Allotments 4 All

I received this by email today which started doing the rounds from America:

Went to a party Mom...

I went to a party, And remembered what you said.
You told me not to drink, Mom, so I had a sprite instead.

I felt proud of myself, The way you said I would, that I didn't drink and drive,
though some friends said I should.

I made a healthy choice, And your advice to me was right.
The party finally ended and the kids drove out of sight.

I got into my car, Sure to get home in one piece.
I never knew what was coming, Mom something I expected least.

Now I'm lying on the pavement And I hear the policeman say,
the kid that caused this wreck was drunk Mom, his voice seems far away.

My own blood's all around me. As I try hard not to cry.
I can hear the paramedic say,this girl is going to die.

I'm sure the guy had no idea, while he was flying high.
Because he chose to drink and drive now I would have to die.

So why do people  do it, Mom Knowing that it ruins lives?
And now the pain is cutting me like a hundred stabbing knives.

Tell sister not to be afraid, Mom Tell daddy to be brave.
And when I go to heaven put ' Mommy's Girl' on my grave.

Someone should have taught him That it's wrong to drink and drive.
Maybe if his parents had I'd still be alive

My breath is getting shorter Mom I'm getting really scared
These are my final moments and I'm so unprepared.

I wish that you could hold me Mom As I lie here and die.
I wish that I could say, 'I love you, Mom!' So I love you and good-bye.

Poignant
I'm going to print and keep this to share with my children when they are old enough for this discussion (only 3 & 8yrs at the moment).
Thanks for posting.

Something my dad drummed into my sister and I.  I bet there aren't many people who can hold their hand up and say they have never had just one more and then driven home.

I worked on the railway, you can get drug tested any time while on duty. Permitted level of alcohol is zero. Fail and you're sacked, no argument. That's how it should be with driving.

Quote from: jjt on September 13, 2008, 01:05:52
I worked on the railway, you can get drug tested any time while on duty. Permitted level of alcohol is zero. Fail and you're sacked, no argument. That's how it should be with driving.

I work on Nottingham trams it's the same.

zero shold be the limit

lbb

I got the same email and while I agree with the sentiment of the poem, I was not impressed with the wording of the email. Firstly it didn't actually have a petition, although it asked me to sign it. Secondly it included a phrase which said, in massive letters " If you receive this petition and do nothing but delete it,your selfishness knows no bounds. " which I found quite offensive. I'm afraid I didn't sign or pass it on.

I fully agree zero tolerance. I can honestly hold my hands up and say I have never got behind a wheel if I have had a drink . If I have had just one drink I won't even drive my car round to my garage. I am fortunate that late husband was tee total and now if I need a chauffeur son John is always on hand who is also tee total. In the 70's when we had a haulage business one of our drivers, age 24 with 2 young children was killed when driving one of our lorries where the accident was caused  by a drunk driver. That took a lot of getting over especially for his family.

I think a total ban is way over the top. If people stick to the limit then thats fine IMO.

I totally agree with a total ban.
I "was" one of those that drank to a limit where i did not care about myself, let alone others.
Ultimately, i spent time in a prison cell for DD, something i do not wish upon myself or others, but i do accept that i done the crime and had to pay my time.
Fortunately for me i did not involve anyone or thing else, but i had my liberty taken from me for a period, and my family suffered as well.
Would like to say that it did not stop me drinking, as i was counting down the days to my next drink. That took a lot more.
Bryan.

Whoa Bryan - That is a brave admission.  But it also proves that prison is not necessarily the answer for drink driving.

I am sure that it cannot be that difficult to make an immobiliser which detects alcahol and will not let the car move.

I hold my hands up - I was brought up in the 60's 70's where it was a drink culture and pre breath test - and the only thing that probably saved my life and those of my friends was that we lived in the countryside where there was little traffic  in the wee small hours.  I used to drink lunchtimes and evenings.  Many's the time when I should certainly not have driven my car - but I did.  Luckily for me I never had an accident.

Nowadays I would no more get in a car after one glass than fly to the moon.  Reformed character, I do not know whether it is age, or the horrors of so many beautiful young people and families whose lives are wrecked by drink drivers.

I think that sentencing should be stiffer and that there should be a very strict "no alcohol whatsoever - ehind the wheel.

Old Bird  :o

I think that a 0 limit could produce a few problems: ie I wonder if it could find you guilty if you have eaten something with a little alcohol in it or get triggered by aftershave/perfume etc?  However, I'd be all for lowering the limit considerably.  These days I hardly ever drink or drive, let alone doing the two together.  The whole booze culture thing just saddens me: all these people who believe that it is impossible to have a good time without being plastered - we seem to have moved from drinking being an accompaniment to a good night out, to drinking being the aim and whole reason for a night out  ???. 

Rather like Old Bird, I too have driven while considerably over the limit, especially in the days when I worked for a brewery.  Getting merry was expected behaviour.

Clearly a zero limit can work - it does in Norway for example.

But what bothers me more than drink driving these days is drug driving.  Because it can't be easily tested for with a breathalyser, and because it's somehow more socially acceptable, it's much more likely that the driver who's veering all over the road or who runs into the back of you without even touching the brakes is incapacitated through cannabis than through alcohol.

Our village is reeling from the recent death of a well liked mother of 4, walking home with her husband, a few yards from our house, killed instantly by a young man driving fast while drunk, no license, no insurance. I think those verses might strike home to many people. I have in the past driven after a few drinks and always been careful and lucky, but am a reformed character these days (older wiser, more pessimistic).

Quote from: artichoke on September 16, 2008, 18:26:40
Our village is reeling from the recent death of a well liked mother of 4, walking home with her husband, a few yards from our house, killed instantly by a young man driving fast while drunk, no license, no insurance. I think those verses might strike home to many people. I have in the past driven after a few drinks and always been careful and lucky, but am a reformed character these days (older wiser, more pessimistic).

If that driver was'nt a young man, and had a licence - maybe the accident would'nt have happened - drink was a contributing factor, but not the only factor that could be considered the cause. Plus as you say he was drunk - if he had stayed within the limits (despite the fact he should'nt have been driving at all), again the accident may not have happened.

Talking about villages - at total ban would see the end of many all ready struggling village / country pubs.

Are there any statistics anywhere of accidents were the person who caused it was found to be someone who'd had a drink but was under the limit ?

Quote from: Melbourne12 on September 16, 2008, 18:20:28
But what bothers me more than drink driving these days is drug driving. 

I personally think drink driving is crazy, irresponsible stupidity. Thankfully within my group of friends it's socially unacceptable too. I feel the same about driving under the influence of drugs.

One other thing that really worries me though is driving whilst on the mobile phone. I do a lot of motorway driving and it's amazing how much bad/dangerous driving I witness, just to find as I pass the car responsible that the driver is on the phone.

Scary stuff. >:( >:(

Quote from: oakmore2 on September 17, 2008, 14:08:28

Quote from: Melbourne12 on September 16, 2008, 18:20:28
But what bothers me more than drink driving these days is drug driving. 

I personally think drink driving is crazy, irresponsible stupidity. Thankfully within my group of friends it's socially unacceptable too. I feel the same about driving under the influence of drugs.

One other thing that really worries me though is driving whilst on the mobile phone. I do a lot of motorway driving and it's amazing how much bad/dangerous driving I witness, just to find as I pass the car responsible that the driver is on the phone.

Scary stuff. >:( >:(

Driving whilst doing anything other than just driving is dangerous. The problem is modern cars make driving like sitting in an arm chair watching a contiously looping video - people get lured into a false sense of security.

I think this sums it all up..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aiVuHEv2VZ4

Quite often the drunk driver seems to be the one who survives while the innocent party is the one who dies. A colleague of my OH killed a woman when he was driving over the limit, that woman was someone's wife, mother and daughter. He got a 6 month custodial sentence and lost his license for (I think) 2 years....my husband wasn't impressed when he got his job back afterwards and he hadn't changed a bit. He killed someone by his actions, if he'd done it without the car it would have been manslaughter and he's still be in prison.
People drive cars and have accidents and people will be injured or killed. If you take drugs or alcohol which you know can impair your ability to make judgements then to me it's not an accident. Actually I don't even think people should smoke while they are driving, it can be a major distraction as bad as a mobile phone.
My brother was smoking while driving and I was with him, he dropped his cigarette and the vehicle did a full 360 skid as he tried to stop it burning him.....we were on an icey road at the time....fortunately we were on a quiet country road and didn't hit any trees.
So zero tolerance. Get a taxi.     

Quote from: Kea on September 17, 2008, 16:36:41
Quite often the drunk driver seems to be the one who survives while the innocent party is the one who dies. A colleague of my OH killed a woman when he was driving over the limit, that woman was someone's wife, mother and daughter. He got a 6 month custodial sentence and lost his license for (I think) 2 years....my husband wasn't impressed when he got his job back afterwards and he hadn't changed a bit. He killed someone by his actions, if he'd done it without the car it would have been manslaughter and he's still be in prison.
People drive cars and have accidents and people will be injured or killed. If you take drugs or alcohol which you know can impair your ability to make judgements then to me it's not an accident. Actually I don't even think people should smoke while they are driving, it can be a major distraction as bad as a mobile phone.
My brother was smoking while driving and I was with him, he dropped his cigarette and the vehicle did a full 360 skid as he tried to stop it burning him.....we were on an icey road at the time....fortunately we were on a quiet country road and didn't hit any trees.
So zero tolerance. Get a taxi.     

A taxi back from my local costs £25 - so once a week if we can split the costs between a few of us its fine. However if i fancy a couple of pints down the pub to wind down at the end of the day after work its going to cost me £5.80 + £25 thats £30.80 for an hour in the pub and couple of pints (at that doesn't even include a packet of pork scratchins). Plus i'd have to get one of the very infrequent buses again in the morning to pick up my car - or get a Taxi again.

I reiterate - if people abide by the law - whats the problem ?