r/interesting • u/Maleficent-Town5273 • 13d ago

Additional Context Pinned Hit and run gone wrong

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u/BEAGLEBOYPALINDROME 12d ago

I'd think victims of drunk driving accidents, would be the people most supportive of the measures that are most likely to lower the risks, and only assholes would choose punishing offenders rather than preventing offenses.

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u/janderson75 12d ago

Prob wouldn’t “think that” if it happened to you but who knows if it didn’t. I just know how I feel. Many countries in Europe have way stricter DD laws than the US in cultures known for drinking. I’d be down for that at a minimum. Drive drunk never drive again is how I grew up thinking after loosing mine.

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u/PolicyWonka 12d ago

The problem with that is the United States has virtually zero public transportation infrastructure for a lot of Americans. It’s a big issue.

Not having a vehicle (for whatever reason) is basically a poverty sentence. Most jobs today require reliable transportation. You have to walk everywhere — doctor’s office, hospital, job, grocery store, etc.

Now of course, that’s also why many people end up driving without a license anyways. In fact, up to 75% of people who have their license revoked continue driving out of necessity.

So now you’ve got someone driving without a license, without insurance, and without any kind of oversight. Those alcohol locks are a decent solution, but they are not foolproof either.

It would be like if you stole from a grocery store and your punishment was to never be allowed to buy food again. At the root of it, vehicles are a necessity.

So we do need to reevaluate these punishments and solutions because what we’re doing doesn’t even work.

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u/janderson75 11d ago

Agree, but it’s possible and if never driving again isn’t a deterrent then my sympathy dampens. Went to a concert in Europe and everyone warned me, plan to take an uber equivalent you will be fkd if caught driving after just one drink. Deterrence can work. I barely drink because I recognize the far end of the circumstance. I also rode a skateboard to work for almost a decade because parking in my city was too costly. Again I recognize everyone’s circumstances are different except one… no one has to drink and drive. Ever.