Drinking and driving is a dangerous combination. Drinking impairs your judgment and reaction time, and driving requires both of those things. Drunk driving is one of the leading causes of car accidents and fatalities. It’s simply not worth the risk. If you’re going to drink, don’t drive. If you’re going to drive, don’t drink.
Drinking alcohol is a common practice in our society. Many people see nothing wrong with having a few drinks with friends or family members. Drinking in moderation can be harmless; however, consuming too much alcohol can lead to serious consequences. Drinking and driving is one such consequence.
When someone gets behind the wheel after drinking, they are putting themselves and others at risk. Drinking impairs a person’s judgment and reaction time, which are both essential for driving. A person who has been drinking is more likely to make careless decisions while driving, such as speeding or weaving in and out of traffic. Drinking also slows down a person’s reflexes, making it difficult to respond quickly to sudden dangers on the road.
Drunk driving is one of the leading causes of car accidents and fatalities in the United States. Every year, thousands of people are killed in drunk driving accidents. In fact, according to Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD), drunk drivers kill someone every 30 minutes. These deaths are completely preventable if people would just make the responsible decision not to drink and drive.
It’s simply not worth the risk. If you’re going to drink, don’t drive. If you’re going to drive, don’t drink. There are plenty of other ways to get home safely if you’ve been drinking. There are designated drivers, taxi cabs, and public transportation. So please, don’t drink and drive. It could save your life or the life of someone else.
The idea that lowering the BAC (blood alcohol concentration) from . 10 to . 08 is necessary to avoid unfavorable outcomes is a common mythology. What should be done about this issue is debatable, but the first step is to reduce the BAC level(BAC lower).
Many states have already taken this step and I commend them for it, but government action is required to make it law across the nation. Some people argue that this decision was made on emotion, personal vendettas, and illogical, yet sound public policy without any statistical evidence.
I strongly disagree with this opinion. I think that it is a step in the right direction and something that needs to be done to try to save lives. Drunk driving is a very serious offense with very real consequences.
Lowering the BAC will not stop all drunk driving, but it will certainly help to decrease the number of accidents and fatalities caused by drunk drivers. Some people argue that . 08 is too low and that most people can handle their alcohol and still drive safely at that level. But the problem is that you never know when you are going to run into that one driver who has had too much to drink and is now a danger to everyone on the road. It only takes one mistake to cause a serious accident or even kill someone.
The other side of the argument is that . 08 is too high and that it will punish people who have had only a drink or two. But I think that if you are at or above . 08, you are impaired and should not be driving. If you want to drink, then you should not get behind the wheel of a car. There are other options available, such as public transportation, taxis, or designated drivers.
No matter what the BAC level is set at, there will always be people who choose to drink and drive. That is why we need to have stiffer penalties for those who are caught drunk driving. The punishment should fit the crime and right now it does not. Too often, people get off with a slap on the wrist or a small fine. That is not enough of a deterrent. The punishment should be something that really makes people think twice about getting behind the wheel after drinking.
Some people advocate for installing ignition locks for first time offenders. This would keep the person from starting the car if they have been drinking. It is an effective deterrent, but it is also expensive and there are concerns that it would be unconstitutional. There are other options available, such as increasing the fines and jail time, that could be implemented without raising these concerns.
Drinking and driving is a serious problem in our country and something needs to be done about it. We need to find ways to deter people from doing this and to punish those who do. Lowering the BAC level is a good first step, but more needs to be done. Ignition locks, increased fines, and longer jail sentences are all possible solutions that should be considered. Drinking and driving is a deadly combination and we need to do everything we can to prevent it.
The BAC level is a number that indicates how intoxicated someone has been. Some people feel it should be set at. 10, while others believe it should be lowered to. 08. Here’s where the police and courts run into trouble. The old BAC requirements generally had a close relationship between what was considered to be driving under the influence and the legal BAC limit of. 15%.
Keep in mind that regardless of BAC levels, people may and frequently are arrested for drunk driving, depending on their driving behavior. ( DWI: Are we heading in the correct direction? , Internet source) The majority of alcohol-related accidents are caused by drivers with high BACs.
While most people arrested for drunk driving have a BAC level of . 15 or more, the number of drivers with a BAC level of . 08 or more is increasing. The percentage of drivers in fatal crashes with a BAC of . 08 or more increased from 18 percent in 1990 to 21 percent in 1995. In 1995, there were 1,705 fatalities in crashes involving drivers with a BAC of . 10 or more, but 2,730 fatalities resulted from crashes involving drivers with a BAC of . 08 or more ( NHTSA Drunk Driving ).
