[Blazin72]

How do you guys feel about a system like this?
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070103/...runken_driving
I think this is a very good idea.

[73oldsman]

I don't think you will find the people with the alcohol problem buying these cars if they can't drive them....

[Blazin72]

Who said you had to have an alcohol problem? It's very common that an "average" person will have a few too many drinks and drive home or to wherever they have to go. Most of the time they make it just fine but it only takes once. If that system means keeping even one intoxicated driver off the road then that's fine by me.

[61bone]

Kinda smacks of "big brotherism" but if would keep GDDD's off the road I'm all for it. Not that I support it, but seems odd that pot is illegal but booze isn't.
Now all we need is a moron detector and a cel shutdown.

[killerformula]

Originally Posted by 61bone

Kinda smacks of "big brotherism" but if would keep GDDD's off the road I'm all for it. Not that I support it, but seems odd that pot is illegal but booze isn't.
Now all we need is a moron detector and a cel shutdown.

True enough, but think about it, the list doesn't end there. Look, I'm not going to say driving drunk is a good idea. Its not. Its irresponsible and stupid, but I dont think its the "evil" thing folks make it out to be, and I'll tell you why:

The only reason to punish drunk driving is because when people get drunk they're making two choices to drive in an unsafe manner (through statistics, we can actually quantify how unsafe they are). They first make a conscious choice to drink (past the legal limit, however much that is for them) and then they make a second choice to drive even though they probably know its not as safe as when they are sober.

My issue is this: if we're going to punish people who make a conscious choice to drive unsafely, shouldn't we punish all acts of choosing to drive unsafe in the same fashion? Driving without rest can make you drive as though you've had as many as four drinks. People on cell phones are twice as likely to cause an accident than those who are not. People who are late to work and speeding cause more accidents. I hate to say it, but what about some of the people on the road who are getting too old to drive but still choose to drive even though their sight is failing or cannot hear well anymore? Some of these aren't punished at all, yet quantifiably they are as bad if not worse than certain levels of intoxicated driving. Why is this?

Its because alcohol has a stigma as being "immoral or wrong" which goes back to the puritanical roots of our country. Heck, there was an entire prohibition within the last century attempting to ban the substance completely!

I guess I don't mind if drunk drivers get punished in a harsh manner, but lets start picking off other drivers who are unsafe too as long as safety is more what our laws are governing than morality!

K

[Henry Highrise]

In response to KillerFormula.........The drunks are caught more than the others. Probably because law enforcement is trained to kind of focus on them. In many states it is against the law to use a cell phone while driving unless a hands free device is used. Also many states as well as insurance companies are tough on elderly drivers. There are lots of things that make drivers dangerous.......you cannot forbid everything and you cannot catch everything. Years ago they used to shoot chicken thieves....but it was still a lucrative past time for many...because if you did not get caught it worked pretty good. Bottom line, anything that can be done to save lives on the road I am for.

[tab]

Originally Posted by Henry Highrise

In response to KillerFormula.........The drunks are caught more than the others. Probably because law enforcement is trained to kind of focus on them. .

Wrong..... Law Enforcement is trained to focus on "crimes" which fill the coffers. Currently the law does not support vehicle forfeiture for driving drunk. So the carnage continues.

Just last month a Fort Worth cop was murdered by a drunk when he stopped to help a woman change a tire on the highway. He got back into his car and was rear-ended. His car burst into flames and he burned to death.

If the cops would stop policing for dollars, we'd all be much safer.

[killerformula]

You're probably both right, cops are trained to find drunks, and probably the governments are capitalizing on it. The financial penalties are huge... but you can usually still drive even after the second offense! Seems somewhat.... unsafe.

K

[Henry Highrise]

Originally Posted by killerformula

You're probably both right, cops are trained to find drunks, and probably the governments are capitalizing on it. The financial penalties are huge... but you can usually still drive even after the second offense! Seems somewhat.... unsafe.

K

Nothing is perfect....this world is not a utopia.......how safe is releaseing a murderer that was sentenced to life? A lot of them get parole after 7 years.

[poncho62]

I have a better idea.............Outlaw liquor.........I wouldn't miss it, it just makes you stupid.

And, I know they tried that once.....................

[dinger]

One of the problems with our society is that stupidity is not against the law. One by one, government is taking away rights because of stupidity, people that smoke, drink, lousy diets, it has become a 'big brother' society. I'm waiting for warning labels on Big Macs. How many laws did your state pass last year? You wouldn't think they could come up with anymore new ideas, oops, here comes 200 more laws for the new year. Yet when it comes to the serious issues, immigration, death penalty, taxes, don't count on any politicians to make a stand, they may offend someone. As far as an alcohol sensor in a new auto, there's too many gizmos and gadgets in the new cars for me already, just one more gadget to malfunction. How about just a drivers license reader to start your car? What's next? Dan

[tab]

Originally Posted by Henry Highrise

Nothing is perfect....this world is not a utopia.......how safe is releaseing a murderer that was sentenced to life? A lot of them get parole after 7 years.

That's because they need the jail space for non-violent drug offenders. This gets right back to my previous post. Connect the dots Highrise.

[tab]

Originally Posted by dinger

Yet when it comes to the serious issues, immigration, death penalty, taxes, don't count on any politicians to make a stand, they may offend someone.

But the problem really lies with the voters. They are afraid to vote for the candidate who tells them the truth. They'd much rather put a POS in office who lies to them. The electorate are really just a bunch of scared children who want daddy to tell them that everything is fine, despite the reality.

[Henry Highrise]

Originally Posted by tab

That's because they need the jail space for non-violent drug offenders. This gets right back to my previous post. Connect the dots Highrise.

You connect the dots..I am doing just fine...sure glad I am not from TexAss

[pasadenahotrod]

BS and political folderall aside, when a family member is killed or grievously injured some drunken sack of garbage driving a car, capital punishment just doesn't seem strong enough punishment. I would have preferred a nice sharp skinning knife and a pair of pliers.

"Stupid people" laws are becoming so overwhelming it may be that only stupid people will survive. Natural selection would have eliminated them soon enough but the "save the world" crowd has to interfere with Mother Nature.