The Voice Told Me to Turn

Satellite GPS navigation systems are all the rage (a buddy of mine just got one and it's pretty cool). However, just as you cannot take your hands off the wheel once you turn on the cruise control, you shouldn't make sudden turns just because the nav system tells you to:

A 46-year-old German motorist driving along a busy road suddenly veered to the left and ended up stuck on a railway track — because his satellite navigation system told him to, police said Sunday.

The motorist was heading into the north German city of Bremen "when the friendly voice from his satnav told him to turn left," a spokesman said.

"He did what he was ordered to do and turned his Audi left up over the curb and onto the track of a local streetcar line. He tried to back up off the track but got completely stuck."

The police spokesman said about a dozen trams were held up until a tow truck arrived to clear the car off the track.

Several German motorists have crashed their cars in recent months, later telling police they were only obeying orders from their satnavs.

Flip Wilson used to say "the devil made me do it". Today's excuse: "The nav system made me do it".