As reported in one of The New York Times' technology blogs, "Bits," a Washington lobbying firm and a technology trade group have been surreptitiously pushing to reframe the debate over technology-driven distracted driving. FairWarning.org obtained and posted pieces of an internal memo from the Seward Square Group, which proposed creating an industrywide coalition called "Drive" to battle the efforts of notables such as Oprah Winfrey -- she of the "No Phone Zone" pledge -- and Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood. Obviously, reactions from officials, including LaHood, to the memo have been harsh.

Representatives of Drive say that by framing the distracted-driving argument around mobile and other tech devices, lawmakers are both stunting growth in those segments that could eventually lead to increased safety, and framing the distracted-driving debate in too narrow terms. As PR pro Babak Zafarnia, hired by Seward Square Group, has been quoted as saying: "Distraction is distraction, period."

The debate was bound to come up sooner than later, and the argument that tending to screaming kids or juggling a burger, a cup of coffee and an iPod can as easily lead to an accident as talking or texting while driving is not without merit, but it's also a bit of special pleading, no? To outright ignore the fact that drivers are four times more likely to have an accident while talking on a non-hands-free device -- and up to eight times as likely to crash while texting -- while only saying that all distracted driving is a problem -- it's a bit of misdirection based on a irrefutable, albeit oversimplified, argument. In any case, debates such as these walk the fine line between regulating personal responsibility and maintaining freedoms and privacy, so, leaked memo or no leaked memo, I wouldn't expect this to be the end of the argument.