"Give 'em an inch" department:
The Indiana Senate has approved a bill making it illegal for drivers to send or read text messages, but also banning talking on the phone.
[. . .]
Sen. Brent Steele of Bedford proposed an amendment adopted Monday applying the ban to all cell phone use by drivers. He says that using a phone to make a call can be as dangerous as texting.
That just isn't so. Texting takes an enormous amount of concentration that shouldn't be diverted from the task of driving. But it's hard to make a case that texting is more dangerous than any number of other activitives, such as fiddling with the radio or gobbling down your favorite takeout. But people usually don't run for the General Assembly because they want to make nuanced distinctions. "Oooh, look at that shiny thing over there. Let's tax it. Or ban it. Or regulate it. Something. Anything! I done good today."
