Trying to legislate intelligent driving

You can't legislate morality, some people say, and the same can be said for intelligence.

But that doesn't keep the Legislature from trying.

The latest example is LB945 which, thankfully, makes texting while driving only a so-called secondary offense, much like the state's seat belt law.

We can only imagine the headaches that would result from attempting to prosecute cases where an eagle-eyed officer spotted someone keying in a message while driving and made a traffic stop. Was he sure she wasn't using a compact while doing her makeup while driving? There's no specific law against that, as far as we know.

The legislature had to overturn Gov. Dave Heineman's veto when it passed a law in 2007 banning teen drivers from texting and talking on cell phones while driving. We haven't heard what he plans to do with the latest incarnation of the texting ban.

There are plenty of reasons not to text and drive, of course. Teenagers, especially, aren't experienced enough drivers to add the distraction and making social arrangements while negotiating narrow streets or cruising down the interstate. Neither is it a good idea for any age of driver of any size of vehicle.

If the latest texting bill is enacted into law, with or without the governor's signature, it will be just one more reason to do the intelligent thing.