There's a difference, and I think even you know this. When you're intoxicated, you are impaired, and pose a higher risk to other drivers on the road than any other demographic. I have yet to see one study that demonstrates road rage as a top reason for accidents, let alone on-road fatalities. And I think that's also what you're missing--these drunks were responsible for almost 8 out of every 10 traffic deaths. That's a huge number, Baron. It's obscene. So we're not talking about what someone "might do", we're talking about what they've been shown to do at an alarming rate. Depends on the circumstances. Could the person easily prevent this by simply not doing something that would cause them to do this? I mean, all a person has to do to avoid getting a DUI or DWI is take a cab to and from the bar. Again, it's not the same thing. Drunk driving isn't about what you might do, it's about what you probably will do. Mental attitudes? Please. All your drunk ass has to do is call a cab. How many DUI's do you have, dude? That's the only reason you're acting like this.
And yet accidents are caused by non-drinking drivers, too. Hmm, let's take all drivers off the road, throw them in prison and we could cut the road/highway accidents to almost zero. So, ....what causes all of those accidents by non-drinking drivers? And just for the fun of it, ...how many accidents do non-drinking drivers cause? What's the percentage of non-drinkiing fatal accidents? If it's a lot, couldn't we just throw everyone in jail and save all those people, too? Doesn't matter if it's 100% ....that still does NOT say that ALL drinking drivers will have accidents, fatal or otherwise. In fact there are no statistics to show any RATE of accidents for the drinking drivers on the road. Gazillions of drinking drivers never have a single accident ....and yet you're advocating persecuting them for something that they've never done. Odd, don't you think? Gang members commit virtually all of the gang-related violent crimes in the USA. So if we imprison all gang members, there'll be no more gang-related violent crimes. Pretty good, huh? Those guys might not have done anything yet, but by god we know that they might! Oh, really?! Now we're getting somewhere ...let's see those stats that show/prove what drinking drivers "will probably do". That's all I ask, then if the answer is conclusive, then I'll switch to persecuting them thar drunk bastards, too! If we have 10,000 drivers who have been drinking, how many of them will be in accidents? How many will be in fatal accidents? 4,208 - but I give the judge a sob story and being liberal doo-gooders, they always let me right back out on the road! Please Register or Log in to view the hidden image! Baron Max
Could it possibly be that I don't like to see people persecuted for something that they MIGHT do at some future date? Baron Max
Yes, non-drinking drivers cause accidents, too. But they cause(d) far less fatalities than non-drinkers, and also aren't inherently at a higher risk for accidents, both fatal and non-fatal. You can't throw someone in jail for being an asshole. You can throw them in jail for being under the influence of drugs and/or alcohol while behind the wheel of a car, which is basically a rolling weapon. Accidents, or fatalities? Accidents, I don't recall the number. Far more accidents are caused just by random other things, like not paying attention. But people who are drunk or high are putting themselves and others at far more risk. You're really either an idiot or just a disagreeable troll. I can't tell which. Like I said, before we started actually enforcing these laws (and before many of them were even enacted), drunk drivers were responsible for almost 80% of all traffic fatalities. We obviously have a philosophical disagreement here. No, not all drinking drivers have accidents. But before these laws were put into place, far more drunks were responsible for deaths than non-drunks, and that was a statistic that needed to be fixed. So the governments started being tougher on drunk drivers, and guess what? Not only did alcohol-related road fatalities fall, but the overall number of road fatalities fell. Gazillions? Care to back that number up with a real number? Gang members commit virtually all gang-related violent crimes? How can anyone else commit gang-related violent crimes? And we do throw people in jail before than can do real harm. Like when we catch people in pedophile stings, or drug stings, or when we catch people trying to hire someone to kill someone else. But really, dude, you're comparing apples to oranges. Well, consider that there are far fewer drunks on the road than sober people, and then think about the percentage of road fatalities that minority accounted for before these laws were being enforced. You're going to tell me that nothing needed to change when a vast minority of drivers accounted for nearly 80% of the fatalities on the road? I really think you've got three or four. There's no other reason you'd be talking like this. I mean, I guess it fits your normally displayed idiocy, but this is ridiculous.
A "rolling weapon" that has done nothing. You're putting them into jail for something that they MIGHT do?! And yet you've agreed below that not all drinking drivers have accidents. So it's actually even worse ...you're throwing them into jail for the probability that they MIGHT do something. Well, no matter, that still doesn't mean anything about ALL drinking drivers. If 80% of all terrorist bombings are caused by Muslims, can we just throw all Muslims in jail for what they MIGHT do? And you know that it would cut terrorist acts drastically. So would you support such a measure? Drinking drivers just became more cautious. And you still haven't proved anything except that you're not only willing, but you're avid, about persecuting people for something that they MIGHT do. Baron Max
It's not what they "might" do, it's what they are statistically so much more likely to do than anyone else, and do it at an alarming rate. Yes it does. Look, you know as well as I do that drunks tend to think they can do anything, which is why someone like you is actually trying to say that being drunk doesn't make you any more dangerous than anyone else. It's simply not true. Again, you're not talking about the same thing I am. The better example would be "If 80% of all bombings were caused by terrorists, can we throw all terrorists in jail?" Wrong. It means there are less of them on the road. Uh huh. Whatever you say, drunkie. It ain't my fault your license was revoked.
Ahhh, now we're getting back to it .......what "alarming rate"???? Ahh, and here we have another one! Can you prove that there are less drinking drivers on the road now? Baron Max
80% of all the fucking road fatalities, you fucking dimwit! Can you prove that they're being more cautious?
No, no, no!! What is the rate of drinking drivers to drinking-driver road accident fatalites? How many drinkers are on the road right now, Dawg? How many of them will be involved in a deadly accident? No, but the statistics sure point to it. 'Cause the number of bars and clubs and the amount of alcohol has risen steadily. Baron Max
Arguing with an alcoholic about his drunk driving is a waste of time. That's partly why the laws are as tough as they are, to keep people like baron off the road as much as possible. Considering the huge savings the dwi laws save the tax payer, I would think Maxie would favor speeding the system up. We could get proactive and put breathalyzers on the tavern door and have people blow as they leave and then arrest them as soon as they touch their car door.
Sorry if someone already said this... Punishment comes from both someone committing an illegal action, as well as whatever the consequence for committing that action. You are making the assumption that someone can only get punished for his intent, his mistake. But thats not the case, when people do something wrong, the damage they have caused is a part of the punishment as well.
Why? What the fuck does it matter? Drunk drivers still have more fatal accidents than anyone else. That's why the laws are in place and enforced. Because without them, you dumb fucks were killing everyone on the road. Hahahahhhhahaha. Back that up with some numbers displaying a rise in bars and clubs and alcohol, THEN bring me a statistic that shows either stagnation or a decrease in taxi services for that same period of time.
