There\u2019s an adage in politics that\u2019s been around for years: don\u2019t f*** with people\u2019s cars. While the right to drive where you want, when you want is not formally enshrined in the U. S. Constitution, for decades upon end, it might as well have been.
Messing with people\u2019s cars was one of the third rails of politics \u2014 raise tolls, the gas tax or anything else that touches people\u2019s vehicles at your own peril. That\u2019s why gas taxes across the U. S. are exponentially lower than they are in Europe. Politicians concocted Tollway Authorities to create an independent, unelected bad guy to take the blame when tolls had to be raised. It\u2019s why the movement to privatize toll roads never really took off.
But in the last five years, that has all started to change. Cars \u2013 and the right to drive them \u2013 are not quite as cherished as they used to be.
Fewer sixteen-year-olds than ever are getting their drivers licenses \u2013 it\u2019s easier and cheaper to just take an Uber or a Lyft.
Increasingly people keep moving into cities, making cars less necessary. And as autonomous vehicles take hold, riding in a car will become no different than taking any other form of public transportation. But as the politics of not messing with people\u2019s cars wanes, a new refrain has taken root \u2014 don\u2019t f*** with people\u2019s phones.
Phones are more than a utility and they\u2019re more than ubiquitous. They\u2019re our lifeblood to society \u2013 to our work, our family, our friends, our interests.
The digital world has become the physical world. And if people were passionate about their right to drive, they\u2019re even more steadfast in their right to use their phones as they please, when they please, how they please. And that will bring about major changes in society.
For example:
The same is true for gaming. It\u2019s one thing for a state government to slowly dole out casino licenses. But telling people they can\u2019t play poker or video games for money on their phones comes with a much higher political cost (it means saying no to everyone) \u2013 and that\u2019s why legalization of virtually all forms of gaming will happen a lot sooner than people realize.
Politicians tailor their views, votes, policies and actions to cater to the people who can elect or un-elect them. And given that those who actually do vote (especially in primaries) tend to be highly partisan and highly ideological, the people they elect then religiously represent their views, which means constant polarization and dysfunction. But the easier it is to vote, the more people will vote. The more people vote, the more mainstream our politicians become because they have to start representing the views of more and more people. And when politicians are acting within the mainstream, that allows them to \u2013 finally \u2013 work together and get things done.
Politicians learned to behave with extreme caution on anything related to cars. If they don\u2019t learn to exercise the same restraint on anything connected to people\u2019s phones, they\u2019ll pay a steep price. So as a new President takes office, a new Congress settles in, and new Governors and state legislatures begin their sessions, here\u2019s a new political adage to commit to memory: don\u2019t f*** with people\u2019s phones.<\/p>\n

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