Former Representative and Democratic Lt. Governor candidate Dennie Oxley was arrested on a DUI charge Friday, allegedly with a BAC over 0.15.
I have no idea of the details of Oxley’s incident, but every time I see a public figure arrested for a DUI, it suggests to me that hammering on the “don’t drink” side of the equation is insufficient. We need alternatives to driving our own vehicles to get around – whether that’s better public transit or zoning for corner pubs or something else, I don’t know.
But without DUI arrests the government would lose a revenue stream/wouldn’t need as many corrections employees.
I’m a big proponent of lowering the drinking age, I’m a skeptic on the necessity of the .08 level for OWI, and I don’t care at all for our neo-puritanical take on drinking, but .15 is lit up. According to one of those Internet BAC calculators, for a 180 pound man to get to .15, he would have to drink 11 beers in a four hour period, or nine domestic beers in a two hour period. I’m pro-transit, pro-responsible drinking, anti-prohibition. But I think the stigmatization of drunk driving is a positive public health accomplishment.
Let’s put it this way: if an average-sized man came over to your house to watch an IU game, and in the course of a two hour game threw down 9 beers (i.e., reloading at each TV timeout and having another at halftime) would you think it a good idea for him to drive home?
Again, I think there’s a distinction between the “don’t drink” message and the “don’t drink and drive” message. It’s not as if Rep. Oxley, if this is true, stumbled out of a bar or home and was shocked to not find a subway stop. Yes, the things you cite are important, but they won’t cure basic stupidity and irresponsibility.
How about getting rid of the prohibition on Sunday package sales? It seems fairly absurd that one can get ripped in a bar on Sunday, but can’t buy a bottle or 12-pack to take home where they can do their thing and NOT have to drive home.
I hate to hear this about Denny. He’s a very down-to-earth guy and is still well liked in his former district.
Really dumb move on his part.
Unfortunately drinking is not associated with dining in this country,unless we include peanuts and pretzels with beer and cheese and crackers with wine.
Im surely not saying there aren’t plenty of alcoholics in France or Germany,but if we saw more ‘old ladies’ drinking beer with their sandwiches,we probably would have fewer younger men treat alcohol as a test of manhood.
A change in advertising emphasis might help..granny and her friends drinking mugs of beer at a picknic?
In this country a person so often goes from ‘frivilous fun’ to ‘disgraced for life’ with that one extra drink he shouldn’t have taken.Others are lucky to get by with that one extra drink.