4A the university daily kansan
opinion
thursday, march4, 2004
FACE-OFF
Increased speed limit: Beneficial or dangerous? Needed for growth ___ Increase too costly
Abandoned gas stations, run-down restaurants and dilapidated farms litter I-70 in western Kansas. Drivers bypass the rows of wheat and buildings with peeling paint lining the 70 mph interstate for a faster, less-convenient route, according to a recent Lawrence Journal-World article.
Long-distance drivers opt for I-80, a 75 mph interstate in Nebraska, for cross-state travel, increasing interstate business and state revenue. Nebraska is just one of three surrounding states whose speed limit is higher than the Kansas limit. These states vie with Kansas for business and win.
Without an incentive, such as an increased speed limit, boosting roadside activity and tourism is not feasible.
Opponents fear an increased speed limit will directly elevate the rate of car accidents along the interstate. According to studies conducted by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and the Federal Highway Administration, evidence to back these fears has proved
inconclusive.
Car accidents, as noted in the FHWA study, are more likely to occur when a driver is traveling greatly above or below the rate of other drivers' speeds. And although interstate traffic is moving faster, accidents are less probable than in stop-and-go traffic.
FHWA researchers also found that raising the speed limit by 5, even 15 mph, had only a minor effect on vehicle speeds because most people already drive 5 to 10 mph over the posted speed limit.
Interestingly, when the speed limit at test sites was raised, drivers were more inclined to comply with the posted, legal limit instead of accelerating 10 mph more. Raising the speed limit, lessens the chance of expensive speeding tickets and raised insurance rates.
Until we spark activity in western Kansas by raising the speed limit, our state's sparse interstates will remain under par and unprofitable.
Sara Behunek is a Fort Collins, Colo., senior in journalism.
Face-Off is a project of the Kansan editorial board. Two editorial board members argue opposing sides of a hot-button issue that affects students at the University of Kansas.
This section is designed to help students understand opposing sides of an issue and make informed decisions.
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E-mail suggestions to opinion@kansan.com.
The Kansan welcomes letters to the editors and guest columns submitted by students, faculty and alumni.
The Kansan reserves the right to edit, cut to length, or reject all submissions.
For general questions, contact Michelle Rombeck at mburhenn@kansan.com
If a measure to raise the speed limit on Kansas highways and Interstates passes, the repercussions will overshadow the advantages the increase would bring to local businesses.
Statistics have shown that a higher speed limit will raise the death toll on highways, put more pollution into the air and cost consumers, who drive faster, more money.
Most highway drivers tend to speed. If the speed limit is raised from 70 to 75 mph, instead of people driving 75 to 80 mph, people will be driving 80 to 85 mph.
"By raising the speed limit, you aren't reducing the number of speeders, you are just simply shifting the speeders into a higher bracket of speed," said Russ Rader, representative for the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety.
"There is a direct connection between raising speed limits and traffic fatalities," Rader said.
With an increase in speed comes an increase in accidents.
Higher speed limits can also break a motorist's wallet. The
faster a vehicle goes, the more gas it burns. Raising the speed limit will force people to buy more of that $1.64-per-gallon gas,the price of which is expected to go up over the summer.
Another downfall is the destruction that raising the speed limit will have on our environment. With more gas being used, the amount of harmful emissions increase, polluting the air.
Our environment has enough problems as the number of people buying gas-guzzling sport utility vehicles is increasing. This leads to more greenhouse gases going into the air, and contributes to the issue of global warming.
The best decision the Legislature can make is to not pass the increase. However, if a speed limit measure is passed, there is action people can take: ignore it.
Remember, just because the signs may eventually say that the maximum speed limit is 75 miles per hour doesn't mean that you have to do it.
Travis Metcalf is a Wichita senior in journalism.
PERSPECTIVE
Safe driving up to everyone
It happened more than 20 years ago, but Lyons native Luke Ellis hasn't forgotten.
The fog had settled on a highway in western Kansas and Ellis' father, Walter, could have easily rushed home to avoid the hazardous driving conditions. But as he glanced toward the highway shoulder, Walter noticed a stranded motorist in need of help. Walter pulled over to help the man, who likely went unnoticed by most because of the misty weather. As the two men worked on the car, a trucker
COMMENTARY
— consumed by an overwhelming exhaustion and hindered by the dense fog — accidentally veered onto the shoulder, killing Ellis' father.
For the legion of KU students who drive K-10 on a regular basis, a stranded motorist is a common scene, particularly with this winter's snowstorms. And unfortunately, all of us are probably guilty of not paying attention to anything except what's directly in front of us. Whether grabbing a CD from its case, applying makeup in the rearview mirror or simply zoning out, careless actions become second nature. When you toss inclement weather into the mix, a seemingly harmless move such as shuffling through CDs can turn deadly.
Amy Kelly
_opinion@kansan.com
The problem with drivers not changing lanes for roadside bystanders has not gone unnoticed by the Kansas Department of Transportation and law enforcement officials. Kansas highway troopers find it necessary these days to essentially re-educate the public on the Goodheart Law. Passed in May 2000, the law is named after Master Trooper Dean Allen Goodheart, who was fatally struck in 1995 by an 18-year-old college student as he conducted a roadside inspection.
David Corp, law enforcement liaison, said troopers have issued numerous complaints about the failure to recognize the law. "Most drivers do not know the law exists or choose not to obey the 'move-to-the-left' law," Corp said.
A lot of the trouble could be because of
cell phone use, the bane of driving caution. The February/March 2003 issue of the National Safety Council's Inquiry Insights publication focused on a new trend among drivers called "inattention blindness," or the "inability to recognize objects in the driver's visual field."
Plenty of drivers may claim that their driving ability is not impaired by talking on a cell phone, but why take the chance? Should a person appear out of nowhere, a driver's reaction time could be that pedestrian's saving grace.
But the cell phone doesn't even need to be in the picture for things to go awry. When snow-covered streets finally get plowed, freedom from the wintry fetters can be exhilarating. It's almost like we're making up for lost time when we are able to drive without the fear of fish-tailing. Unfortunately, when the ice disappears, our on-guard feeling can make an exit as well.
For those individuals who have been victims of reckless driving, they deserve better than a highway full of drivers whose main concern is fetching their Linkin Park CDs from the glove department.
Kelly is a senior in journalism and art history.
Free for All Call 864-0500
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For more comments, go to www.kansan.com
I just saw someone with a shirt that said "Abortions tickle." That is just wrong.
I sincerely hope that Best Buy is being charged a huge litter tax for what it has done to our campus.
more violence than California's governor has displayed in his movies over the past 20 years. Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger is an action hero for blowing up cars and killing and fighting people, but rappers are the problem in society if they mention murder, fighting or lewd acts of conduct.
What is up with all of the blue triangles on the sidewalk. Is it for some kind of cult or something?
more violence than California's governor has displayed in his movies over the past 20 years. Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger is an action hero for blowing up cars and killing and fighting people, but rappers are the problem in society if they mention murder, fighting or lewd acts of conduct.
I just want to remind everybody that squirrels only attack if they are provoked.
I think spring break at South Padre is going to be one big Kansas orgy. Or at least I hope it is.
more violence than California's governor has displayed in his movies over the past 20 years. Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger is an action hero for blowing up cars and killing and fighting people, but rappers are the problem in society if they mention murder, fighting or lewd acts of conduct.
The new band uniform sucks.
more violence than California's governor has displayed in his movies over the past 20 years. Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger is an action hero for blowing up cars and killing and fighting people, but rappers are the problem in society if they mention murder, fighting or lewd acts of conduct.
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Mortal Kombat on Sega Genesis is the best video game ever.
Insomnia is horrible. I can't go to sleep.
Someone tell me that there is a cure for this.
more violence than California's governor has displayed in his movies over the past 20 years. Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger is an action hero for blowing up cars and killing and fighting people, but rappers are the problem in society if they mention murder, fighting or lewd acts of conduct.
You know what? You're fired.
I am going to set the record for the most calls to the Free For All in one day until you print something, one of my funny comments.
more violence than California's governor has displayed in his movies over the past 20 years. Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger is an action hero for blowing up cars and killing and fighting people, but rappers are the problem in society if they mention murder, fighting or lewd acts of conduct.
more violence than California's governor has displayed in his movies over the past 20 years. Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger is an action hero for blowing up cars and killing and fighting people, but rappers are the problem in society if they mention murder, fighting or lewd acts of conduct.
The people in my dorm are stupid. Save me, Superman.
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Average Joe 2: Hawaii: I hope that her secret is that she has gonorrhea.
My 21st birthday party is in seven weeks.
My 21st birthday party is in seven weeks.
My 21st birthday party is in seven weeks.
My 21st birthday party is in seven weeks.
Everyone is invited.
WAKE UP!
'O'Reilly Factor' often neglects 'fair and balanced' approach
Bill O'Reilly, of the Fox News Channel The O'Reilly Factor, is best known for his cutthroat, highly opinionated views about issues that affect this country.
Fox likes to boast that it is "fair and balanced" when it comes to journalism, but O'Reilly does not fall under that category.
O'Reilly's rose-colored, "fair and balanced" glasses are going to break sooner or later. He uses his No. 1-rated primetime television show to create issues that best serve his interests and then harshly attacks and ridicules people as he sees fit.
O'Reilly does not like "gangsta" rap. Every chance he gets, he strikes down the music, its culture and the rappers who make money off of selling "gangsta" rap records.
COMMENTARY
First of all, there is no such thing as "gangsta" rap. "Gangsta" rap was a term coined by the media to describe rappers who rapped about violence in their songs.
Brandon Cobb opinion@kansan.com
Governor Schwarzenegger was able to cash in on displaying acts of violence to the tune of $800 million. O'Reilly does not have a problem with Schwarzenegger receiving endorsements, but if Schwarzenegger were a "gangsta" rapper it would be a whole different story.
Secondly, no rapper can rap about
For the past year or so, O'Reilly has had a feud with Atlanta-based rapper Ludacris. O'Reilly expressed outrage to the Pepsi corporation when it hired Ludacris as spokesman. O'Reilly urged his viewers to boycott Pepsi products until the company fired Ludacris.
He got his wish. Pepsi fired Lucidac and replaced him with Ozzy Osbourne!
O'Reilly said, "Unlike Ozzy Osbourne, who curses, or Britney Spears, who's an immature exhibitionist, Ludacris is hard-core. He glorifies criminal conduct, and kids hear this stuff. Some of those children are from troubled homes and adopt the anti-social attitudes as their own."
That does not sound, "fair and balanced" to me. Osbourne exemplifies everything that is wrong with the family structure in this country. His kids curse at him, his son, Jack, is a recovering drug addict at age 17, and the kids show little respect for their parents. Sounds like a troubled home to me.
Osbourne's endorsement is just fine with O'Reilly.
Now O'Reilly is at it again. Ludacris has just received another endorsement from a major corporation — Anheuser-Busch. O'Reilly has resurfaced the same-old Pepsi rhetoric against Ludacris.
He said, "This gangsta stuff is foolish to anyone who's mature, but for impressionable kids, drug and guns make an impression."
Monday night on The O'Reilly Factor, O'Reilly urged his viewers to boycott Anheuser-Busch theme parks as well as its beer products until it got rid of Ludacris.
does not include a rejection.
But that would not be fair to O'Reilly's cause, because he always has to have the last word.
O'Reilly's biggest problem is that he claims to speak for Americans. I am American, and he does not represent me in any way, shape or form. True indeed
If O'Reilly were truly "fair and balanced," he would give Ludacris' charity, The Ludacris Foundation, which raises thousands of dollars for impoverished kids, just as much press coverage as he does his negative lyrics.
children are impressionable and tend to mimic the people they idolize. However, a Schwarzenegger action film is no better for society than rappers using dirty language in one of their songs. It is all entertainment. Every generation's youth culture has been scrutinized in one way or another. Most of our parents endured the same prejudices when it came to rock' n' roll music and the fashion of the '60s and '70s.
O'Reilly is secretly brainwashing an older society that already looks down upon youthful culture. He uses its naiveté to promote his agenda and dislike for rap music and then claims it to be in the best interest of America.
O'Reilly only gives his side of the issue, bombards his opinion into viewer's psyches and then wants them to deliberate without bias. O'Reilly is not looking out for America's best interest; he is only using his show to endorse himself.
Cobb is a Kansas City, Kan., senior in political science.
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