It’s hard being first and one might imagine all 49 pairs of eyes (assuming one set of eyes per state, of course) will be on Virginia to see how educators implement the program, the messages used, and the methods by which the program is evaluated.

According to Virginia-based WDBJ7.com, the state attorney general warned a group of high school students by showing what appeared to be the social networking profile of a 15 year-old girl, but was actually a 31-year-old serial child molester currently serving a 45-year prison term.

A half century in jail maybe fine in Virginia, but down on the bayou they’re considering castration as an option for dealing with guys like that. It’ll be fun to see who complains.

Otherwise, it seems pretty clear that other states will follow Virginia’s educational objectives, if not exactly their sentencing protocols. One day, Internet safety classes will be as normal as driver’s ed and drug abuse counseling, complete with state cops (and attorney generals these days) telling the most gruesome stories they can pull from their lemon squeezers.

(In my day, after watching a video reel where Pinocchio becomes unstrung by sniffing glue, a state trooper regaled us destined for delinquency 10-year-olds with tales of corroded nostrils and PCP-fueled bare-knuckles jail-cell brick removal. And then there was the little boy that got his head cut off….Sort of makes you long for the days when adults tried to scare you with fairy tales instead of actual events.)
 

Virginia’s General Assembly is proposing legislation that would prohibit texting while driving an electric wheelchair, riding a bicycle, motorcycle and a moped.

"Obviously, text messaging is a huge distraction. No one could dispute that," Janet Brooking executive director of Drive Smart Virginia, a statewide nonprofit advocacy group told the Washington Post. "We could save a lot of lives with these bills."

The penalty for driving while texting would be a misdemeanor punishable by a fine of up to $250 and court costs. Dana Schrad, executive director of the Virginia Association of Chiefs of Police, said it would be a challenge to enforce the law because it’s difficult to look into moving cars. She did say they would look for other problems such as weaving or slowing down.

A year ago Virginia legislators made it illegal for anyone under 18 to talk, send text messages or snap photos with a cell phone while driving, but they will only be ticketed if they are stopped for another offense.

Joe Farren, spokesman for the CTIA-The Wireless Association said his organization supports the ban. "We don’t think anyone should text message while driving," he said. "We don’t have a problem with that."