I was in a car a few weeks ago, and the driver, a coworker, got mad at me for ’shadow braking’: “There’s no brake there!” she yelled, and I stopped myself from retorting, “Well, there fucking well should be!” as she somehow managed to avoid killing us both.

So, there’s this story about how the German car manufacturers didn’t start putting cup holders and radios in their cars until the late 60s, because they couldn’t quite figure out how people could drive and do other stuff at the same time. Personally, I think they had the right idea: as a driver of an automobile, a large, heavy, extremely potentially deadly accident waiting to happen after a moment’s — no, a second’s — hesitation, there’s nothing you need to be doing that is more important than keeping your eyes open, and your hands on the steering wheel.

I think text messaging while driving should be illegal, and fined heavily. That’s pretty much my opinion on doing anything behind the wheel that isn’t driving: reading, eating, putting on makeup, masturbating, reaching for a bag on the back seat. It’s distracting, it’s dangerous, and, when you think about it, that’s a pretty deadly combination.

So, hooray!

If you avoid text messaging in your car, you stand a substantially reduced chance of a loss of a claim or, indeed, a loss of life, recent studies suggest. Texting while driving, or fiddling with myriad devices including your cell phone, BlackBerry or GPS system, is a leading factor in accidents across the nation.

Ask the 22-year-old Arizona woman who recently hit a stationary emergency vehicle, with its lights blazing, while text messaging behind the wheel. (Writer’s note: what an idiot).

Four states are actively attempting to ban driving while texting (DWT), with Washington passing a ban early this year on all drivers sending electronic messages while on the road. In 17 states including the District of Columbia, young or inexperienced drivers are banned from using cell phones, even using a hands-free kit, with emergency calls exempted.

These measures are in response to a ream of statistics that suggest DWT is a growing danger. In various accredited published studies, some 46 percent of drivers ages 16 to 17 admit to texting while driving.

Driving a car is a responsibility, not a right. If that old libertarian saying is, “Your right to swing your first ends at my nose”, then the motto for encouraging smart, responsible driving should be “Your right to drive a car ends at your bumpers.” Meanwhile, I’m going to be just as careful crossing roads here in the District, to make sure some idiot texter doesn’t run a red light and send me flying.