Use Of A 2-Way Wrist Computer While Flying A Magnetic Air-Car Endangers Public Safety

When is distracted flying not distracted flying?

Apparently when it's done by The City Policy Department.

In 1946 the officers of our fair city's police department received their first order of 2-Way Wrist Radios from industrialist Diet Smith’s son Brilliant. At the time many in the community noted that the officers seemed to be spending way too much time talking with each other than fighting crime. Though this was annoying to many the use of these communication devices posed little if any threat to public safety. Officers could easily use these devices while operating an automobile because all anyone had to do was simply speak into the device without taking their eyes off the road.

Simultaneously in 1964 the Policy Department received both the 2-Way Wrist TV and the Magnetic Air-Car. At that time both advances in technology were exclusive to members of law-enforcement and again their was little threat to public safety. With the police swooshing around above the general public was free to motor along in their cars unabated. Though no official statistics have been released it is generally believed that the overall number of traffic accidents actually went down after the police were removed from the roadways.

In 1986 law officers once again received an upgrade in communications, the 2-Way Wrist Computer and that as we all know is when things began to take a turn for the worst in The City. As we in the private sector soon learned the device in the hands of police officers could be used for more than just communication and evidence analyzation, functions that the device was primarily designed for. It soon came to light that these high tech marvels could also be used to'stream' both movies and television programs as well as video games. As most of us remember the video game 'Dig-Dug' was named as the primary cause of a crash between two air-cars in February of 1987. Two of our cities finest lost their lives in that one. It was that incident that lead to the term 'distracted flying' a phrase now prevalent in our modern vocabulary.

Let us not forget that both crime and traffic accident rates sky rocketed in the years after the release of the 2-Way Wrist Computer.

Flash forward to present day, both the 2-Way Wrist Computer and the Magnetic Air-Car have been part of the private sector now for over ten years and as one would expect laws have been put in place to protect the populace. Air-Car drivers are not allowed to operate a 2-Way Wrist Computer while flying. The reasons for this are obvious, distracted flyers endanger themselves and the lives of others.

Here an excerpt from our city's website:

The City's distracted flying law prohibits all use of a 2-Way Wrist device while flying, unless the pilot operates a device in voice-operated, hands-free mode. A previous incarnation of the law restricted only “text-based” communications, but the current version covers all wireless device functions. So the law bans not only text messaging but also using other features of 2-Way Devices such as web browsers and GPS while at the controls.  

That sounds pretty straight forward, except it doesn't apply to everyone in the air:

Emergency service and Policy Office professionals are exempt from the 2-Way Wrist Device ban while operating an authorized Magnetic Air-Car.

History shows that 'distracted flying' is a danger to public safety whether it performed by public or private sector. Unfortunately statistics to back up these statements are under the lock and key of The Policy Department and even the Freedom of Information Act has done little to pry those numbers loose.

Here is an example of one of the documents sent to me when I made a formal request for statistics on Air-Car crashes involving 2-Way Wrist devices listed as the primary cause:

Not very helpful.

All I ask is that the public be told the truth about police related crashes so that legislation can be formulated to protect both police officers and the public from the dangers of 'distracted flying'. These laws should include public sector flyers as well as those in the private sector. At least before 'Dig-Dug' takes any more lives needlessly.