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Drinking and Driving
on the Road to Destruction
Everybody loves a drunk. At least that would be the impression that one would get based on the depiction of these characters in television show after television show over the years. Remember Otis on the Andy Griffith Show? How about the great old comedian Foster Brooks and the character that made him famous based on his constant inebriation? Drunks have been a mainstay in American culture for as long as I can recall. So many good laughs have come at the hands of those who have had too much to drink. How about this common phrase; "He's the life of the party." or "He's a great guy, he's just a drunk." ? People continue to embrace the stereotypical character but is this really a healthy infatuation?
In a time where we would shake in our boots if we think that our children are idolizing those who are drug abusers, we still allow alcohol abuse to be acceptable. This is a message that we must change if we want generational alcohol abuse to ever change. The first place that we need to make this change is in the public's perception of driving while intoxicated. Granted, much has been done to toughen the penalties for those who are caught drinking and driving, the permissible blood alcohol percentages have been lowered on several occasions and the monetary penalties have been increased. Laws have been passed that require public postings, via the newspaper, of photographs of those who have been arrested for drinking and driving infractions. But, the public still seems to have had a hard time with this whole alcohol issue. There is simply not a wide spread condemnation of alcohol and the dangers that it can cause.
We warn our children about drinking and driving and drinking responsibly while our refrigerators and wine racks are stocked to the maximum. We tell our kids not to drive while drinking as we walk to the car with a beer in our hand. We warn our kids, while having dinner, that driving and its association with alcohol can be a deadly mix. We do this over a meal that includes two or three drinks before we pay our bill, walk out to the car, and drive off with the odor of alcohol and its effects swarming silently about the vehicle and its occupants.
Educating kids about alcohol abuse is difficult based on similar life lessons that we try to teach our children. We want them to do the right things, but not at the expense of having to change our own lifestyles. We have heard of stories about children finding drugs in their parent's room rather than vice versa. We hear about teachers, who we trust with our kids every day, being caught with illegal substances during their personal time.
The truth of the matter is that kids are dying every day at the hands of drunk drivers, including some of them who were in the car with their parents. For those of them who survive their parent's abusive behavior, those same kids grow up and simply replicate what they saw as a child. Alcohol, automobiles, and people who have been killed or seriously injured are much more serious than some people apparently think it is. One great program that is trying to change that mind set is a DUI panel, whereby offenders are forced to sit and listen to folks who have had family members killed by a drunken driver. The effects of these wasted lives are unbelievable. Maybe this will be a good start to a wake up call for some of these people and their abusive habits.
We simply have to make a decision about how we will handle the process of educating our kids. We can either decide to alter our own lifestyles and be a role model of what we expect of them or we can get the kids together, pop open a cold beer and watch old Otis stagger all over Mayberry.
For further information, visit www.voice4victims.com
If you are interested in having Mr. Hall speak at your next club or group meeting, please email contact information to:
SHallBadgeNotes@aol.com
052004
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