Distracted driving is all around us

The brief headline said, "Distracted driver slams into back of Army Humvee on Ga. 247." What does "distracted driving" mean in this day and technological age? Generally one of two things, talking or texting. Generally the latter, because it's impossible to keep your eyes on the road and the screen of a smartphone at the same time. But we see it everyday — particularly with younger, less experienced drivers.

Here are a few cold hard facts:

According to AAA, just under 1 million teenagers were involved in police reported accidents in 2013. The accidents led to 373,645 injuries and 2,927 deaths.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, an average of six teenagers die from injuries received in vehicle crashes every day.

According to a column in The New York Times by Bruce Feiler, the author of "The Secrets of Happy Families," vehicle accidents for the 16- and 17 year-old age group take more lives than cancer, suicide and other types of accidents.

Feiler explains that while he generally tells parents to "back off, chill out" and "park the helicopter," as far as driving is concerned, he says, "As soon as you give your children the keys to the car, it may be time to pull the helicopter out of the hangar for a spell and follow them down the road."

This story was originally published April 13, 2016 at 9:07 PM with the headline "Distracted driving is all around us ."