[pinkert11]

I really thought about getting a car mount myself, for myself. But to be honest it is too big of a draw and I know that I would not simply let it sit. I would have to touch it, play with it. I am sure it would start out with GPS, then Nav apps, then..... But the truth is that it is too easy to just check something quick, or listen to a different song or anything that is distracting. Your son is also at the early stages or driving and stats show that it takes 2 to 4 years of driving before you are conditioned and not learning. So even if this is a do as I say not as I do I can appreciate it.

It sounds bad but you have to live with the decision you make and I bet it will be more enjoyable in the long run to live with your son then live with regret.

[AugustArborists]

I'd like for DeathCommand to sound off on this. As a younger member, his input would round things off a bit. Don't get "younger" mixed up with "less intelligent", the kid is a genius.

As a parent, I know my kids (they're alot like myself), so a PB mount would be verboten in any of my vehicles. Heck, I KNOW I'd monkey around with it.

[Deathcommand]

As an 18 year old, I would completely understand if I was in a life threatening situation and my parents did something to facilitate me not being able to.
So your Nephew should lose his PlayBook while driving privileges.

However, If your son did not crash or show that he would not get distracted while driving (Only using it as a GPS) then I would allow him to keep the mount and PB.

Your son, As long as he is using it only for good (And safe) reasons, it's fine.

If I were to get into an accident while using my phone, PlayBook, or even a waterbottle, I wouldn't feel cheated if someone took it away from me. (I don't use anything while driving.. Well except drinking water at stoplights)


As long as it's safe and the kid wouldn't mess around while driving, he should not have his stuff taken away.

However, I try to learn from other peoples mistakes.
"The average man can learn from his mistakes, the wise man laughs and learns from the mistakes of others." - Hans Lee (Me)

[Mystic205]

I simply do not understand why you feel the need to second guess your actions as a parent... yet you clearly have moral issues since you use the phrase "steal" his mount... why on EARTH would you think you could possibly NOT be doing the right thing?

Lets make this simple :

Your job as a parent is to deliver, as best you can, one healthy, intelligent, morally, socially and ethically responsible member of society... so whatever actions YOU deem fit to carry out in the execution of those duties is up to you.

The opinions of your kid, the kids friends, parents, neighbours or the rest of CB folks do not matter... but yours alone.. and your job does not end until he is out of the house, in his own place, and over 18.

You should NOT care what your kid thinks.. and if he gets badly upset then its simply time to reinforce the house heirarchy..

1. If you bought the car, take the keys off him..its your car...a car is for responsible people.
2. if he bought it, but you paid insurance, cancel it...and tell him you will call the police if he drives it (as that is illegal).
3. If he bought and insured the car himself and he is 18 then tell him it is time to leave home.

[Deathcommand]

I think alot of people don't get what he is saying.

His nephew got into an accident, so his son has his mount taken away.

As long as his son didn't do anything and understands that he should not be messing with the PB while driving, I think it should be okay.

[westcoaststyle]

Sucks for your son, to be honest. He didn't do anything wrong, but he gets something taken from him without his knowledge just because his cousin was acting a fool.

At least bring it up before taking it.

[blueyestm]

Why is there even a poll? You're the parent and whatever you decide is up to you not us.

[Willard814]

Last week my nephew got caught in an accident because he was driving and playing with his PlayBook, thanks god they got away with only monetary damages, and nothing serious happened.

My teenage son has his PlayBook on a dashboard mount, and as a responsible parent i'm looking for an app that blocks him from using his playbook while driving.

But for the meanwhile, after my brother told me this story, as a responsible parent i took away the dashboard mount from my son.

Do you think i did the right thing?

TAKE IT! You birthed him and he is YOUR responsibility morally and monetarily. If he crashes and hurts or kills someone because he was on that PB you would never forgive yourself. Now just because you take it that doesn't mean he will stop using it while driving so you need to make it clear that it is dangerous to use the PB while driving.

[Daruba]

As long the feet of my kids are under my table, my wishes will be granted without any but's or if's. Everything unsafe in my eyes must be removed by them otherwise it will be removed for them. A reasonable explanation (but no discussion) is a must.

It sound a bit over the top maybe, but it will benefit everybody on the long run.

[NMSteelerfan]

I think you raise your children to hopefully make the right decision. But in a matter of safety you must step in. However, I worry more about texting while driving. The driver is usually looking down and very dangerous. Most all young drivers have a cell phone and the majority text.

[anon(3896606)]

You made the right decision, it was his fault he was driving and using it.

Sent from my BlackBerry 9800 using the CrackBerry Forums Application

[soogriff]

Youre his parent, not his pal.

[pmccartney]

As parents we can only do what's best for our own children. If you feel, as a parent, that you are ethically justified in taking it away then that is obviously up to you. We don't know you or your children.
If you feel you did the right thing, who are we to agree or disagree. Trust your gut.

Legally may be a whole different issue. Is the dash-mount being used in your car or in his own car? It's a question of ownership and off-topic.

[jwn66]

I dunno, has your Son had any accidents before? Is he smart enough to not be stupid enough to use it while moving as has been the case so far? Seems kinda knee-j3rk'ish to me. I'm sure next family get together your Son is not going to be so happy to see his cousin, I know I wouldn't lol, but hey that's me.

[apengue1]

I think you did a great thing by coming here and asking about your situation. I'm just 22 years old, but I can definitely tell that parents have very tough decisions to make sometimes, some that would make them wonder if it was the right choice, or if they were too over-protective. I'm sure the last thing any parent would want to do is to wrongly interfere with their kids life. You should talk to him about it for sure. In the end you have a decision to make, but I can tell you as much: I wouldn't be crying about it if I were in his shoes.

Maybe if he uses it as a gps somehow or whatever it may be fine, but theres no way anyone should use it for entertainment purposes while driving.

[Jean-luc_Picard]

If your son did nothing wrong, then don't take away his mount. If you have serious cause to believe that he would use his PlayBook while driving, then it might be better to confiscate it, but there are some specific details to keep in mind that have not been told yet in this story:
- If you have only a vague suspicion that he might use it dangerously, it would be better to talk instead of confiscating
- If he is above the age of majority (probably 18) then you can't legally take it (it is officially stealing). In this case either talk to them, or, if worst comes to worst, threaten or actually do report them to the police (with video evidence of them using it while driving)
- If he is above the age of majority and owns the PlayBook mount but is still using your car, then you can confiscate use of the car if you feel it is deserved, since you can't legally take the mount.

Just remember to make sure that it is deserved before action is taken. Having a PlayBook mount can be a great tool for in-car GPS, Video Chat over WiFi hotspot (audio only, of course), Internet radio, and of course charging, as well as other uses depending on the apps installed and the particular mount.

[alnamvet68]

Youre his parent, not his pal.

Thank you.

[LewLew23]

If your son did nothing wrong, then don't take away his mount. If you have serious cause to believe that he would use his PlayBook while driving, then it might be better to confiscate it, but there are some specific details to keep in mind that have not been told yet in this story:
- If you have only a vague suspicion that he might use it dangerously, it would be better to talk instead of confiscating
- If he is above the age of majority (probably 18) then you can't legally take it (it is officially stealing). In this case either talk to them, or, if worst comes to worst, threaten or actually do report them to the police (with video evidence of them using it while driving)
- If he is above the age of majority and owns the PlayBook mount but is still using your car, then you can confiscate use of the car if you feel it is deserved, since you can't legally take the mount.

Just remember to make sure that it is deserved before action is taken. Having a PlayBook mount can be a great tool for in-car GPS, Video Chat over WiFi hotspot (audio only, of course), Internet radio, and of course charging, as well as other uses depending on the apps installed and the particular mount.

I agree with this. In this case, the unjust punishment argument of "I'm taking it because I said so" could lead him to do reckless things in the car because of resentment. But being a 20 year old with a clean record, I say just talk to him about it. If he's a responsible driver, he'll understand your reason for concern.

Not gonna lie, I used a PlayBook car mount myself because I don't get good radio stations in my area of PA (lol :P). But after realizing how much of my view I was missing, I switched to a vent mount. Not only does it not restrict my view, but it's so much more comfortable to reach when stopped if I need to change songs

[olblueyez]

If he is 20, and he doesn't know better, than it is too late to teach him. Taking his mount and lectures wont accomplish anything.

[Muttypint]

I read many comments, and i feel many of you readers misunderstood me.

Just to be clear: my son is mature enough to drive a car, and if he wouldn't of been i would never of given him my car keys.

Also i'm sorry for my poor choice of words, i didn't steal the mount from him, i only confiscated it, but after a long and serious discussion with my son, i explained to him the statistics of how many accidents happened as a result to dashboard mounts.

He said he only used it for GPS, but i told him if he needs a GPS he can use my small Garmin GPS, and my point was that he shouldn't use such a large screen mount.

Anyways thanks for the support and advice to the many crackberry commentators.

[olblueyez]

Well, since its your car, I would tell him "Get the Mount Out of My Car". If it were his car then it would be his mistake to make.

Also, I don't know if you knew this but a BlackBerry smartphone with the "BlackBerry Travel" app installed can give you "Voice Prompt Navigation" at no charge, and without the use of a PlayBook.

So why would he need a PlayBook mounted in the car???