Texting and Driving Dangers
May 28, 2013 | Jon P. EricksonI recently read an article that stated that “texting is now the leading cause of death for teen drivers.” The article was based on a study done for the Center for Disease Control and Prevention. The study contains data that supports that texting while driving has become an even greater hazard for teenagers than drinking and driving. Minnesota law prohibits operating a motor vehicle while “using a wireless communications device to compose, read or send an electronic message while the car is in motion or a part of traffic.” A violation is a misdemeanor crime. This law applies to juveniles as well as adults. Minnesota law also prohibits any driver under age 18 to use a phone for any purpose while driving. The days between Memorial and Labor Days have been called the “100 deadliest days for teenage drivers.” A coalition of our country’s largest wireless carriers have joined in a national advertising campaign to discourage mobile users from texting while driving during these upcoming 100 days. AT&T, Verizon, Sprint and T-Mobile are all joining this campaign which they call “It Can Wait.” Here is AT&T’s Don’t Text While Driving Documentary: Let’s all pause and join them in reminding our teenage drivers that “It Can Wait.” You can also find out more information…
Read MoreHow Mediation in Minnesota is Effective at Creating Elder Care Solutions
May 27, 2013 | Elizabeth A. SchadingCaring for aging or dependent parents can be a source of contention among adult children. If you and your siblings are fighting constantly over how to care for an elderly father or mother then you might be interested to know just how effective mediation in Minnesota can be at creating elder care solutions. There are many common issues that can arise when a parent’s health and independence start to fail. There might be questions about housing and living arrangements, or having a live-in caregiver vs. moving to an assisted living facility. Your elderly parent may not want to give up his or her car keys, while you and your siblings know it’s the right thing to do, for the parent’s safety and the safety of others. You may want your parent to get medical treatment that he or she is refusing for some reason. There might be arguments about inheritances, whether or not to sell the house, and how the caregiver-sibling is managing the money. If your elderly parent is on life support there may even be arguments about whether or not the parent should be kept alive. For the most part, everyone involved only wants what’s best for the aging parent. However, not everybody agrees on how to get to what’s best….
Read MoreSummer Drive Time ~ Keeping Safe on the Roads
May 23, 2013 | Jon P. EricksonI recently read this article in Star Tribune’s newspaper titled “Deaths on state roads top 100 for the year.” It references the state’s seat-belt crackdown which began on May 20th. Once again there were some sobering statistics about the number of traffic deaths where no seat belt was used. In the past three years, “852 motorists have died in crashes and 42 percent (361) of those were not wearing seat belts.” We can, and must do better in getting the message out to all drivers but most certainly our young drivers! The good news is that seat-belt use continues to climb in Minnesota at some 93{a0c01d20c42349884e67ff80c137866b0a9fe47aaae8f8a86a605a369ae487c3} as compared to the national average of 84{a0c01d20c42349884e67ff80c137866b0a9fe47aaae8f8a86a605a369ae487c3}. Let’s all try to improve this percentage. On Monday I was at the courthouse in Buffalo, Minnesota. When I came out of the courthouse there was a “crashed car” on a flatbed trailer with some signs on it. It was the car involved in an accident in Wright County in 2012. Its roof was crashed in, and one side of it was almost demolished. One of the signs on the trailer stated that the driver and occupant wore seat belts, and survived this obviously terrible crash. Making an effort to slow down and assure that you and all of…
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