Comments on: Car Culture and Drunk Driving — They Go Together

By: David Holzman

David Holzman — Sat, 05 Sep 2009 04:41:14 +0000

I think at this point cyclists need to worry more about people driving and text messaging, or otherwise fooling with electronics than drunk driving. I’m not saying we shouldn’t worry about drunk driving, but I don’t cycle at night, and I especially don’t cycle friday and saturday nights anymore, when one is most likely to encounter drunks, but people text at any hour.

By: Ian Turner

Ian Turner — Tue, 01 Sep 2009 17:57:47 +0000

Glenn,

Couldn’t we have that penalty for drunk driving without the dual-licensng scheme?

By: Faith

Faith — Tue, 01 Sep 2009 16:17:38 +0000

The German driving age is 18 and the drinking age is 16. Then again, driving in Germany is much less necessary than here. Some of my German friends couldn’t believe that I had my own car at age 16 and drove it everywhere (through American suburbs).

By: Glenn

Glenn — Mon, 31 Aug 2009 20:01:16 +0000

Not if they want to keep their driver’s license. Think about it – a cop could stop a drunk kid, ask for their license as proof of their “eligibility to drink” and revoke their driving license if they have one.

Ok, now my other pet policy prescription: If you ever want an organ donation, you have to be willing to give up your own in case of your untimely death.

By: Ian Turner

Ian Turner — Mon, 31 Aug 2009 19:26:37 +0000

Glenn, presumably driving teens would have their friend buy them liquor, no?

By: Glenn

Glenn — Mon, 31 Aug 2009 18:28:45 +0000

I have a few pet policy solutions for public health issues and this is one of my favorites: I think at age 16 kids should be offered a choice for a five year driving license or a five year drinking license. Kids out in the suburbs would probably pick the driving, kids in the city would probably pick the drinking. Either way, you get rid of a lot of the potential for drinking and driving. Think of all the designated drivers teenagers would have…

By: Larry Littlefield

Larry Littlefield — Mon, 31 Aug 2009 18:14:27 +0000

Reminds me of a comment made a bartender up in Kingsbridge, Bronx, where I lived after college, when I nursed that second beer a little too long. “Whats-a-matter? You afraid to drink and walk?”

By: Jason A

Jason A — Mon, 31 Aug 2009 17:26:38 +0000

I find much of MADD’s efforts to be uselss and unhelpful – their anti-drinking hectoring really rubs me the wrong way… All that energy spent on demonizing alcohol, and absoluting *nothing* on promoting transit or walkable urbanism .

It’s not a terribly constructive way to reduce drunk driving.

By: Moser

Moser — Mon, 31 Aug 2009 17:21:42 +0000

Check out death penalty in China for drunk driver causing fatality:

http://www.economist.com/world/asia/displaystory.cfm?story_id=14273952

By: I \v/ NY

I \v/ NY — Mon, 31 Aug 2009 15:35:18 +0000

of course madd got it wrong, they want to recriminalize alcohol

as for drinking and driving, who said drinking was the bad one

By: Larry Littlefield

Larry Littlefield — Mon, 31 Aug 2009 15:04:09 +0000

Perhaps MADD got it wrong, and the driving age should have been raised to 21 rather than the drinking age. It wasn’t, because driving was (is) seen as a necessity and an inevitability.

By: Mark Walker

Mark Walker — Mon, 31 Aug 2009 14:55:07 +0000

One of the most direct links between driving and drinking is television. One ad showing the joy and bonhomie of drinking beer is followed by another extolling the exhilaration of aggressive driving in either natural or urban environments. Much as I love beer, I hope both go the way of cigarette ads — off the air.