That wave is gone. And we all know why.

It's your phone. It's everyone's phone. The distracted driving epidemic on Bay Area roads has gotten so normalized that people don't even bother with the apologetic hand anymore. As one local commuter put it: "I don't need a wave… just need them to start driving." Another noted that when they do get a reaction these days, "it's usually a middle finger."

Cool. Very cool.

In the span of a single hour recently, one Bay Area driver reported witnessing: a woman navigating a parking garage with a dog on her lap, a driver on 101 going 40 in a 55 zone with both hands on his phone and zero eyes on the road, and another car straddling two lanes of opposing traffic because the driver was mid-scroll. This isn't unusual. This is just Tuesday.

Let's talk brass tacks. California already has hands-free laws on the books. The problem isn't legislation — it's enforcement, or the near-total lack of it. SFPD and CHP have been stretched thin, and distracted driving citations have cratered even as smartphone use behind the wheel has skyrocketed. When laws exist but nobody enforces them, you don't have laws. You have suggestions.

We're libertarians at heart here at The Dissent. We don't love the nanny state. But here's the thing about your right to scroll Instagram at 60 mph: it ends where someone else's bumper — or body — begins. This isn't a victimless crime. People die. One reader shared that they lost someone to a reckless driver who T-boned a car at 80 mph at 11 in the morning. That's not a statistic. That's a funeral.

You want less government in your life? Great. Start by not giving the government a reason to put cameras at every intersection and tracking chips in every steering wheel. Put the phone down. Bring back the wave. The bar is literally on the ground, and we're still tripping over it.