For Drivers Who Text: a Scarlet Bracelet

Iowa drivers caught texting while driving under a new law aren't getting tickets. Instead, police are handing out brightly colored thumb bracelets that bear the phrase TXTING KILLS, reports the Wall Street Journal. The idea is to raise awareness, with fines kicking in next year. State employees are also distributing the bracelets at fairs and football games.

So far, authorities say they're not having much luck catching drivers in the act. Once a few stops are made, "the kids text out, 'Watch out, put your phones down,'" says a spokesman for the Public Safety office. The Daily Intel blog at New York magazine is a wee bit skeptical of the bracelet approach. "Seriously, have you ever seen a kid in a DARE shirt that wasn't stoned?"
(More driving while texting stories.)