I bet phone usage is also a factor.

Keep in mind that while we had cell phones for a while, it’s only within the past 10 years that the whole “distraction economy” became a thing, so while people may have used phones to communicate back in the day, nowadays they might be using the phones even more just to attend to those distractions.

With T9 you could send a text with your one hand in your pocket. Try that with an iPhone...

Text-to-speech is available on the iPhone, is it not?

And it probably has the same accuracy as the spellcheck on the T9, unless you meant to talk about the ducking ponyman in your text.

The phone usage thing also affects European countries though. Large cars becoming more common is an issue more unique to the US.

That's a good point, although the phone usage could have a multiplier effect and cause proportionally more trouble in the US due to the bigger cars and more-car-oriented environment.

Plus, modern US trucks are as big (if not as heavy) as WW2 tanks. Photos taken from the infamous DailyMail, but they look correct to me, that is [1] and [2]

[1] https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2021/07/25/21/45875073-9823577-...

[2] https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2021/07/25/21/45876985-9823577-...

> if not as heavy

A difference in mass of around 15x, I believe.

In some states you can register a tank to drive on the street!

A Ford F150 is most dangerous to small pedestrians (i.e. your kids or the kids of those you visit) in the driveway which you can't see over your hood due to its size.