DUI_charged_w/_murder
Member
Join Date: May 2007
Location: Sweden
Posts: 1,649
I usually respond to drunk driving threads the same way. ooops, guess I will do it again. I am an expat American living in Europe and drunk driving is simply not the same kind of issue it is in the states.
Most people in Europe who are planning on getting drunk will not drive, and the reason is that 1)the fines and penalties are extreme, 2)there are so many other options for transportation.
Your license will simply be taken away from you, on the spot, first offense, if you blow in the breathalyzer above level. No lawyer, no trial, no nothing: bye bye license. Bye Bye car, it get's towed and you are put in jail.
Friday night on a holiday in Stockholm you run the risk of seeing people throw up in the subway car. That is a risk I am more than thankful to take: it means they are not behind the wheel. All over the city drunk people are using subways, busses and trains and I say a little thank you prayer to my HP every time I see a drunk passenger, because I am thankful I am not drunk like them and I am thankful they are not behind the wheel, and I am so thankful they have other options for transportation besides a car.
If I lived in the states again, I would throw myself into political action supporting mass transit.
We have as of 2008 13,846 traffic deaths, for that year, due to drunk driving in the US: 37% of all traffic fatalities are alcohol related.
This forum here is proof that people don't stop drinking and driving because they can, or because they know they are an alcoholic. It seems that they do just the opposite: they do drive drunk all the time.
I did....even here in Europe when I could have had my license taken away and I would have been thrown in jail. Thankfully, I chose to use the bus and train more often than not.
Now I use the bus and train and subway to get to my AA meetings....
Most people in Europe who are planning on getting drunk will not drive, and the reason is that 1)the fines and penalties are extreme, 2)there are so many other options for transportation.
Your license will simply be taken away from you, on the spot, first offense, if you blow in the breathalyzer above level. No lawyer, no trial, no nothing: bye bye license. Bye Bye car, it get's towed and you are put in jail.
Friday night on a holiday in Stockholm you run the risk of seeing people throw up in the subway car. That is a risk I am more than thankful to take: it means they are not behind the wheel. All over the city drunk people are using subways, busses and trains and I say a little thank you prayer to my HP every time I see a drunk passenger, because I am thankful I am not drunk like them and I am thankful they are not behind the wheel, and I am so thankful they have other options for transportation besides a car.
If I lived in the states again, I would throw myself into political action supporting mass transit.
We have as of 2008 13,846 traffic deaths, for that year, due to drunk driving in the US: 37% of all traffic fatalities are alcohol related.
This forum here is proof that people don't stop drinking and driving because they can, or because they know they are an alcoholic. It seems that they do just the opposite: they do drive drunk all the time.
I did....even here in Europe when I could have had my license taken away and I would have been thrown in jail. Thankfully, I chose to use the bus and train more often than not.
Now I use the bus and train and subway to get to my AA meetings....
Member
Join Date: Aug 2009
Posts: 1,410
Originally Posted by littlefish 
I usually respond to drunk driving threads the same way. ooops, guess I will do it again. I am an expat American living in Europe and drunk driving is simply not the same kind of issue it is in the states.
Most people in Europe who are planning on getting drunk will not drive, and the reason is that 1)the fines and penalties are extreme, 2)there are so many other options for transportation.
Your license will simply be taken away from you, on the spot, first offense, if you blow in the breathalyzer above level. No lawyer, no trial, no nothing: bye bye license. Bye Bye car, it get's towed and you are put in jail.
Friday night on a holiday in Stockholm you run the risk of seeing people throw up in the subway car. That is a risk I am more than thankful to take: it means they are not behind the wheel. All over the city drunk people are using subways, busses and trains and I say a little thank you prayer to my HP every time I see a drunk passenger, because I am thankful I am not drunk like them and I am thankful they are not behind the wheel, and I am so thankful they have other options for transportation besides a car.
If I lived in the states again, I would throw myself into political action supporting mass transit.
We have as of 2008 13,846 traffic deaths, for that year, due to drunk driving in the US: 37% of all traffic fatalities are alcohol related.
This forum here is proof that people don't stop drinking and driving because they can, or because they know they are an alcoholic. It seems that they do just the opposite: they do drive drunk all the time.
I did....even here in Europe when I could have had my license taken away and I would have been thrown in jail. Thankfully, I chose to use the bus and train more often than not.
Now I use the bus and train and subway to get to my AA meetings....
Most people in Europe who are planning on getting drunk will not drive, and the reason is that 1)the fines and penalties are extreme, 2)there are so many other options for transportation.
Your license will simply be taken away from you, on the spot, first offense, if you blow in the breathalyzer above level. No lawyer, no trial, no nothing: bye bye license. Bye Bye car, it get's towed and you are put in jail.
Friday night on a holiday in Stockholm you run the risk of seeing people throw up in the subway car. That is a risk I am more than thankful to take: it means they are not behind the wheel. All over the city drunk people are using subways, busses and trains and I say a little thank you prayer to my HP every time I see a drunk passenger, because I am thankful I am not drunk like them and I am thankful they are not behind the wheel, and I am so thankful they have other options for transportation besides a car.
If I lived in the states again, I would throw myself into political action supporting mass transit.
We have as of 2008 13,846 traffic deaths, for that year, due to drunk driving in the US: 37% of all traffic fatalities are alcohol related.
This forum here is proof that people don't stop drinking and driving because they can, or because they know they are an alcoholic. It seems that they do just the opposite: they do drive drunk all the time.
I did....even here in Europe when I could have had my license taken away and I would have been thrown in jail. Thankfully, I chose to use the bus and train more often than not.
Now I use the bus and train and subway to get to my AA meetings....
I think it would be better off having alcohol for people leaving a bar at a late time. If there above 0.05 then they would have to wait until they are legally not intoxication or get someone to take them home. Make it a law that all bars are required to do so. Every time I went to a bar at closing most were drunk and sometimes the bartender was too. In the old days people walk to there local bar and very little people would drink late at night.
i've done my almost
Thread Starter
Join Date: Aug 2009
Location: Atlanta, GA
Posts: 1,934
Originally Posted by littlefish
I am an expat American living in Europe and drunk driving is simply not the same kind of issue it is in the states.
My family in Norway, would never drink and drive, but they grew up that way. I've been over there a few times and not even one drink for them if they're driving.
My cousin (from Norway) came over here (to the U.S.) a few times and he was shocked at the fact that most people would drive home after the bars and clubs closed.
I grew up in high school drinking and driving. I'm not saying that was ok, but that's what we did. I literally was driving drunk shortly after my first time drinking. It went hand-in-hand and I did it for years and really only got "caught" b/c I started blacking out and wrecking. I've never actually been pulled over (scary...).
Kjell~
Guest
Join Date: Mar 2011
Posts: 245
I learned recently that DD penalties can be corporately influenced. A friend who lives in Missouri told me that Anheuser-Busch has a lot of influence over the politicians in the state, so the penalties of a DUI are more lax than they would be if A-B wasn't present. Perhaps this is just hearsay, but I wouldn't be surprised to find out it was true...
Member
Join Date: Jun 2010
Location: Northern Utah
Posts: 920
Wow. Yeah, that totally could've been me, too. I drove drunk while in college and was lucky to never hurt anyone or get a DUI.
RIght after law school, before the idea that I had a drinking problem had crossed my mind, I was a heavy partier and a prosecutor in a town 50 miles from where I lived. Looking back, I am pretty sure I was still legally intoxicated most mornings that I was driving to my job prosecuting - of all things - DUI cases. I regularly stayed up til 2-3 in the morning and to be in court 50 miles away by 8am had to leave before 7am...Oh, my.
If that's not a picture of insanity. Luckily for the people of Northern Colorado, I failed the bar exam the first time and wasn't able to keep that job!
This topic (and the memories it brings up for me of my own insanity around alcohol) is a much-needed eye-opener into my need to never touch a drop of alcohol again. It can only get worse.
RIght after law school, before the idea that I had a drinking problem had crossed my mind, I was a heavy partier and a prosecutor in a town 50 miles from where I lived. Looking back, I am pretty sure I was still legally intoxicated most mornings that I was driving to my job prosecuting - of all things - DUI cases. I regularly stayed up til 2-3 in the morning and to be in court 50 miles away by 8am had to leave before 7am...Oh, my.
If that's not a picture of insanity. Luckily for the people of Northern Colorado, I failed the bar exam the first time and wasn't able to keep that job!
This topic (and the memories it brings up for me of my own insanity around alcohol) is a much-needed eye-opener into my need to never touch a drop of alcohol again. It can only get worse.
Member
Join Date: May 2010
Posts: 148
As ridiculous as it sounds, I'm pretty sure I subconciously wanted to get caught for a dui. I'm not sure if I was able to quit on my own without some authority telling me I have to
Luckily I just totalled my car and did not injure anybody or damage any property... Sad stories regarding dui's for sure. Scary
Luckily I just totalled my car and did not injure anybody or damage any property... Sad stories regarding dui's for sure. Scary
i've done my almost
Thread Starter
Join Date: Aug 2009
Location: Atlanta, GA
Posts: 1,934
Originally Posted by erikm02
As ridiculous as it sounds, I'm pretty sure I subconciously wanted to get caught for a dui. I'm not sure if I was able to quit on my own without some authority telling me I have to
I know exactly what you mean and I've heard this from many of my friends in AA who also have a dui(s).
I certainly wouldn't have gone to the lengths I've gone to for my sobriety had I not gotten into trouble.
Kjell~
Member
Join Date: Dec 2010
Posts: 426
It's a sickening feeling to become one of these cautionary tales yourself. Thankfully, the victims of my accident survived, as they were initially not expected to, but the limb loss and other permanent injuries that they must now live with are life altering, to say the least. Suffice it to say that I am permanently affected as well, tho not by physical injury.
Driving drunk was not something I did often, in fact I seldom did it, however even just those few times proved to be too much.
Everything seemed fine, and then suddenly it wasn't.
Driving drunk was not something I did often, in fact I seldom did it, however even just those few times proved to be too much.
Everything seemed fine, and then suddenly it wasn't.
Member
Join Date: May 2007
Location: Sweden
Posts: 1,649
Actionpak: if I ever end up in the states again, I hope I would throw myself into this issue on a big scale. I have talked to friends in the states who would also like to start an initiative about this issue. Why? There is so much misunderstanding: your post reveals the misunderstandings.
Huh? Most people don't live in the city? Millions of Americans live in large cities that HAVE well functioning mass transit. It is not an impossibility.
that is because they spent probably more than that amount at the bar on booze. Of course they choose to drink and get drunk instead of spending the money on a taxi. They probably would take a bus or train or subway home if it cost what is left in their pocket at the end of a night at the bar.
I really wonder if that is the case all the time?
Why do you assume bar drinking is the only cause of drunk drivers? People drink at home and then get into their car drunk to drive to work or to go grocery shopping...or to buy more booze. Maybe you are an alcoholic that drank in bars at night. I always drank at home. I don't like bars.
those are really unrealistic solutions: bars wait for people to sober up? You must be kidding! Bars are in the business to get people drunk. "Get someone to take them home"? See: that never really happens. People who are already drunk don't think about that solution. And, are there always people around who want to bother themselves with the fun job of driving a drunk home? No.
Essentially, most if not all large cities in the US do have mass transit and do understand the absolute necessity for it. The country bumpkins? They need busses too!
We have special night busses to drive all the drunks home from the bars on Friday and Saturday night. It works. It happens.
I can understand about mass trans in Europe but in the USA most of the people don't live in the city and everywhere you go you will need to drive.
Taxi is way too expensive and most people will take the risk to drive home drunk before taking a taxi.
The reason I know this is that a lot of bars will have a police officer at the bar waiting for 2am to come up and then they will kick out over to go home. Most were drunk and most would drive home and the cop would know it.
I think it would be better off having alcohol for people leaving a bar at a late time.
If there above 0.05 then they would have to wait until they are legally not intoxication or get someone to take them home. Make it a law that all bars are required to do so. Every time I went to a bar at closing most were drunk and sometimes the bartender was too. In the old days people walk to there local bar and very little people would drink late at night.
Essentially, most if not all large cities in the US do have mass transit and do understand the absolute necessity for it. The country bumpkins? They need busses too!
We have special night busses to drive all the drunks home from the bars on Friday and Saturday night. It works. It happens.
Currently Active Users Viewing this Thread: 1 (0 members and 1 guests)
