...Brittany Morgan 13 March 2009 J. Stockdale WR 122 11:30 Drunk Driving Between World War One, World War Two, and the Vietnam War, five hundred thousand one hundred and sixty-one people were killed; drunk driving has killed an estimated one point seven million people since World War One (Fehrenbach). According to the MADD group, fifty to seventy-five percent of drunk drivers whose licenses are suspended continue to drive. Lives are lost because of people’s selfishness and dangerous activity while under the influence of alcohol, and the punishment does not fit the crime. According to the Mothers Against Drunk Driving advocacy group, About three in every ten Americans will be involved in an alcohol-related crash at some time in their lives. On average someone is killed by a drunk driver every forty minutes. In two-thousand seven alone, an estimated twelve thousand nine hundred and ninety-eight people died in drunk driving related crashes (MADD). Edgar Snyder and Associates reports that alcohol-related car crashes kill someone every thirty-one minutes and injure someone every two minutes. In Oregon alone in two-thousand and seven, four hundred and fifty-five people were killed by drunk drivers. Thirty-three percent of those drivers had a point zero eight blood-alcohol content or higher. Frequent drunk drivers are responsible for almost sixty percent of alcohol-related fatalities (Snyder). Obviously, drunk driving is a huge issue. Right now, there are several punishments...
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...The social issue I picked to write on is drunk driving, which in today’s society has become a huge issue. Back when I started driving, drunk driving was not looked upon the same as it does today. People who were involved in an alcohol related crash or accident were usually not punished like they are today. Along with that driving under the influence carried a well less penalty then it does today. Driving under the influence of alcohol is one of the most dangerous things you can do. There is a mass of information out there on how alcohol affects your body pertaining to driving. Excessive drinking has become a bigger problem in today’s world not only with college kids but with older people to. For example according to Tara Parker Pope (2012) “New research shows that four times a month, one in six Americans goes on a drinking binge, knocking back an average of eight alcoholic beverages within a few hours.” Society’s views on drunk driving have changed a lot due to awareness of it and the effects it has on people and families. It affects society in a huge way with the fact that a lot of people die every year from being hit or hitting someone else in a drunk driving accident. Every year thousands of people are involved in an alcohol related accident, which effects many people from their family and friends to the people they got in an accident with. Drunk driving as a whole effects the whole society, at some point in your life you will of known someone who either was seriously hurt...
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...Three people are killed every two hours due to alcohol-related highway car crashes (Drunk). The state of Virginia and even the United States of America continues to let off driving while under the influence of alcohol with minor punishments that do not even ensure the ongoing safety of the drivers on the road. The punishment for a first offender should be imprisonment to make the roads a safer place. The penalties set in place now does not ensure that the offender does not get behind the wheel of a car while intoxicated. The offenders do not learn any lessons by the penalties they are given currently. As the penalty is now, people are not taking this offense seriously. In fact, young people on Youtube have been posting videos of themselves drunk like it is a normal, inconsequential action (Primack). If there was a new penalty put in place that imprisons first offenders of drinking and driving, the numbers of alcohol-related car accidents would surely drop significantly, and stop the younger generation drinkers from thinking it is impossible for them to get in trouble for their action. The penalties for driving while under the influence are too loose compared to how serious the crime is. In the state of Virginia, the penalty for a first offender of driving while under the influence is a license suspension and a fine of a maximum of three-hundred dollars (DUI). This punishment is not nearly as harsh as it should be. Suspending an offender’s license does nothing to ensure the...
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...whether or not to drive under the influence of alcohol faces a person, he often does not realize the consequences of his actions, and therefore makes an extremely uneducated decision. Many people believe that increasing fines for drunk driving offenders will play a significant part in the cutting down of driving under the influence. However, while stiffer DUI laws will look affective on paper, they will not make a substantial step in the fight against drunk driving. The only benefit of increased drunk driving fines goes to the law enforcement agency that collects the fines. Because the majority of DUI stops happen to individuals who do not believe that they have become drunk, a person who chooses to drive does not even consider the fine that he may receive, no matter the amount. If an intoxicated person believes that he has the ability to drive home safely, a new law passed by state representatives will not stop them. A state increasing its DUI fines, will not make the police notice a decline in the amount of drunken driving stops, nor a decreased amount of alcohol related accidents. The only change that would come from such an increase would come in a boost in state government funds pouring in from DUI offenders. While the fight against drunk driving seems to have no end, many other solutions exist besides the raising of fines. One such solution lies in education. If the general public becomes properly educated about the meaning of intoxication, they will have the ability...
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...Drunk Driving Drunk Driving Has drunk driving somehow affected your life? Do you know someone who has been convicted of driving under the influence? Are you guilty of this crime? Drinking and driving is still a major problem in the world today and I believe that more severe penalties should be implemented for first time offenders to perhaps reduce the high recidivism rate. I believe if I had a stiffer punishment for my first DUI, I might not have gotten a second DUI. Statistics don’t lie. About one-third of all drivers arrested or convicted of driving while intoxicated or driving under the influence of alcohol are repeat offenders. (Johnston,2011) Had these repeat offenders had harsher consequences for the first offense, the second offense may have been prevented. In 2011, 9,878 people died in drunk driving crashes. That is one every 53 minutes. Drunk driving affects everyone in a community and deaths related to alcohol take their toll. An average drunk driver has driven drunk 80 times before first arrest.( Vital signs,2011) Getting caught and convicted for DUI the first time doesn’t necessarily mean that it is the first time the person has been drinking and driving. My first DUI was when I was 21 and my second DUI was when I was 31. I was drinking and driving for ten years and was never caught. The reported numbers are scary enough and they are only the people that get caught. Even scarier are the amount people who aren’t caught every time they drink and drive...
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...Are Drunk Driving Laws too Lenient? Roberta Williams BCOM/275 July 22, 2014 Facilitator: Terrice Watson 3 family members, 1 other man killed in high-speed, head-on car crash on Southwest Side Chicago police investigating whether alcohol was involved Three of the men killed were family, lived together and, for the last 11 years, worked together at McCormick Place. Otis Thomas labored at the convention center for 25 years, and he helped get jobs there for his son Otis Jolliff and the younger man's cousin Theodore Jolliff, both 28. (Mitchum, R and Kridel K, 2008) I see the image every day of my life; the three caskets lined up head to foot. My brother lay lifeless between his son and his nephew; the son of his identical twin brother. Lives so entwined because identical twin brothers had one son each by two sisters, so here lies husband, fathers, sons, brother, grandfather, uncles, nephews, first cousins and an unimaginable pain of a family so rooted in love and relationships that was torn asunder by a drunk driver. Fathers and sons so close, they even worked together. One twin decided he would get someone else going his way to drop him off. That decision saved his life. The other three headed the same way and a drunk driver barely under the legal age for alcohol killed all three of these beloved men and died himself that fateful night. Do I feel that drunk driving laws are too lenient? Hell yes!!! I do, but statistics of nationwide fatalities and accidents and...
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...Special license plates for drunk-driving offenders originated in Ohio and Minnesota. In 1994, Ohio was the first known state in the United States to require these special plates. According to the National Conference of State Legislatures, in Ohio, the plates are bright yellow with red numbers, require a BAC .17 or higher, and require a second conviction. In addition, if the DUI offender owns more than one vehicle then the DUI plates must be added to every owned vehicle. The DUI offender also pays a fine of up to $1,000 and can face jail time up to six months. Minnesota’s DUI license plates are white with blue or black text and the numbering on Minnesota’s special plates begins with a ‘W’ and they’re often reference as whiskey plates. In Minnesota,...
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...Buzz Driving is still Drunk Driving Comm215 Buzz Driving is still Drunk Driving When will we come together and realize drinking and driving destroys families? Everyday in America, 28 people die as a result to drunk driving. Each one of those deaths was someone’s mother, father, son, daughter, brother or sister and each one of those deaths could have been prevented. This is not me sitting here trying to convince you why would should not drink and drive; on the contrary, this is a wake up call America. This epidemic has severe life threatening consequences and could be decreased if we all took steps toward ending this epidemic. Everyday, someone drunk is commuting on the same streets and highways that you and I use; many lives are taken away because of the selfish act of one person. In 2012, 10,322 people died in drunk driving crashes, which came out to one death in every 51 minutes. The average drunk driver is said to drive 87 times drunk before he is ever pulled over with suspicion of drunk driving. About 12% of offenders are convicted of a second offence within 10 years. With statistics like that, you cannot help but to imagine that during every hour of the day, someone is on the roadways who has had too much alcohol to drink. Every year, 900,000 people are arrested for drunk driving and of those 1/3 of those are repeat offenders meaning they are simply going to do it again. Many years ago for example, an individual I knew had been arrested five times for...
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...Unfortunately that trust is often in many cases. Teen driving while intoxicated is one of the worst causes of deaths, in the young of the community. The causes are many, a parental figure that was not there when the child was younger, in the more formative stages of their life. A bad parental figure, which has shown the young drivers, that while there are rules, they teach that the rules do not apply to everyone. And young adults, who have just entered the college setting. Instead of concentrating on learning, to advance their education, they concentrate on the social aspects of college, fitting in, and trying to be socially acceptable. This has a significant chance to lead to the “rowdier” lifestyle, which can lead to the more socially acceptable, but illegal choices. According to Shelia Sarkar, and Marie Andreas, on a poll done with 1430 teen drivers, 880 of the teen drivers had traffic violations, which included speeding, drag racing, and driving under the influence. Younger drivers are more likely to overestimate their driving skills, especially young male drivers. When a driver overestimates their driving skills, they tend to be more agreeable to the riskier, and even lethal behaviors. Driving while under the influence is one of the more dangerous behaviors at any age, but especially for a teen driver who does not have the experience that an older driver does. It has been proven that those teen drivers, who were exposed to drunk driving, have a much higher chance of actually practicing...
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...Impaired driving is a critical problem in the United States. When intoxicated people decide to operate a vehicle, they endanger everyone that is on the road. The Public Service Announcement shows a drunk man driving his truck and swerving on the road. The drunk driver collided with another vehicle with a husband, wife, and daughter in the car and killed them. In the Public Service Announcement (PSA),”Drunk Driving Kills”produced by the Governor's Council on Impaired Driving, the councils presentation of pathos prevail over ethos and logos, but ethos and logos is shown in the PSA. The emotion that the PSA, “Drunk Driving Kills” gave off to the audience was powerful. The video showed a family in a car. The husband, wife, and their daughter....
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...“In 2014, 9,967 people were killed in alcohol-impaired driving crashes, accounting for nearly one-third (31%) of all traffic-related deaths in the United States.” According to the CDC. Drunk driving is one the biggest dangers in the world, when it comes to driving. Usually drunk driving physically affects people that aren’t drinking, more than the drunk driver themselves. This is because when someone is drunk their reflexes are very delayed, so when they are about to get in an accident they don’t tense up their bodies and their bodies moves with the vehicle on impact. This plays a big role on how badly you are injured or not. When people are sober, and they are about to get in an accident, they tense up which causes them to try and resist impact. Doing this is what causes so many injuries and this is why drunk drivers get away without even a scratch so often in accidents. Even though drunk driving car accidents may cause more physical pain to the non drunk drivers, often times the emotional pain is too much to bare when a drunk driver has killed someone in an accident. I couldn’t...
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...Many car drivers find out the hard way that the posted speed limit is meant for optimum road surface and driving conditions. The same is true for commercial or owner operator truck drivers except that there are many more circumstances for them to watch for. Driving too fast for the road conditions or in situations that are adverse to trucks can lead to an accident. Here are three of them: Slippery Pavement This category includes wet pavement as well as snow and ice conditions. Although wet pavement doesn't cause slipping and sliding when walking on it, you will find it slippery when braking to avoid an accident and during swerve maneuvers. Your weight and your trailer increase your braking distance, and if you aren't careful, a jackknife...
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...Each year, thousands of people are arrested for drunk driving across the state of Arizona. In fact, the Governor’s Office of Highway Safety reported that there were more than 23,000 driving under the influence arrests in 2014 alone. Often, those who are charged with DUI in the state think only of the potential jail time and driver’s license suspension that may result from a conviction of this offense. However, there are numerous costs associated with drunk driving convictions in the state, which drivers need to be aware of. According to the Arizona Department of Transportation, those who are convicted of drunk driving in Arizona will be fined a minimum of $1,250 for a first offense. Additionally, they may be required to pay state fees, court...
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...#1 Current Event Summary A car accident happened in New York, where an old couple’s car got hit by a young driver. The old couple’s car was following the traffic rules--they were driving under a green light. However, the young driver did not stop his car even though the traffic light had its red light. As a result, the couple got killed. After a thorough investigation, the police found out that the driver was intoxicated before and while driving. Relevant Terms Alcohol (7): Alcohol is a depressant, which means that it slows down the body system, especially the autonomic nervous system. The driver was intoxicated before the accident, which means that the driver’s autonomic system was depressed when his car hit the couple’s car. The driver’s...
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...effected by drink driving and/or drug driving. It happens more to younger people, the reason for this is because of their will of freedom and being more open to the new world causes them to be wreckless and perr presure can bring them down as well. Around 1000 drivers are caught drink driving and just under half of that, are the amount of deaths caused by drink driving. The analysis showed, 11 per cent of fatalities in recent years were attributable to driving under the influence of illicit drugs and 15 per cent to driving under the influence of alcohol. Last year 309 people died on NSW roads , the lowest annual total since 1923. Drug and drink driving that needs to be stoped and put to comrinise to help keep the lives of people driving and others on the road. So if you're out drinking or getting high as a kite, have a dezo (designated driver, sober driver) to take care of you, make sure you don't do anything wreckless and to take you home if needed to. If you can't get someone to take you home or you've had too much to drink or, just walk it home, or catch a late bus or call a...
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