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  • Drunk driving, etc.

    Himself brought up an interesting topic in the drug thread, so I thought I'd start a new one...

    In the USA, what should be done about drunk driving and related driving issues?

    I, for one, propose that we adopt Germany's stance on drunk driving... you do it once, and lose your license FOREVER. And, in some cases, your car as well.

    I also think that no 16-year-old should be able to get their license after taking a classroom course. That's just WRONG. They should have to complete what SOME of us have taken already - a comprehensive precision driving course. If you can't put your car between two other cars on a closed course at 75 mph, you shouldn't be allowed to drive on the highway at all. Period.

    And last but not least, I honestly think you should have to recertify yourself every few years. ESPECIALLY as you get older. Anyone over the age of 60 or 65 should have to get retested yearly, since (no offense to seniors intended) the likelihood of their abilities DRASTICALLY changing in a few months is MUCH more likely at that age.

    - Gurm

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  • #2
    I did not know about Germany's law on drunk driving. I think that sounds like a great idea! I don't think that 16 year olds should be allowed to drive at all. I think the age limit should be 18.

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    • #3
      In the UK you pass the test and walk striaght down to show room and buy a car that can do 200 mph. That to me seems barmy. Younger drivers and drivers that have just past there test should be limited to cars of around 1000cc for the first 6000 miles. Certainly skid control should be part of the test.
      It would also help if pubs stocked Alcohol free beer more readily and at same price as normal beer. This may make a few weaker hearted soles resist the temptation to drink.
      More drivers need to be aware about the morning after and it's quite possible for them to be still over the limit.
      I feel that once you get to sixty five you shouldn't be allowed to drive unless you have special needs. I see two many older drivers mearandering across lanes at great risks to themselfs and other road users.
      Chief Lemon Buyer no more Linux sucks but not as much
      Weather nut and sad git.

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      • #4
        I agree, I have seen too many 17 year olds (and 65+ for that matter) driving in the middle lane of the M1 at 55 MPH.

        In Ireland you get 'R' plates after passing your test. I think you a restricted to 45 MPH for the next 1/2 years.

        - the ammount of times that I have been pulled over for driving my sisters car is unbelievable!
        The Welsh support two teams when it comes to rugby. Wales of course, and anyone else playing England

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        • #5
          I think we should adopt the Saudi Arabian drunk driving law...or at least this was their law at one time, don't know if it still stands. If you are caught drunk driving they take you to the side of the road and cut off your head (the upper one) with a sword. This is also the country where alcohol is illegal all together...

          Jammrock

          ------------------
          Athlon 650, Biostar board, 128 MB PC133 (Crucial), G400 32 MB DH, SB Live! w/ Digital I/O, 10/100 NIC, lots of case fans, etc...
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          • #6
            The PIT and Patrick: Isn't the age allowed into a bar or pub in the UK 18 to 21? (18 I think). Plus, what's with the impressive L on the car then, or is that only for learning drivers? Maybe you should have that L on your car until you are 22

            Jord.
            Jordâ„¢

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            • #7
              I believe it was Socrates who said "people will expand to the limits society will tolerate." Even if he didn't, it sounds like something he would say and rings with total truth.

              If you wanted to assign a percentage to the one thing that has led to many problems the US has today, it is the result of the application of too much liberal thinking. If that is too much to believe or curtail, the result becomes the price we pay for our freedom.
              MSI K7D Master L, Water Cooled, All SCSI
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              • #8
                Want a fun topic to go along with this? Try gun control.

                [This message has been edited by Brian R. (edited 25 April 2000).]

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                • #9
                  Personally I have never had any problems with controlling a gun. Except maybe the M14 in full auto with the standard pistol grip type stock. Anything after the first few rounds the muzzle went skywards, no matter how big you were or how much you leaned into it. The E2 stock solved that however, following the FN-FAL straight stock type design.

                  Then there was the Clint Fowler prepared, double lugged, glass bedded National Match M14 with the Krieger 1 in 10 twist stainless barrel. That weapon would shoot.

                  The thing about any type of weapon control is take one away and another will take it's place. I believe the sole reason for gun control is an attempt to make the act of killing or harming someone more personal. You have to get alot closer with any other type of weapon, like a club or knife, more risk for the assailant too.



                  [This message has been edited by SCompRacer (edited 25 April 2000).]
                  MSI K7D Master L, Water Cooled, All SCSI
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                  512MB regular Crucial PC2100
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                  • #10
                    I'm not really for gun control at all. In fact I wish I had an M-16 for some of those 16yr old drivers.

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                    • #11
                      The legal age to drink in the UK is 18 many slip in younger of course and theres nothing to stop drinking at home. You can past your test at 17.
                      If your Motorbike owner your limited to what you can get after the test. Why this isn't same for car owners I can only wonder.
                      As for the middle lane hoggers as soon as overtaking on the left is legalised the better. And before any starts saying thats dangerous, your supposed to check the left hand side before you pull back just in case either someones joined the motorway / road or pulled up alongside you. If you can't check the mirror and look over the shoulder you shouldn't be driving period.
                      Chief Lemon Buyer no more Linux sucks but not as much
                      Weather nut and sad git.

                      My Weather Page

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                      • #12
                        Gurm I’m with you although I think losing you licence forever is a bit harsh. You bust a drunk driver, slap a nasty fine on them, get 'em off the road for at least 12 months and stick 'em in a room for 8 hours a day for a week showing them footage of bloody roadside accidents. Do it again, double it, and third time hit 'em for 5 years. If they keep doing it then they aren't human.

                        One of my pet hates is seeing people in their 'advancing years' driving Volvos. If I see these people they sure as shit ain't doing the speed limit (less than) and they sure as hell don't know what those white dotted lines are for.

                        As for guns, this is where I don't understand yanks (I apologise in advance for offending my fellow American MURCers). Hand guns, rifles, shotguns etc were created for one purpose only, to kill other people. Why the hell has three quarters of the population got one of these things (I only have vague idea on actual statistics). You guys have the highest firearm incidents in the world beside maybe a nation at war. There is the saying,
                        Guns don't kill people, people kill people.
                        I tend not to agree. Would the same person who has killed another person done the same thing if they didn't have a firearm? SCompRacer you raise an interesting point,
                        You have to get a lot closer with any other type of weapon, like a club or knife, more risk for the assailant too.
                        Due of this risk between you and the assailant & the difficultly posed to harm each other, is there the same potential for fatal harm. I believe
                        ...the act of killing or harming someone [is] more personal.
                        is a good thing, maybe then a little more thought would go into the brain of these people before the commit to something stupidly irreversible.

                        Obviously there may be some exceptions to not having guns. For example farmers, special unit police forces & the armed forces.

                        There are always going to wackos out there who have had a really bad day. At lease if there is strict gun controls out there this same person can’t take several people with him. Wasn’t there a case of a couple young kids, not even teenagers (in Washington I think) who got into a gunfight at a city zoo earlier this week. Jesus if this isn’t a good reason for gun control, what is?
                        Cheers.


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                        [This message has been edited by cancer (edited 26 April 2000).]
                        Aopen HX08 full tower case, Asus P3V4X bios 1.04beta, P!!! FC-PGA 550e @770, Swiftech MC370-3 peltier cooler 256M PC133 Crucial 7E SDRAM, Matrox G400MAX bios 1.4 PDesk 5.52.015, Seagate 28.5G Ultra ATA66 7200rpm HD, Pioneer 103s DVD 6X/32X drive, SB AWE64 Gold ISA sound card, SMC pci ethernet adaptor, Castlewood Orb 2.2G media drive, Nortel 100 cable modem, Mitsubishi 1995 19in monitor, occasionally use dualhead for dvd on a Sony 80cm Wega TV, MS natural keyboard, MS Intellimouse Explorer,
                        Win98SE 4.10.2222A, DX7a.

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                        • #13
                          I'm coming up 20 next month and have been driving for the best part of three years. I will fully agree that cars young (or anyone just passed their test) drive for the first two years are limited to 1000cc or similar. It's true what the PIT said - I know people who for their first car, a few weeks after their 17th birthday buying a car easily capable of 150+MPH. Why?
                          As for drink driving - my brother was caught a couple of years back - he left the car at the end of our road, went out for the night, then on the way home, he brought the car back the 1/3 mile home. He was caught, fined, and banned for 18 months. Serves him right. He's never done it again!
                          Another point to raise is why is almost every new car these days capable of 120+MPH? The speed limit is 70MPH, is it not? OK, there is the need every now and then for the extra overtaking speed to get out of trouble, but come on.

                          ------------------
                          Cheers,
                          Steve

                          "Life is what we make of it, yet most of us just fake"

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                          • #14
                            I disagree cancer.

                            People kill people, no matter what means they use or whether it is with or without intent, on purpose or by accident. It can be with a car, (under the influence or not), with a gun, knife, club. But rather than hold an individual responsible for their actions, it is always due to the fact a firearm was available, a manufacturer made something and did not state it could be misused to kill another, they had a bad childhood, they were denied the same opportunities others had, etc.

                            Ownership should mean responsibility, no matter what it pertains too. This can to pertain to a car, a legally owned weapon, a computer and even a dog. Society has evolved into one that has no respect for their fellow human being, and that is the core of the problem.

                            The same emotional outbursts that occur in posts on the internet are similar to those that lead to acts of violence. Someone loses control and says something that hurts another, whether it is intentional or not. Of course no one is physically harmed, it is done with finger strokes on a keyboard, often to a faceless individual, but the lack of control in the heat of the moment is the fault.

                            [This message has been edited by SCompRacer (edited 26 April 2000).]
                            MSI K7D Master L, Water Cooled, All SCSI
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                            • #15
                              *Steps up on his cast iron soap box*

                              I own guns, but not for self-defense or aggression either. I like range shooting, its a sport and I think its fun. My Dad taught me how to shoot. We used to go range shooting all the time. I don't hunt, and when the guns are not in use, the bolt is out and the bullets are in a different part of the house.

                              Guns do make a big difference in whether a homocide/murder happens, but if someone really wants someone else dead, they'll find a way.

                              I feel the main problem are the people. I know lots of people with guns, but my community is a calm, laid back place so nobody cares. Once a decade or so some idiot punk kid may try a drive by shooting with a 9mm hand gun (yes it happened here, tells you how smart some kids are these days), but besides that, nothing really.

                              And curbing gun purchasing isn't going to help much. Ever been to the sticks in the US (no offense to any MURC'er who may live there). I have a friend who lives in south Kansas. The county Sheriff owns the local gun store and he sells full-auto mod kit for some his guns. He won't install them, but he sells them non-the-less. People down there buy and sell guns to each other like an 8 year old does Pokemon cards. None of it's registered, nobody goes through a background check and nobody cares. If I wanted a full-auto AK-47, 1200 rounds and clips for it all, I could have it in less than a week, just by going down south and asking a few people.

                              Now take a look at Switzerland (if a Swiss MURC'er thinks I'm dead wrong, please correct me), from what I have read, shooting is like a national past time. Just about every home has a rifle or gun of some sort, yet their crime rate is low. What does that mean: 1) People are scared to death to attack anyone because they know the other guy has a gun and can use it or 2) the people just aren't that violent and are smart enough to know how to solve a problem without a gun. I'm not Swiss, but I would think 2 would be the more logical choice.

                              Now I know most Americans are thinking, "damn Republican," right now, but oh well. Nobodies thinks the same.

                              I do on the other hand think that kids should NEVER get access to guns. I think it should be law for every household that has children under the age of 18 to have a key and combo gun safe where all guns and ammunition should be stored.

                              Its fine to own guns, just not fine to be irresponsible with them.

                              *Steps down from his cast iron soap box to let the next person rant*

                              Jammrock
                              “Inside every sane person there’s a madman struggling to get out”
                              –The Light Fantastic, Terry Pratchett

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