Shelby Starnes
11-9-12
Comm 2200
Mr.Schlanger
Introduction Topic: Texting while driving is dangerous
Hook: Did you know that texting while driving is now one of the most popular distractions that take a driver’s eyes off the road?
Link to audience: Imagine that someone in your family, your mom, dad, or sibling were to be killed by a driver who was sending a text message. Was that text worth losing someone you love?
Thesis statement: Today I will persuade you into thinking that texting while driving is too dangerous. Body
Texting while driving kills people
In 2009, 5,474 people in the United States were killed due to texting while driving. This number is an increase to the 3,210 people that were killed in 2007. (http://www.stoptextsstopwrecks.org/#facts)
Teenagers are the most common age group that die because of texting (45% of accidents resulted in death). In addition, The Allstate Foundation’s recent survey showed that 82% of teens report texting while driving, while only 23% admit to drinking and driving. And according to data collected by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, more teenagers die on May 20 than any other day of the year. Over the past five years, May 20 claimed 63% more lives than any average day because of prom and other end of the school year celebrations.
A report from Alberta’s Workplace Health and Safety confirms the death of a young landscaper working for the city of Edmonton, was caused by a distracted driver who never seemed to realize she had hit him. The landscaper was working on a clear and sunny day on July 24 when a Honda Civic crashed into him. According to witnesses, the young man was clearly visible. Some said the woman was holding a cell phone and seemed to be texting before getting out of her car. “The driver did not even know that she had crushed a landscape worker. There were no visible skid marks