Overview
Drunk Driving has been a problem in America almost since cars have been invented. One of the first cars ever built in America was in Massachusetts in 1893, but by 1897 a 27 year old taxi driver by the name of George Smith was arrested for the first ever DUI after crashing his cab into a building (history). In recent years, unfortunately, driving under the influence has a remained a huge problem in the United States, one third of all fatal car crashes involve an intoxicated driver or pedestrian and two in three people will be involved in a drunk driving crash in their lifetime (nhsta). That means that people that you know will probably end up driving under the influence at some point in their lives, putting peoples lives at a high …show more content…
Now if that same guy decided to drink two more beers he would most likely be at a .08 BAC which is legal, however he would be 11 times as likely than a sober driver to be involved in a car crash. With every two beers your chance of an accident goes up exponentially and at 8 beers and a BAC of about .15 you would literally be 360 times more likely than a sober driver to be involved in a car crash (alcoholism). To a lot of people 8 beers may not be enough to keep them from getting on the road and it is this behavior that potentially puts themselves and innocent others at a very high risk. A study was done specifically to determine why people drink and drive. 600 individuals were interviewed who had previously admitted to drinking and driving and were asked to describe in detail the series of events leading up to them drinking and driving. According to the study, Social and Environmental influences was the largest category leading up to them driving drunk; some examples of this are when hosts expect their guests to over consume and do not tolerate moderation or the type of friend that encourages heavy drinking because they drink too much themselves (Kirslis). Some recommended behaviors to prevent the need or urge to drive while intoxicated would be first and foremost to have a designated drunk driver. Also, you could be prepared to carpool for the night so that you do not eve need to bring your car keys. Finally if you have driven to an event and are to intoxicated to drive, call a friend or try and make sleeping arrangements if you cannot
Drunk Driving has been a problem in America almost since cars have been invented. One of the first cars ever built in America was in Massachusetts in 1893, but by 1897 a 27 year old taxi driver by the name of George Smith was arrested for the first ever DUI after crashing his cab into a building (history). In recent years, unfortunately, driving under the influence has a remained a huge problem in the United States, one third of all fatal car crashes involve an intoxicated driver or pedestrian and two in three people will be involved in a drunk driving crash in their lifetime (nhsta). That means that people that you know will probably end up driving under the influence at some point in their lives, putting peoples lives at a high …show more content…
Now if that same guy decided to drink two more beers he would most likely be at a .08 BAC which is legal, however he would be 11 times as likely than a sober driver to be involved in a car crash. With every two beers your chance of an accident goes up exponentially and at 8 beers and a BAC of about .15 you would literally be 360 times more likely than a sober driver to be involved in a car crash (alcoholism). To a lot of people 8 beers may not be enough to keep them from getting on the road and it is this behavior that potentially puts themselves and innocent others at a very high risk. A study was done specifically to determine why people drink and drive. 600 individuals were interviewed who had previously admitted to drinking and driving and were asked to describe in detail the series of events leading up to them drinking and driving. According to the study, Social and Environmental influences was the largest category leading up to them driving drunk; some examples of this are when hosts expect their guests to over consume and do not tolerate moderation or the type of friend that encourages heavy drinking because they drink too much themselves (Kirslis). Some recommended behaviors to prevent the need or urge to drive while intoxicated would be first and foremost to have a designated drunk driver. Also, you could be prepared to carpool for the night so that you do not eve need to bring your car keys. Finally if you have driven to an event and are to intoxicated to drive, call a friend or try and make sleeping arrangements if you cannot