Educating the Drinker

Alcohol is a drug, a very popular drug. Alcohol has been around for a long time, and people have always enjoyed its effects. Many people have passions for alcohol, some people have refrigerators filled with beer, and many others are wine connoisseurs. Alcohol always seems to liven up the party. But no matter what your preference is, alcohol can be very dangerous when combined with the operation of an automobile. If you can remember only a few things from this paper remember this: driving drunk is unsafe to you, and everyone else around you. The driver's of other cars, pedestrians, and many other innocent people are in danger.

Driving drunk can also be very, very costly: insurance surcharges, insurance rates, tickets, fines. But how does alcohol effect my driving? To expand upon this, drinking increases your self-confidence, and inhibitions but lowers your driving performance (reaction times, stopping distance). You may feel like you can do anything behind the wheel of a car after a six-pack. But you can't. Many, many accidents occur because of drinking. Most of these accidents involve only 1 car, but drunk drivers kill other people. There is a technique to protect yourself from drunk drivers. First, always wear your seat belt. Second, keep your distance from anyone that may appear to be under the influence. Anyone who is swerving, crossing the lines or going too slow are good examples. But it is impossible to prevent all of these accidents, people have to be educated about drinking and driving.

So how much alcohol is safe? No amount of alcohol in your body is as safe as having none. But certain amounts of alcohol are safer than others. There is no set limit of how much is too much, because there are too many factors in drinking. Body weight, amount of drinks, and how fast you drink are all factors in how alcohol affects you. Even the amount of food in your stomach can be a factor in how fast the alcohol gets into your blood stream. You cannot always tell by looking at someone if they've had too much to drink. Some people can conceal their alcohol very well, others cannot. The only real way to measure the amount of alcohol in your body is with a Breathalyzer. A Breathalyzer measures your BAC; blood alcohol concentration. Your BAC is how much of your blood is alcohol. You must be 21 in the U.S. to drink, but the BAC limit is .10%. If you are over .10% you are considered legally drunk, and will be charged with DUI if you are caught. At slightly above .05% your risk of causing an accident is double what it would be at 0%. Considering that most people are not proficient drivers to begin with, this is alarming.

How do you sober up? Eating, taking aspirin, drinking black coffee, deep breathing and cold showers are not effective tools to use to sober up. The only way to sober up is time. This is a fact, do not believe those who tell you otherwise. If you do drink, you can be smart about the actions you take. If you have any second thoughts about driving, don't. Have a friend drive you home, call a friend, or call a cab. Don't worry about your car, it is not as important as human life, and will probably be in better condition if you don't drive it drunk. Also, don't let friends drive drunk either, if they are stubborn, take the keys from them. If your friends, are your friends do not let them get in a car or any vehicle when they are intoxicated. If you have a party, and someone who gets intoxicated at your party is involved in an accident, it may involve a lawsuit. Everything about drinking and driving is bad.

Driving while intoxicated does not add up. It is very dangerous, expensive and stupid. It’s easy to avoid if you are educated. If half the people who have their license knew the penalties for getting caught, many people would not do it. Education is the key.

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