The Consequences of Drinking and Driving

533 Words2 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: How does drinking relate to car crashes essays

The facts are plain and simple, that alcohol and driving do not mix. About three in every ten Americans will be involved in an alcohol related crash at some time in their lives. Every single injury and death caused by drunk driving is totally preventable. To curb this national travesty, concerned Americans need to examine the problems, the effects, and the solutions to drunk driving. First of all, America has had a problem with drunk driving since Ford perfected the assembly line. Alcoholism is a problem in and of itself, but combined with driving can have a wide range of effects. The consequences of this reckless behavior can include a first time DUI or licenses suspension; a small fender bender, or worst of all a deadly crash. Most drivers that have only one or two drinks feel fine, and assume they are in control, which is irresponsible and dangerous. Alcohol is a depressant that slows down the body's ability to react and impairs judgment. To drive well, you need to be able to have a quick reaction time to avoid accidents. Unfortunately, people continue to drink and drive. However,...

Show More
Related

  • A Modest Proposal For Making Driving More Entertaining, While Creating The Same Risks For Everyone

    1522 Words  | 4 Pages

    I think that it is agreed by all parties that the prodigious number of sober drivers in our neighborhoods, city streets, and country roads is at present deplorable to the state of our great nation. Currently, a whopping ninety-eight percent of Americans of driving age feel threatened by those who drive under the influence of alcohol, which means that only two percent of Americans are able to fully relax and enjoy themselves while on the road, and with the growing awareness, this number could be on the rise (MADD Online: General Statistics 1). What a travesty! All drivers, and passengers alike, should be put at the same risk for danger, be it damage, injury, or death.

    Read More

  • Pros And Cons Of Tougher DUI Laws

    1087 Words  | 3 Pages

    As you can see, drunk driving can cause many tragedies on a family or just the nation in general. Many people think that if we lower the Body Alcohol Content than there wouldn’t be as many people getting injured or killed a year. The question “Should tougher DUI laws be enacted?” is yet to be answered, but maybe in there next few years we will get an

    Read More

  • Drunk Driving

    1405 Words  | 3 Pages

    Drunk driving has been an increasing problem for many years. One issue that contributes to this is that in the United States it is actually legal to drive with a certain alcohol percentage. The blood alcohol limit is 0.8 percent (Drunk Driving). This means that a person may drive legally as long as they have a blood alcohol percentage of 0.8 percent or under. However, even at a percentage of 0.3 there may be some impairment of alertness and concentration (Drunk Driving). Driving requires fast reflexes that may be impaired at a 0.5 percent blood alcohol level but a person with this level of intoxication is not legally drinking and driving. Many people are arrested for drunk driving. In 2009, more than 1.4 million drivers were arrested for driving while under the influence (Drunk Driving). In addition, “an average drunk driver has driven drunk 80 times before their first arrest” (Get Involved). Therefore, there were a minimum of 112 million accounts of drunk driving in 2009 alone. Drunk drivers also cause an increasing number of deaths. Drunk drivers in the United States c...

    Read More

  • Long Term Effects Of Drinking And Driving Essay

    672 Words  | 2 Pages

    Effects of Drinking and Driving I’ve never seen drinking and driving on a daily planner or heard anyone say I think I’ll get a DUI today. I have heard people say “it’s my life, and if I want to drink and drive I will”. Well, it’s not just your life that is affected by the results of drinking and driving. When you make that choice to drink and drive you are taking the lives of family, friends, and strangers into your hands. You don’t have to get into an accident and kill somebody for the results to destroy you or someone else’s life. Drinking and driving can be the cause of many traumatic life changing events.

    Read More

  • Drinking And Driving: The Negative Effects Of Drunk Driving

    766 Words  | 2 Pages

    Do you know how many people die every day in the United States due to drunk driving? If not, here is the answer, approximately twenty-eight people die because of drunk driving. There is not a day that has gone by without having an auto accident relating intoxicated drivers and no days without an ambulance running on the street with emergency lights on chasing for victims. In 2014, 1.1 million drivers were arrested for driving under the influence and 9,967 people were killed in alcohol related crashes. Alcohol slows down the activity of the person’s central nervous system, including the brain which makes them react slower and reduce concentration while driving. In order for one to drive safe, he/she has to be sober and active without any distraction.

    Read More

  • Stop Drinking and Driving

    586 Words  | 2 Pages

    Approximately 5 million babies were born last year and approximately 11,000 people were killed due to drinking and driving related accidents in the United States. Over 1.2 million drivers were arrested in 2011 for driving under the influence of alcohol or narcotics. In today’s day and age, drinking is very common, as well as driving. When you mix those two things together, problems are caused, people are injured, lives are taken, jails get more inmates, and families are forced to mourn the lives of their innocent loved ones. There are hundreds and hundreds of problems in today’s world; cancer, murder, kidnapping, rape, abortions, addictions, health care, and more. Drinking and driving is also a problem. It is one that is completely unnecessary and shouldn’t be a problem at all. Although, out of all those problems it is the easiest one to fix.

    Read More

  • Lives Affected: Drinking And Driving

    501 Words  | 2 Pages

    The weekend has come, what are you planning? I would assume you aren’t planning on killing someone, ruining a family, making a serious decision for your loved one, or even watching the one you love dying on a hospital bed. Although, as soon as you take that first sip of any alcoholic beverage and have planned on driving home; needless to say, you have planned on injuring you or more importantly someone else. Whether you are a teenager, middle aged, or older when drinking and driving the rule is simple; don’t do it! Watching the video, “Lives Affected” has impacted me and has taught me a very important lesson to not drink and drive. It has made me realize that everyone in my life and others lives can be effected too. Whether you are the drunk driver or

    Read More

  • Drinking And Driving

    1270 Words  | 3 Pages

    The growing awareness of alcohol hazards has made people more cautious of their drinking habits, particularly young adults. At present young adults have the highest prevalence of alcohol consumption than any other age group. They also drink more heavily, experience more negative consequences, and engage in more harmful activities, specifically drunk driving. Although surveys have documented a decline in recent years, consumption rates remain highest from late teen years to the late twenties (Johnston1-3). Despite the long-term decline since 1982 in alcohol related traffic deaths, a 4 percent increase occurred between 1994 and 1995 among young adults age 21 and over (Hingson 4). As alcohol-impaired driving persists, legal and community initiatives intervene to help reduce the problem, as well as, continuing research on possible solutions.

    Read More

  • Drunk Driver's Don't Deserve Second Chances

    1340 Words  | 3 Pages

    When someone makes the decision to consume alcoholic beverages, it should go without saying that they should also be choosing to be a responsible drinker. Being a responsible drinker means not consuming more alcohol than their body can handle and more importantly, not getting behind the wheel of any type of vehicle after drinking. In an article written by high school student Steven Engler, he says it well; “If you choose to use it, do it responsibly, and don’t put anyone’s life in danger, including your own.” (New York Times, 2003) No matter the person’s age or the type of alcohol consumed, alcohol lowers a person’s inhibitions and ability to think clearly, while also increasing their chances of engaging in risky activities. It is possible for a person to have a few drinks, relax and have a good time however, all too often people overdo it and end up making bad decisions that they most often regret. Many times, the worst of these decisions is convincing themselves that they are “fine” and what they drank will not impair their driving. Some may say that these individuals simply “made a mistake.” Yes, everyone does make mistakes however, driving while intoxicated is not a mistake that affects only them, it is something that affects and risks the lives of many people and themselves. The sad thing is that drunk driving is one hundred percent preventable and therefore the loss of lives due to the recklessness of drinking and driving is preventable as well. Mr. Bloomberg hit the nail on the head when he said “Simply put, drunk driving is selfish, criminal and it kills, and we are not going to tolerate it.” (New York Times, 2002) Drinking and driving is a selfish act made by a person who seemingly does not care about the people around th...

    Read More

  • Drinking Alcohol and Driving

    871 Words  | 2 Pages

    Drunk driving can be very deadly. Yet many people drive while under the influence everyday. Drivers who are drunk are blamed for the loss of as many as twentyfive thousand lives in highway crashes each year and hundreds of thousands of severe injurys.

    Read More

  • Impaired Driving: The Problem Of Drunk Driving

    1446 Words  | 3 Pages

    Why does one choose to get in the car while they are under the influence? They are signing a contract that puts their life in danger as well as the rest of society. Drunk driving is a major problem in our world today. It is affecting many individuals daily life because of their fear of getting anywhere near these individuals making such poor decisions. According to the CDC, Centers for Disease Control, “in 2014, 9,967 people were killed in alcohol-impaired driving crashes, accounting for nearly one-third (31%) of all traffic-related deaths in the United States”(Impaired Driving: Get the Facts). An achievable solution to this major problem is that all cars should have a breathalyzer test in order to start the car so drunk driving fatalities

    Read More

  • Effects Of Drinking And Driving Essay

    537 Words  | 2 Pages

    Drunk driving is extremely impactful on the lives of you and others. While drinking and driving, you are not just endangering yourself, you are also endangering the lives of others. The driver of the car does not just control the car with their hands and feet. They need their brain to function properly so that you are able to react to objects on the road quicker and control the car. If you drink then drive/ drink while driving. Alcohol affects your brain in many ways that inhibit your ability to drive. Alcohol will affect your reaction time, it slows your reflexes which decrease your ability to react to objects on the road. It affects your vision, in can impair your color perception, and night vision. It slows down the movement in the muscles in your eye causing your visual perception to change. Alcohol affects your ability to track. You will not be able to judge the position of cars ahead of you, you won’t be able to judge the

    Read More

  • The Fatal Consequences of Drunk Driving

    724 Words  | 2 Pages

    An issue that has been causing many accidents for many years and still going to this day

    Read More

  • Causes and Effects of Drunk Driving

    839 Words  | 2 Pages

    If you drink and drive, you are not only a danger to yourself but also to your passenger, other road users and pedestrians. In fact, every 30 minutes, someone in this country dies in alcohol-related crash. Every 30 minutes! And last year alone more than one million people are injured in alcohol-related traffic crashes. Alcohol is a depressant that slows down body reactions and the working of the brain. Each year drunk driving is responsible for about 25% of these deaths. The risks of drinking are alcohol-related accidents and violence. The effects of alcohol are poor coordination and slurred speech, double vision, decrease of self-control loss of consciousness and death.

    Read More

  • Hey—Don't Drink and Drive!

    1619 Words  | 4 Pages

    Many people in the United States enjoy a drink of their favorite alcoholic beverage. It could be a nice ice cold beer after a hard day of work or going to the bar and enjoying a few shots or mixed drinks with friends. Drinking alcohol is a common way to mingle with friends and take the edge off a difficult day. However, there are dangers involved with alcohol since it does dampen the body’s ability to cope with new information. Alcohol becomes a poison to the body when consumed in large quantities. The biggest danger is not to the driver after they become inebriated, but comes to anyone the drunk driver comes in contact with. A sober person can be dangerous just by being distracted, but a drunk driver’s ability to cope with changing situations and distractions is one of the biggest hazards on today’s roads. Some individuals believe that they are not as impaired as what they are led to believe from government ads and the many videos that show what can happen to someone who is drinking and driving. Although, there are many policies in place to advocate against drunk driving, there are those who would endanger themselves and others with their thoughtless actions when they jump into the driver’s seat of a vehicle. Drinking and driving should never be combined because a person who has been drinking does not have the ability to use all mental faculties unimpaired, many people have been killed, injured, or psychologically hurt by a drunk driver, many men and women do not know the difference weight and gender have on the body’s ability to process alcohol, and the financial and legal trouble that is awaiting for those convicted by a DUI.

    Read More

More about The Consequences of Drinking and Driving

Open Document