Secretary of Transportation would disable cell phones in cars

I try to give the benefit of the doubt to both sides, but there are times when someone says something that simply makes no sense. Consider for this point, Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood who is proposing requiring car companies to actively jam all cell phones in cars in an effort to end "distracted driving."

The US government may require cars to include scrambling tech that would disable mobile-phone use by drivers, and perhaps passengers.

"I think it will be done," US Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood said on Wednesday morning, according to The Daily Caller. "I think the technology is there and I think you're going to see the technology become adaptable in automobiles to disable these cell phones."

LaHood is on a self-described "rampage" against distracted driving, and if making it impossible to use a mobile phone while in a car can save lives, he's all for it...

This means not only would it be illegal to use the cell phone while driving, but it would also be impossible for you or your passengers to use it. If implemented as proposed here, it would also jam data connections (or else drivers could simply switch to Skype) which would mean the end of Pandora or other music streaming services in the car. And, of course, it would mean the end of being able to contact emergency services from your vehicle.

There is a time and place for government intervention, and "distracted driving" is definitely a problem. But let's be reasonable and realize that such whole hog solutions create more problems than they solve.