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No excuses for drunk driving. Yes, they have bars everywhere but there exists this concept called personal responsibility and choice. You don't have to go to a bar, and you can choose to find some form of transportation home if you are impaired that doesn't involve operating machinery. In the hands of a drunk driver a car can indeed be a 4000 pound weapon and more and more people are considering drunk driving a violent crime. If you take steps to act in a way that is dangerous and risky to other people, and they are hurt or killed, this is usually called criminal negligence.
If anything the 0.08 BAC is extremely lenient, as it allows most people to consume more than a casual amount of alcohol. Most peoples' performance is significantly impacted only after 2 drinks, and one drink can be dangerous in some sitautions as it can cause a person to be overconfident and less risk averse, even if performance is not impacted. Remember, alcohol affects your judgement first, so you will think you drive better than you really do.
Am I a tetotaller? Not really, though I admit I'm only a casual drinker (which is not a bad thing in my book) and don't drink every day and never drink more than 1-2 per day. I definitely don't mix drinking and driving. A couple hours from bottle to throttle at least. If you need more than a few drinks per day chances are you are an alcoholic, because nobody should be needing something like alcohol that bad. In large doses it is most definitely a poison and will screw up your body.
Location: Jonquil City (aka Smyrna) Georgia- by Atlanta
16,259 posts, read 24,761,129 times
Reputation: 3587
Quote:
Originally Posted by seattlerain
The U.S. actually has one of the higher BAC limits. In Australia for instance the BAC limit is .05, and in many countries in Europe it is .02-.05.
In British Columbia, Canada first time offenders receive a 24-hour roadside suspension for BAC greater than .05, and a suspension of license for 90 days may be imposed for a BAC over .08.
In the USA, it is .005 if you have a CDL class license- even if you are not driving a commercial vehicle at the time! Somebody I know learned that the hard way!
I like Equator's dui laws: PUBLIC EXECUTION for 1ST offense
Is someone who had 3 beers driving down an empty street at 3am more of a danger than the kid driving 15mph over the speed limit down a busy street at 5pm while talking on his cell phone?
Why does one deserve thousands of dollars in fines and such? I think the current levels are too low... I mean between 2am and 4pm they should make the limit a little higher.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Katiana
There may be a difference, but they are still intoxicated. They can still kill someone else, the big concern.
You can still kill someone while speeding; which you admittedly regularly do.
Actually, you're more likely to kill someone than the guy going the speed limit down an empty street with a .1 BAC at 3am.
Satistc show that drunk and driving under influence of drugs kills alot of people.The fact is that the present punishmant is very light unless they kill someone. I say they need to be stricker loking at the results of DUI.Speeding alos needs to be strickly enforced. One doesn't defend the other.
Is someone who had 3 beers driving down an empty street at 3am more of a danger than the kid driving 15mph over the speed limit down a busy street at 5pm while talking on his cell phone?
Why does one deserve thousands of dollars in fines and such? I think the current levels are too low... I mean between 2am and 4pm they should make the limit a little higher.
You can still kill someone while speeding; which you admittedly regularly do.
Actually, you're more likely to kill someone than the guy going the speed limit down an empty street with a .1 BAC at 3am.
I doubt it. When I am talking about my speeding, I'm talking about going 40 in a 35 mile retail zone. 0.1 is pretty blotto, and pretty dangerous, for example, 7 beers in a 3 hr period for a 180 # person.
DUI laws are a bit differant in each state but as a money maker for the system it's out of control! If drinking is such a crime then what are we to do with all the bars. People have to leave at some point so then what? And if you do get a dui then what about getting a speedy trial and a verdict? Are dui lawyers in bed with the system to screw their clients? How much is the price of justice?
I've gone to bars...and IF I was going to be driving when I left, I drank accordingly. If you have no more than TWO drinks, and spend over three hours at the bar, you will not be impaired. If you drink more than that, you should have an alternative to driving yourself. Perhaps a designated driver, a taxi, or just walk home.
It is NOT up to the barman to determine HOW you're getting home...that's YOUR responsibility. The barman is trying to make a living.
I love how in these posts NO ONE has EVER driven while, say, had 3 or 4 beers in the course of 2 hours. No way. And then we get a lot of soap boxes and preaching and the like.
Quick side bar: I love how on the City Data forums, when a topic of speeding comes up in any forum / city area, etc., virtually NO ONE responding to the post has EVER sped in their lives! Seriously, everyone drives the speed limit here, and no one has ever picked up so much as one speeding ticket (or if they have, it was their first in 25+ years of driving). Yet, as I chug down the highway in a 65 at my 72, virtually everyone and their mother zooms past me at 10+ much higher than me (and yes, I have picked up a few speeding tickets in my day). So I guess even though 95% of society seems to speed fairly reguarly, none of those folks have the time to be on CD!!
I've sped...when I have driven...because I don't like to be in the car to begin with--so the less time I spend in it the better. However, I am always in perfect control of my vehicle and will not touch the windows, radio, talk on a cell phone, read, eat a burger, etc. while driving. I require total, non-impaired, concentration in order to drive.
I only got a LICENSE about 10 years ago. I'm 38. Before that...and even AFTER that...I've walked, or taken taxis, when I've had somewhere to go. That's an option for those who drink too! I suppose that if they've wasted all their money on booze, it might be hard to pay for a cab...so have some self-control. Oh, right, self-control isn't high on the list of alcoholics' priorities.
I love how in these posts NO ONE has EVER driven while, say, had 3 or 4 beers in the course of 2 hours. No way. And then we get a lot of soap boxes and preaching and the like.
Look, of course no one can condone driving while stammering, slurring, stumbling, blind drunk. NO ONE can / does. So I think that should pretty much be a moot point. It's like saying "I am not in favor of murder" or "I am not in favor of stealing." Well bravo. Neither is 99% of humanity in theory (even if someone has errored in their way temporarily and stolen, surely they deep-down wouldn't be in favor or stealing).
However, I often laugh at this lecturing: I have never driven drunk and those that do are the devil. Well, here is the truth: I have personally never received a DUI, however, there have been times that admittedly, had I been stopped by police, I probably would've been over the .08 legal limit. Am I proud of that? No. However, unless folks do not drink even semi-socially / regularly at all (and if they don't, good for them - that is a proud and noble thing), most people have at one time or another driven when they would've pushed that .08 limit.
No matter what the stats show, .08 is not very hard for most people to hit. Throw down 4 beers in 2 hours. You likely at that 120 minute mark will be at or above .08. Do the same with 2 margaritas or glasses of wine - at or well above.
****And now here is the real kicker: Those .08 - 1.0 folks - are no more the "killers" on the roads than the speeders or reckless drivers (of which almost every member of society is guity of at one time or another, regardless of whether they wish to admit to such on the City Data forums).
Quick side bar: I love how on the City Data forums, when a topic of speeding comes up in any forum / city area, etc., virtually NO ONE responding to the post has EVER sped in their lives! Seriously, everyone drives the speed limit here, and no one has ever picked up so much as one speeding ticket (or if they have, it was their first in 25+ years of driving). Yet, as I chug down the highway in a 65 at my 72, virtually everyone and their mother zooms past me at 10+ much higher than me (and yes, I have picked up a few speeding tickets in my day). So I guess even though 95% of society seems to speed fairly reguarly, none of those folks have the time to be on CD!!
****Anyway, back to the point. The .08 to 1.0 folks aren't the killers. That is what kills me about the DUI laws in states. They treat a first time guy who threw down 4 beers in a couple of hours and never had a DUI before and blew a .09 the same as the guy that stumbles into the blower and throws up a 2.6. I would argue that a .09 should be a misdemeanor - LESS that the current penalties - however, a 2.6 should be a MAJOR criminal offense eg: MORE than the current penalties.
Where the whole "money making" factor comes into play that the OP is talking about is here. If we were REALLY concerned about public safety / lives saved / the safety of roads, etc., than we'd really go after - and go after hard - the multiple time/repeat offenders and the extremely high BAC blowers (eg: those that are indeed the ones crawling to their cars, bombed, trashed, etc.). However, we instead go equally hard at the one-time guy who threw back one too many beers in the 2 hours after work but was trying to be responsible enough to ensure he/she was competent to drive: there is a big difference.
And if you say, "well you should NEVER drive after drinking ANY alcohol", I may not disagree, however, then make sure that YOU YOURSELF have never driven after consuming any alcohol in your life. Not just that you weren't caught, but that you didn't ever do it. If you have though, you'd be surprised how quickly you may have raced to that .08 thresh-hold.
My point isn't the condone / support drunk driving. Surely - again, as I stated above - I don't think many if any would support it. But I do sometimes questions if a .08 fellow is truly "driving drunk" in the way we most often think of - and rightfully fear for our safety of - the folks that are say 2.0+ - there is just such a big difference. And also, as I stated with my speeding example, it is amazing how quick in our age we are to judge others for behaviors in which we ourselves have participated before in in our history and just were - I guess fortunate - to not have been caught in.
As a father of 2 precious young little ones, I am for good, reasonable, safe driving habits from anyone - whether it be in relation to drinking, speeding, reckless driving, etc.
I have never had even 1 drink and then drove. I would never take that chance with your precious little ones. No drink of anything ever tasted that good that I would take that risk with someone else's life. Have you ever had your kids in the car with you when you've been over the limit? If yes, does your children's mother know this?
The high penalties, lawyer fees, alcohol classes, loss of license and/or breathalizer attached to the car's ignition are supposed to be deterrants! Too bad the average person can't afford to pay for a DUI. Do you think the average person who gets hit by a drunk driver can afford to be hurt or worse?
There are laws about driving under the influence of controlled substances and they are just as strict as drunk driving laws... as they should be.
I don't think anyone should drive while impaired. I do have a problem with the possibility of getting caught up in the system for blowing exactly a .08 but getting pulled over for a broken tail light. It doesn't matter if it is .08 or .2. You will go to jail. It doesn't take much to get to .08.
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