheel.
How many drivers have been kept awake by a phone call?
And the interesting thing is that during the period of time that the cell phone has become indispensable, the fatality rate per 100,000 miles has fallen and has done so in every one of those years.
So one could just as well argue that the cell phone has made driving more safe.
I won’t go that far, but I will say that when you take the cell away from a bad driver, what you have left is still a bad driver.
If not for his cell phone, I can’t even imagine what might have happened to my husband one day. Driving home from work on the 118 in the San Fernando Valley he was being harassed by another driver in a larger car. (DH does stick to the speed limit, so he probably pissed off one of the insane California drivers.) Anyhow, he was able to call 911 with his cell, and the other driver was dealt with by the police. Turns out this guy had a history of intimidating other drivers, and violence.
The cell phone issue is like anything else; people need to be responsible. As you said, you can’t fix stupid.