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Hand-held cell phone law is being enforced

By Heila Nir
October 19, 2009 - 5:59 pm
Thruway State Police crackdown on cell phone use

According to 9WSYR.com, Thruway State Police issued tickets to drivers during a four-day crackdown nicknamed “Operation Hang Up II”.  Police say they gave over 900 tickets to thruways drivers who violated the hand-held cell phone law.

The New York Sate law prohibits the use of hand-helped mobile telephones while driving- calling 911, fire or police departments about an emergency are the only exceptions. Violators can face a maximum fine of $100.

In April, Police conducted a similar crackdown where 816 tickets to drivers violating the cell-phone law were issued

My Take:  Not all states have the cell-phone law. I live in Massachusetts and I am not use to not using my cell phone while driving. Even though I do it sometimes I think that this should become a law all over the United States. I think cell phones can become distracting while driving and are the cause of many accidents. After all, “both hands should be on the wheel”

Was "Balloon Boy" a hoax? 

According to CNN.com, authorities say the story of the boy in the runaway balloon was a hoax. 

Larimer County Sheriff Jim Alderden said, the family wanted publicity for relative TV jobs. The parents met in a Hollywood acting school and pursued fame for their family in reality TV shows. 

The parent’s attorney says the Henne family deserves presumption of innocence- innocent until proven guilty.

According to the sheriff, charges are likely to be filed against the family.

My Take:  Last Thursday I watched the live report on CNN in class. I was shocked, or more confused. I couldn’t understand how a little boy would ever have the courage to get on a hot air balloon and try flying away. I don’t know many little kids who aren’t afraid of heights. I remember sitting in class and thinking he is probably hiding under his bed because he feels guilty. And what do you know; they found him in the attack. 

All you have to do is click

In an article on CNN.com, Belonging to social networking sites can make you the next victim. Sites like, Facebook and Twitter are becoming a target for cybertheives.

According to the FBI, social networking sites are popular tools to get personal information. The FBI reports there were nearly 3,2000 account hijacking cases that were reported t I the Internet Crime Complaint Center, since 2006.

Users of these social networks are lured to fake Web sites that trick them into giving away personal details and passwords.  Once an account is made, thieves can filter through the list of friends or contacts and repeat the attack on more victims.

My Take: Now that we are in an era of social networking, Internet being a huge medium I think it is important to know what is really going on. I think our era needs to be educated on how to protect ourselves against scams. 

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