Quote:
Originally Posted by onwebcam
I did answer your question. There's nothing you, I or any statute can do about it. You/I as a friend can try to stop you/me but outside of that you/me are going to do what you're/we're going to do. Imposing fines and jail sentences doesn't help or solve the problem. It generates revenue and creates more problems for someone who already has a problem.
And in case yo missed the other thread you should read my posts there.
And I will add to that.
Cell Phone Use as Dangerous as Drunken Driving
http://www2.potsdam.edu/hansondj/Dri...830105036.html
So where do we draw the line in pointing fingers? Where does it all end? |
So then you do think it should be legal.
So let me ask you this. A guy gets drunk at a bar, gets in his car and drives home. The police pull him over because he has a broken headlight. While they have him pulled over they can see that the guy is clearly bombed out of him mind. Do they just give him a warning for the headlight and let him continue on his way since he hasn't hurt anyone or do they arrest him and put him into the system?
I agree with you that just arresting and fining someone doesn't treat the problem, but we can't just let people drive drunk until they hurt someone and then punish them.
If it were up to me here is what I would do.
1st offense. You lose your license for 6 months and are required to complete some kind of alcohol treatment program. Nothing too crazy, meetings once a week for a few months and a basic treatment program. During this time you are also not allowed to drink. SCRAM bracelets for the full term of the treatment. Allow the person to get a hardship license that allows them to go to and from work and the grocery store. This way if it was just a simple, dumb mistake that person's life isn't destroyed and they learn a lesson.
2nd offense. You lose your license for at least 2 years and have to spend 90 days in a live in treatment center. If you have a job you can leave to go to the job, but that is all. No booze for 2 years.
3rd offense. 5 years with no license and no booze. More treatment. If you drink during that 5 years or drive during that 5 years you go to jail for the remainder of of the time you have left to serve.
That might seem harsh, but it is a completely preventable thing. I have a friend who is in a wheelchair because he was rear ended by a drunk driver. My buddy was sitting at a stop light and the guy coming up behind him had a blood alcohol level of .21 and ran into him doing about 40 mph. Here is the kicker. The guy was 17 years old when this happened (he was a junior in high school, I was a senior and 18 years old). He was still a virgin and now nothing below the waist works. He has piss bag and colostomy bag. He has never gotten to have sex. He will never father children (well, maybe he could if he is still creating sperm and they did in vetro.) It is pretty difficult to even get a date when you are in a wheelchair, much less find someone who will understand what your life is like. He has a decent life and has come to grips with it, but he was robbed of a lot of the day to day joy that the rest of us have because this guy decided to get behind the wheel. We can't coddle people that are going to commit these crimes, we have to bring the hammer down on them, give them a chance to change their behavior and if they don't, we have to be done with them and put them in a situation where they can't hurt people.