Driving Trainigs

Great Gifts & Perfect Presents For Learner Drivers!

<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Learning to drive isn't cheap...so if you know someone who is learning to drive or who wants to start driving lessons, get them off to a good start with a really useful gift!</span><br /><br /><a href="http://www.squidoo.com/gift-ideas-for-learner-drivers"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><strong>Gift Ideas For Learner Drivers</strong></span></a><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> has a wide selection of </span><a href="http://www.squidoo.com/gift-ideas-for-learner-drivers#module102868421"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><strong>learner driver gift packs</strong></span></a><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">, driving test software, books and DVDs and lots of other learning to drive essentials, all of which make great birthday gifts and Christmas presents for learner drivers!</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><em>For more information, check out:</em></span><br /><a href="http://www.squidoo.com/gift-ideas-for-learner-drivers"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><strong><em>Gifts For Learner Drivers</em></strong></span></a>

Great Gifts & Perfect Presents For Learner Drivers!

Learning to drive isn't cheap...so if you know someone who is learning to drive or who wants to start driving lessons, get them off to a...

I Admit It

I admit it. We're not perfect. And by we, I mean me. And our company. And our employees and (gasp) even our customers. And for the most part it doesn't matter. We do NON-threatening illegal activities every day. And by illegal, I mean breaking traffic laws. Laws like making complete stops and using hands-free cell phones or staying within the speed limit even if I'm driving down the steepest hill in the vicinity.<br /><a name='more'></a>Now you may be wondering what I'm getting at. Quite honestly, I'm really not admitting to any of the above behaviors. Even if I'm especially guilty of saving my brakes on the latter one. What I'd like to express is the frustration I'm having with the police force. Yesterday after dropping off my son to school, I witnessed two mothers pulled over for what I assume to be speeding in a school zone. Nothing else seemed amiss. I don't believe they were going super fast. In fact, I didn't observe their driving actions to  be dangerous at all. BUT pulling someone over where there was no shoulder so that all traffic had to use the center turn lane to pass WAS dangerous.<br /><br />But here's what really bothers me: receiving a ticket this week <span style="font-size: large;">in the mail</span> from a speed camera for a student driver who was on a driving lesson. in our vehicle. <em>REALLY?!?</em> Yes, really. One of our students was driving our car in a 35mph zone. She came upon a school zone (20 mph) without a child in sight. A hill was involved. And the camera got her doing 27. Guilty? Sort of. By the letter of the law. BUT that's not the point. Our students do illegal things EVERY lesson and that deserves mercy. Even the best learners make unexpected random mistakes. They are learning. Learning means practicing skills that are rough until they become smooth. No police officer would have given our student a ticket in person. It took a machine to do it. One that doesn't have a brain. We'd be out of business if we had to pay the ticket for each illegal action our vehicles commit.<br /><br />My point is that unless a person or property is in danger by someone's driving then it'd be better for police to focus their efforts on crime instead of handing out tickets to drivers making non-threatening driving indiscretions.

I Admit It

I admit it. We're not perfect. And by we, I mean me. And our company. And our employees and (gasp) even our customers. And for the most ...

The Power of Example

<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Our firstborn added new layers of delight to our evenings when he entered our lives. My husband and I would sit around watching him do the funniest things. The party really picked up when he learned to crawl and walk and then dance around the living room. He was really </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-large;">so</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"> cute.</span><br /><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">The mood changed a little when in this mobile age I found my "supposedly napping" boy having a grand time sitting</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"> <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-large;">in</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"> our kitchen sink with the water running. </span><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><a name='more'></a>Little indiscretions were acceptable because he was just learning how the world works around him. BUT a few months later when the learning turned into testing me, I remember thinking, "He needs discipline. And I didn't sign up for that!" I signed up for a cute little Munchkin who would bring me joy...not a curious child who would find trouble when I least expected it. </span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">One of the most difficult endeavors I have ever attempted is raising children. And because I need a lot of practice at it, we keep adding more to the family (ha ha ha...that's not really why). In each new phase of parenthood, I find myself wondering what I am doing. My husband and I do lots of things right. But in a few areas, we have been found wanting. We need more positive parenting habits and skills. And those shortcomings are precisely the ones that our children pick up on. And they test us. By displaying the same selfish behavior that we do. And we are caught with the age old, "do what I say and not what I do!"</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">So what happens when my children get older? Will they pick up on my driving behaviors? If I juggle distractions while driving, won't they <i>mimic my behavior</i>? Since it is possible to talk on the phone while driving and not get in a wreck, won't they think that they can, too? The same goes with eating my breakfast or lunch on the road. Or cutting corners in my rural neighborhood. Or not turning on my blinker because no one will see it anyway? </span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">My children absolutely will pick up on my driving behaviors. The good ones and the not so good. Eek. So, I've got eight and a half more years to perfect my act before the first learner's permit is issued in my family. It doesn't matter that I've been driving for almost 20 years. My kids won't value that experience for what's it's worth. </span></div>

The Power of Example

Our firstborn added new layers of delight to our evenings when he entered our lives. My husband and I would sit around watching him do the f...

Purpose

So, 100% of us <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-large;">voters</span> believe that red light cameras are more about money than about safety. Of course our sample was small. I set it up so you could vote for more than one thing, which only I did. That's why the numbers add up to 125%. Maybe you'll vote next time around...<i>please</i>!<br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #341473; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 16px;"></span><br /><table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; width: 253px;"><tbody><tr><td class="answerText" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; color: #341473; font-size: 12px; overflow-x: hidden; overflow-y: hidden; padding-left: 0px; padding-top: 2px; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><div style="overflow-x: hidden; overflow-y: hidden; text-overflow: ellipsis;" title="To make money"><br /></div><div style="overflow-x: hidden; overflow-y: hidden; text-overflow: ellipsis;" title="To make money"><br /></div><div style="overflow-x: hidden; overflow-y: hidden; text-overflow: ellipsis;" title="To make money">To make money</div></td><td style="margin-top: 2px; padding-top: 2px;"><div style="position: relative; z-index: 0;"><div class="resultText" style="border-bottom-color: rgb(103, 40, 178); border-bottom-style: solid; border-bottom-width: 1px; border-left-color: rgb(103, 40, 178); border-left-style: solid; border-left-width: 1px; border-right-color: rgb(103, 40, 178); border-right-style: solid; border-right-width: 1px; border-top-color: rgb(103, 40, 178); border-top-style: solid; border-top-width: 1px; color: #c0a0ff; font-size: 12px; padding-top: 2px; white-space: nowrap;" title="To make money">  4 (100%)</div><div class="resultBar" style="background-color: #6728b2; border-bottom-style: none; border-color: initial; border-left-style: none; border-right-style: none; border-top-style: none; border-width: initial; font-size: 12px; left: 0px; margin-bottom: 1px; margin-top: 1px; padding-bottom: 1px; padding-top: 1px; position: absolute; top: 0px; white-space: nowrap; width: 62px; z-index: -1;" title="To make money"> </div></div></td></tr><tr><td class="answerText" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; color: #341473; font-size: 12px; overflow-x: hidden; overflow-y: hidden; padding-left: 0px; padding-top: 2px; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><div style="overflow-x: hidden; overflow-y: hidden; text-overflow: ellipsis;" title="Safety">Safety</div></td><td style="margin-top: 2px; padding-top: 2px;"><div style="position: relative; z-index: 0;"><div class="resultText" style="border-bottom-color: rgb(103, 40, 178); border-bottom-style: solid; border-bottom-width: 1px; border-left-color: rgb(103, 40, 178); border-left-style: solid; border-left-width: 1px; border-right-color: rgb(103, 40, 178); border-right-style: solid; border-right-width: 1px; border-top-color: rgb(103, 40, 178); border-top-style: solid; border-top-width: 1px; color: #c0a0ff; font-size: 12px; padding-top: 2px; white-space: nowrap;" title="Safety">  0 (0%)</div><div class="resultBar" style="background-color: #6728b2; border-bottom-style: none; border-color: initial; border-left-style: none; border-right-style: none; border-top-style: none; border-width: initial; font-size: 12px; left: 0px; margin-bottom: 1px; margin-top: 1px; padding-bottom: 1px; padding-top: 1px; position: absolute; top: 0px; white-space: nowrap; width: 0px; z-index: -1;" title="Safety"></div></div></td></tr><tr><td class="answerText" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; color: #341473; font-size: 12px; overflow-x: hidden; overflow-y: hidden; padding-left: 0px; padding-top: 2px; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><div style="overflow-x: hidden; overflow-y: hidden; text-overflow: ellipsis;" title="To reduce collisions">To reduce collisions</div></td><td style="margin-top: 2px; padding-top: 2px;"><div style="position: relative; z-index: 0;"><div class="resultText" style="border-bottom-color: rgb(103, 40, 178); border-bottom-style: solid; border-bottom-width: 1px; border-left-color: rgb(103, 40, 178); border-left-style: solid; border-left-width: 1px; border-right-color: rgb(103, 40, 178); border-right-style: solid; border-right-width: 1px; border-top-color: rgb(103, 40, 178); border-top-style: solid; border-top-width: 1px; color: #c0a0ff; font-size: 12px; padding-top: 2px; white-space: nowrap;" title="To reduce collisions">  0 (0%)</div><div class="resultBar" style="background-color: #6728b2; border-bottom-style: none; border-color: initial; border-left-style: none; border-right-style: none; border-top-style: none; border-width: initial; font-size: 12px; left: 0px; margin-bottom: 1px; margin-top: 1px; padding-bottom: 1px; padding-top: 1px; position: absolute; top: 0px; white-space: nowrap; width: 0px; z-index: -1;" title="To reduce collisions"></div></div></td></tr><tr><td class="answerText" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; color: #341473; font-size: 12px; overflow-x: hidden; overflow-y: hidden; padding-left: 0px; padding-top: 2px; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><div style="overflow-x: hidden; overflow-y: hidden; text-overflow: ellipsis;" title="To increase the number of tickets">To increase the number of tickets</div></td><td style="margin-top: 2px; padding-top: 2px;"><div style="position: relative; z-index: 0;"><div class="resultText" style="border-bottom-color: rgb(103, 40, 178); border-bottom-style: solid; border-bottom-width: 1px; border-left-color: rgb(103, 40, 178); border-left-style: solid; border-left-width: 1px; border-right-color: rgb(103, 40, 178); border-right-style: solid; border-right-width: 1px; border-top-color: rgb(103, 40, 178); border-top-style: solid; border-top-width: 1px; color: #c0a0ff; font-size: 12px; padding-top: 2px; white-space: nowrap;" title="To increase the number of tickets">  1 (25%)</div><div class="resultBar" style="background-color: #6728b2; border-bottom-style: none; border-color: initial; border-left-style: none; border-right-style: none; border-top-style: none; border-width: initial; font-size: 12px; left: 0px; margin-bottom: 1px; margin-top: 1px; padding-bottom: 1px; padding-top: 1px; position: absolute; top: 0px; white-space: nowrap; width: 15px; z-index: -1;" title="To increase the number of tickets"> </div></div></td></tr><tr><td class="answerText" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; color: #341473; font-size: 12px; overflow-x: hidden; overflow-y: hidden; padding-left: 0px; padding-top: 2px; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><div style="overflow-x: hidden; overflow-y: hidden; text-overflow: ellipsis;" title="For Big Brother to watch you">For Big Brother to watch you</div></td><td style="margin-top: 2px; padding-top: 2px;"><div style="position: relative; z-index: 0;"><div class="resultText" style="border-bottom-color: rgb(103, 40, 178); border-bottom-style: solid; border-bottom-width: 1px; border-left-color: rgb(103, 40, 178); border-left-style: solid; border-left-width: 1px; border-right-color: rgb(103, 40, 178); border-right-style: solid; border-right-width: 1px; border-top-color: rgb(103, 40, 178); border-top-style: solid; border-top-width: 1px; color: #c0a0ff; font-size: 12px; padding-top: 2px; white-space: nowrap;" title="For Big Brother to watch you">  0 (0%)</div><div class="resultBar" style="background-color: #6728b2; border-bottom-style: none; border-color: initial; border-left-style: none; border-right-style: none; border-top-style: none; border-width: initial; font-size: 12px; left: 0px; margin-bottom: 1px; margin-top: 1px; padding-bottom: 1px; padding-top: 1px; position: absolute; top: 0px; white-space: nowrap; width: 0px; z-index: -1;" title="For Big Brother to watch you"></div></div></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><br /><div class="pollStats" style="color: silver; display: block; font-size: 12px; margin-bottom: 5px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 5px;">Votes so far: 4<br />Poll closed </div>

Purpose

So, 100% of us voters believe that red light cameras are more about money than about safety. Of course our sample was small. I set it up so...

Red Light Cameras

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Are they fabulous? Or not? In full disclosure I should say that though I do not run red lights, I have been a passenger in a vehicle that ran one. This instance resulted in a crash that totaled three vehicles. We were hit sandwich style on both sides by cross traffic. There were zero injuries. And we attribute that fact to </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-large;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">divine intervention</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">.</span> </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Back then red light cameras were non-existent. I'm fairly certain they would not have prevented this crash however. I was a teen ager and in a car with 3 other teens and we were headed to the mall. The music was pumping and the conversation lively. Roads are made with sensors now. I used to think it had everything to do with timing traffic signals. Nope...there's another purpose. Notice that a red light in the diagram below will trigger the camera to take a photo of the vehicle before it enters the intersection on red and then take a video as it crosses. Then you get a ticket in the mail...with a link to the video of your infraction.</span></span></span><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.memphistn.gov/html/WebsiteContentMemphis2009_files/image002.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://www.memphistn.gov/html/WebsiteContentMemphis2009_files/image002.jpg" width="356" /></a></div><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">So what's the debate all about? If it's all about safety then let's put the cameras everywhere we can! But </span><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">what</span></b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"> </span><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">if</span></b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"> </span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">it's not all about safety</span></i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">? What if there's more? </span><br /><a name='more'></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Views of those in the </span><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">FAVOR</span></b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"> of red light cameras:</span><br /><ul><li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Reduction of violators at monitored intersections.</span></li><li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Reduction of violators at UNmonitored intersections.</span></li><li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Combination of extending the yellow light by one second and cameras reduce the number of violators even further.</span></li><li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">An IIHS study showed a reduction in collisions associated with red light running by 30%.</span></li><li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">For more details see the</span><a href="http://www.iihs.org/research/qanda/rlr.html"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"> Insurance Institute For Highway Safety</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">. They've got a video right under the date on </span><a href="http://www.iihs.org/research/qanda/rlr.html"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">this page</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"> that outlines the safety argument.</span></li><li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Biggest argument: if you don't want to pay the fine, don't run a red light. It's your choice.</span></li></ul><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Some views of those </span><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">AGAINST</span></b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"> red light cameras:</span><br /><ul><li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Red light cameras do NOT stop offending behavior as it happens.</span></li><li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Red light cameras generate </span><a href="http://www.seattlepi.com/transportation/418942_cameras23.html"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">millions of dollars</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"> for the city of Seattle.</span></li><li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Cameras are owned, serviced and monitored </span><a href="http://seattle.gov/police/programs/technology/redlight.htm"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">by for-profit companies</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"> who take a significant portion of the earnings (IIHS). Washington uses an Arizona-based company, </span><a href="http://www.atsol.com/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">ATS</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">. </span><a href="http://www.b-townblog.com/2010/05/04/city-of-burien-seeing-red-over-red-light-camera-revenue-or-lack-thereof/comment-page-1/#comment-22574"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Burien contracts with Redflex to the tune of $19,400 per month </span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">to the company regardless of how much "revenue" or tickets are issued/paid.</span></li><li><a href="http://www.thenewspaper.com/news/04/430.asp"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Nine studies</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"> across the US, Canada and Australia indicate that red light cameras actually INCREASE crashes and injuries.</span></li><li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Making the focus on ticketing (not stopping) violators who do NOT cause collisions instead of finding ways to alleviate <i>why</i> drivers are running lights (I'm talking mostly about the congestive intersections around the mall that have at least a few cars running the lights every cycle) indicates that the primary purpose of the camera is to make money. Otherwise, the cameras would only ticket those who cause collisions or near misses.  </span></li><li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Those who run the red lights often don't even realize it until their ticket comes in the mail. This delay doesn't alter driving habits. It angers people and fuels distrust of the government.</span></li></ul><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Sometimes, civil disobedience takes care of injustices. See Santa's Helpers in Tempe, AZ at their finest. Ha ha ha, is this for real? Yup. Ha ha ha. My three year old loves this video.</span></div><div><br /></div><div><object height="250" width="400"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/T43LtGNFLPw&hl=en_US&fs=1&rel=0&color1=0x5d1719&color2=0xcd311b&border=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/T43LtGNFLPw&hl=en_US&fs=1&rel=0&color1=0x5d1719&color2=0xcd311b&border=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="400" height="250"></embed></object></div><div><br /></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">The National Motorists Associations have published "Five Proven Ways to Stop Red Light Running, which makes a lot of sense to me. Turning to revenue-generating cameras to enforce a broken system doesn't seem right. </span><a href="http://blog.motorists.org/5-proven-ways-to-stop-red-light-running/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Click here to read each point its entirety</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">.</span></div><blockquote><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">1. Increase the yellow-light time.</span></blockquote><blockquote><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">2. Add an all-red clearance interval.</span></blockquote><blockquote><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">3. Make traffic lights more visible.</span></blockquote><blockquote><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">4. Improve intersections for motorists.</span></blockquote><blockquote><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">5. Retime traffic signals.</span></blockquote><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">There's one group that has a $10,000 challenge to help cities rid themselves of cameras in favor of actual engineering solutions. Cities have nothing to lose here...if <i><b>safety</b></i> truly is their number one concern.</span></div><blockquote><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Show us any camera-equipped intersection that still has high numbers of red-light violations and we will guarantee a minimum 50-percent reduction in red-light violations through the application of engineering solutions.</span></blockquote><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">After some discussion and education on the matter of red light cameras, my view of them has turned sour. Maybe it's like that for you, too. For more information on how to get involved, see </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><a href="http://bancams.com/">bancams.com</a> a group that actively <a href="http://www.seattlepi.com/transportation/418942_cameras23.html">protests</a> the cameras</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">, a </span><a href="http://vimeo.com/11390280"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Dori Monson show</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"> on Kiro FM, and </span><a href="http://www.facebook.com/HatingRedLightCameras" style="color: #3b5998; cursor: pointer; text-decoration: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">http://www.facebook.com/HatingRedLightCameras</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">. <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-large;">***What do you think about the cameras? Please vote in the sidebar poll! </span></span>

Red Light Cameras

Are they fabulous? Or not? In full disclosure I should say that though I do not run red lights, I have been a passenger in a vehicle that ra...

Internal Conflict

I did it. All during April I avoided my phone like the plague while I was driving. I'll admit it, though. I messed up twice. Both phone calls were to my brother. Once just a few days after beginning the challenge. We were trying to meet up and the plans kept changing. My kids wouldn't relay the right info. Or any info, really. The second time I just forgot. It was just last week. I quickly ended our 30 second conversation as soon as I realized what I'd done.<br /><br />I did NOT like going without my phone. It was a constant battle. I really thought that new habits are formed after 21 days. Well, I did that. More than that. And I have not broken this habit. <br /><br />I watched <a href="http://www.oprah.com/oprahshow/Watch-the-Full-Hour-Americas-New-Deadly-Obsession-Video">Oprah's distracted driving show</a> the other night. I'm having an internal conflict. YES, texting while driving puts <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-large;">everyone</span> on the road in danger. But the phone? The phone holds the same distraction level as having a conversation with someone else in the car. So I shouldn't be talking to anyone in the car, too? The effort it takes to not talk in the car distracts me. More than just taking a call.<br /><br />What really bothers me is that I won't sign Oprah's distracted driving pledge. Yes, I can sign that I won't text. No problem there. But talking on the phone is another matter entirely. That's a huge commitment. Is the attitude that "it can't happen to me" really so strong? In me? Just when I didn't think so, it is.<br /><br />I'm feeling the urge to set up a driving course and test my ability to talk on the phone and drive.

Internal Conflict

I did it. All during April I avoided my phone like the plague while I was driving. I'll admit it, though. I messed up twice. Both phone ...