Don’t do that!  It’s wrong!  Don’t do that; you’ll get hurt!  don’t do that; it’s not nice!  don’t do that; it’s illegal! Don’t do that, because I said so!  DON’T DO THAT!

That’s what Adam and Eve were told about eating the apple in The Garden of Eden.  That’s what Pandora was told about opening that box given to her on her wedding day.  That’s what we were all told a million times by our parents when we were kids, and it’s what we tell our kids.

Adam and Eve ate the apple.  Pandora opened her box.  Kids always seem to do exactly what they have been told not to do.  We certainly did.  It’s part of human nature.  It’s practically a law.  Whatever is forbidden, we will do.

The antithesis of “don’t do that!” is “I can’t do that!”  It also is very common and natural among humans.  I can’t do that, because it is wrong.  I can’t do that, because I’ll get hurt.  I can’t do that, because it will hurt somebody else.  I can’t do that, because it goes against everything I believe in!  When we feel this way about some act, chances are extremely good that we will not do it.

Reacting to the epidemic of electronically distracted driving, our modern authorities have rejected the long established fact that driving is a full-time job.  They nether expect nor teach us to control our cars, watch the road, concentrate, or take any pleasure in driving.  In this way, they deny us the opportunity to develop the deep conviction that ” I can’t do that!”