Re: [privacy] Highway safety

["Richard M. Smith" <rms () bsf-llc com>]

A former co-worker on mine lost his mom in a car accident in the early '60s.
The other driver was drunk.  The driver was never charged.  Today, the
driver would probably be looking at jail time.

Richard 

-----Original Message-----
From: Drsolly [mailto:drsollyp () drsolly com] 
Sent: Monday, October 23, 2006 5:33 PM
To: Brian Loe
Cc: Richard M. Smith; privacy () whitestar linuxbox org
Subject: Re: [privacy] Highway safety

On Mon, 23 Oct 2006, Brian Loe wrote:

> On 10/23/06, Richard M. Smith <rms () bsf-llc com> wrote:
>
> > Actually highway death rates have dropped dramatically since the 1960s
when
> > the U.S. government got involved with auto safety on many different
levels.
> > The same is true with many other countries around the world.
> >
> > Richard
>
> Although impossible to prove or disprove, I'd bet this has more to do
> with the safety of the vehicles themselves more than the DUI laws.
>
> It's not a leap of logic to state that DUI laws have had other
> unintended consequences, detrimental to individual rights which is
> just another reason to get rid of them (beyond the fact they're based
> on one's "potential" to commit a crime - in case someone missed that).

Someone who is drunk, is less likely to be able to contral a car, even if 
they think they can. The same loss of judgement that makes them less able 
to drive, also prevents them realising this.

If that only affected their health, it wouldn't matter. But it also 
affects everyone around them. 

In England, the combination of law, education and propaganda, has very 
much changed the general attitude to DUI. Whereas 40 years ago, it was 
though to be a bit of a lark, today it's not socially acceptable.

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