Sorry dont agree
Sorry Jason, but your arguments dont stand.
1) Deaf people realise they have lost one sense so they make up for it by being extraordinarily attentive to the other ones. For one, they are very unlikely to cross a major intersection without waiting for the little green man and they will use their eyes to make sure the path is clear before ever putting one foot on to the road.
2) No-one is saying you will be punished for "f*cking up" as you so fabulously put it. You will get a A$100 fine if you walk out on to the road without looking, against the red man, and whilst wearing headphones/earplugs. This is already a law (whether your wearing headphones/earplugs or not). This sounds to me like the police are just putting everyone on notice that they are going to start enforcing this law. And the prosecutions for causing an accident, seem reasonable to me. Whether your wearing headphones or not, if you cause an accident by being stupid or inattentive then you deserve to feel the brunt of the law.
3) I'm just going to ignore your third paragprah as useless hyperbole.
4) Pedestrians still get the right of way in most cases but it is a give and take situation. When you are driving and you approach a set of traffic lights which are green you have a reasonable expectation that this means people are not going to step out in front of you. Just as for a pedestrian, when the little green man is lit up you have an expectation that a car is not going to run a red light and knock you down whilst your crossing. Its all about consideration. And when a car driver does hit a person who has stepped directly into the path of their car with no chance to brake in time, its more then one life thats ruined. Not only does it affect the family of the victim, but the driver of the car is usually shattered as well - no-one likes to be responsible for the death or incapacitation of someone else...
So you can call this an attack on people's liberty and their right to make mistakes, but I cannot see it that way. If this campagin stops one person from being bulldozed to death because they werent paying attention, then thats a dozen people connected to that person who avoid having their lives torn apart as well, and for me thats a damn good thing...