Drunk Driving... Things we should know.

Let me start by saying... Don't Drink and Drive, but this isn't a political statement or a fanatical M.A.D.D. mother..

So...

...if you do.... you'll appreciate knowing some of the things I learned as a result of the system I got pulled into July 3rd of last year...
Put this crap in the back of your mind and hope you never need to know it...

Very important... If you think you're over the legal limit (even if you aren't sure)... DON'T BLOW. They'll snag your license for awhile, but they can't convict you for something they have no evidence of, and the penalties are much less... in the long run.
Our own Wisconsin Attorney General, Peg Lautenschlager, (No shit) got popped and refused the sobriety test... What does that tell you?

If you do, like I did (I was sure I'd be under, though I'd been drinking), and they find ANY reason to, they can put you in cuffs (Leaving your hot rod sitting on the side of the road in the rain), set you in a squad car and take you to the "official" Breath-A-Lizer at the station. In my case an HOUR and 15 minutes away. Alcohol from the last beer I slammed (it was starting to storm and I wanted to get my car home - about 4-5 miles) wasn't in my blood when I was actually driving, but by the time they got me there, I'd crept over the .10 limit to .11... yeah 1/100th of 1%... I said "slammed" but it was more like I drank it in 3 big gulps, and didn't even finish it. I'd had 3 beers over the previous 4 hours.

Okay, that's enough of my personal story, for now.

If you blow over the limit at the station, GET A BLOOD TEST. (I didn't and regret it... BAD)
You pay for it, but it's YOURS. You DO NOT have to share the findings with the police, the judge... nobody. So,get one...
If I'd been able to prove that my B.A.C. was rising I would have beat it.

That's another thing... GET A FUCKING LAWYER!!! (I need to have that branded on my ass...)
I hate lawyers, judges, courtrooms... Justice? What's that?
But I wish I would just get wise to it, and play their little game.
Walk into a courtroom without one and it's like saying..."What you do means nothing, Your Honor... Look, even a punk like me can do it."
They don't like that.
In Wisconsin, there is no jail time for a first offense, so you arent privy to a public defender.
That's their scam...
First, who is most likely, if not the poor and lower middle class to end up getting caught up in this. You can't win without a lawyer, so if you can't pay for one out of your pocket... your guilty... Done.

That, and for as smart as you might think you are, and for as much as you believe in the merits of the case, and the injustice against you, you'll miss something, and shit will happen so fast, and it's over, and your cryin' and beggin'... "Noooooo, Pleeeeeeze, I have a hot rod. Don't you understand? Boo hoooooo......."

Then... Oh no, it ain't over... not by a long fuckin' shot.
See, the judge is going to tell you that you have to recieve an "Alcohol Assessment"... This is a $170 test, which consists of something like 23 questions and a 5 minute sit-down with some shrink with the DT's, and he's gonna tell ya... "Son, I can see you don't have a drinking habit... BUT... there's this $240 Group Dynamics class which you MUST attend. You have 1 year in which to complete it, and JUST as soon as you PAY the FEE for the class, you may have your license back..."

WATCH YOUR MAIL and CALL THE SCHOOL REGULARLY...!
Aside from the fact that Blood Alcohol Content collected 1+ hours after the PERP is REMOVED from his HOT ROD can be used to convict him of DRIVING said HOT ROD while INTOXICATED... this mail thing is the fucking joke of the system...
You'll be mailed your class schedule, when they want you there (EVEN THOUGH THEY TELL YOU A YEAR). You can reschedule, but here's the kicker. They send you something, you don't know to expect it, it comes in a college envelope, the same envelope they mail the College's SPAM enrollment crap to you in... and weather you get it, toss it, open it, whatever... if you don't show, you lose your license, have to have the assessment over, pay the Group Dynamics fee over, and THAT, my friends, is what it's ALL about. The FEE...
If they cared about human life, they'd make stainless steel brake lines mandatory on ALL new cars.

Now... schedule 4 hours for 4 Saturdays, to sit with a bunch of drunk indians and discuss the merits of switching from Capt. Morgan to Jose Quervo, "'Cuz the bottle's square and it don't roll off the seat." (I'm skin too, so shut up before you even start)
Oh, and driving 40 miles on icy roads, at 7am, in January, to attend said classes is okay, in regard to endangering the lives of other motorists and that of yourself... but have a couple of beers... and OH MY GOD! YOU ANIMAL!!! HOW COULD YOU ENDANGER MY BABY?

Pay a $700+ fine...

Oh, and insurance...
Just plan on a second job...



JOE

 

lesson in this?

DON'T drink if you are going to drive.


jerry

 

You never did, did you?

I already said that... first line...

Your A.D.D. must have kicked in about half way through, so I guess you forgot.

If any of you ever find yourselfs there...which I didn't intend to... you might be happy I posted this.

...and I didn't say I was proud of it.

Cool?

JOE

 

Ah....I better not,maybe later.

 

I had a $750 game of pool last spring. Didnt get caught driving, some punk walked into my cue after starting shit he couldnt finish. I hired a lawyer pal that I had known in college. Good thing, he knew the ropes and loopholes in the system. I would have walked into a huge fine or even jail time w/o him! Now, wheres my pool cue...............?

 

seves you right !
anyone drinking and driving sould be put UNDER the jail.
I have lost too many family members and buddies to feel sorry you.
I had a cousin (27), her husband (30)and thier two kids ( 2&4) killed buy a guy who said in court " I was under the BAC limit, so its not my fault".
the fucker lived, and four beautiful people died , all so he could have a drink.

I have nothing against you or anyone else that drinks personally, but its not impossible to NOT drink and drive.

 

WTF?

Ok, you spent all this time telling everyone how to get out of being jailed or severely fined, getting a DUI, or having your license taken away...because it might INCONVENIENCE you...

and THEN you mock people who are against you getting drunk and driving because they are worried about their own lives, or the lives of their children?? yeah...you need to get your car home...thats WAY more important than not risking lives.

you -can not- drive as well when you're intoxicated as you do normally. say otherwise and it's bullshit. get drunk...but don't drive if you are.

 

"Knock it back, have another one,
Drinking and Driving is so much fun..."

But seriously, that entire system is throughly FUCKED, although so is the concept of having friends/family/self killed or crippled by a drunk driver....

But when you're just down the street from home and right on or slightly above the ultra-low limit, dealing with all the legal shit is fucking absurd...

It's even worse for people under 21... Half a beer will probably get their license pulled, and they take it for a LONG time...

 

Okay, I'll say it man did you mess up .Their kinda like a pack of wild dogs aren't they?

 

OK, some of you folk on your pristine pedestals have no clue about Joe or the extremely rural area he lives in. About the only thing he could have hit on that road was a Donutivore or a bear. He said he made a mistake, he also described how our skewed system works and how you should handle yourself to lessen the judicial damage.

It sounds to me like he is taking responsibility for his actions. Something most of our society doesnt do anymore.

 

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Okay, I'll say it man did you mess up .Their kinda like a pack of wild dogs aren't they?

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No, they just, unfortunately, missed my point in trying to help some buddies out of a potential jam, someday.

Fuck 'em.

When you're sitting in cuffs, in the back of a squad, and have no fucking clue, you find yourself wishing you had a little knowledge of what your up against.

How many people, who are so dead set against drunk drivers, don't check the air in their tires? Talk on their cel-phone? Let their brake pads wear down till they squeal?

Those things kill people, too.

JOE

 

I could'nt agree with you more .I think you did the right thing ,but the posse wont think so.

 

This post is one for the moderators to lock up and throw away.

 

I'm probably missing something here but I've never heard of someone convicted to drunk driving that has NEVER had a drink. Someone enlighten me please, what part of this theory don't I understand?

Frank

 

Thanks TMAN...
You too ASSGASKET... I didn't see your post, earlier.

The SYSTEM IS FUCKED...
It reminds me of the recycling snafu in the 70's.
"OH... My heavens... all this plastic and glass in the landfill..."

So, they come up with an open ended plan to gather it all up before it harms "Mother Earth"...

Then they found out thay had nowhere to go with it... no plan... The Federal Government rammed these mandates down the throats of each state and the shit piled up into mountains of trash... until they had to haul it to landfils and out to sea.

It's a grand plan... No more drunk drivers...

~violins and harps and golden flutes~

There will be peace and everlasting tranquility on our highways....

~more violins and harps and golden flutes and some french horns this time~

SLAP! Wake the fuck up!



...and BIG DIRTY... I disagree.
I was thinking Tech-O-Matic


JOE

 

Quit while you are ahead.... don't drink and drive...easy enough.

 

Let me put it this way...

Say I blew up a good motor because I was stupid and never changed my oil.

Now, after paying for parts, going without a vehicle... etc. I know better...

So, I tell my friends...
"Hey... Here's what happens if you don't change your oil."

Sure... someone is gonna come back and tell me how stupid I am, but that isn't going to stop me from telling people to CHANGE YOUR FUCKING OIL!!!



JOE

~PS~ My tag line is a joke, also. People who know me will tell you... I don't drink as a habit or even often.

 

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I have lost too many family members and buddies to feel sorry you.


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Every time I hear one of these stories I have to wonder what the true situation is after you take away the alcohol factor. I don't want to take anything away from you or your loved ones BUT If alcohol wasnt a factor in the accident would they still have died? It sounds like the anti-smoking propaganda that has been beaten into our heads. Example smoke a cigaratte and get lung cancer-ergo smoking causes lung cancer. So anyone who has lung cancer must have smoked, right?

My point is did the alcohol make the accident more severe? Or was the guy who caused the accident incompentent in the first place. People die in car crashes every day without alcohol involved, so what can we blame in those cases?

 

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"Knock it back, have another one,
Drinking and Driving is so much fun..."

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havn't hear that in years....time to dig out the old tunes....

 

My best freind was killed by a drunk driver 8 months ago yesterday.The guy crossed lanes and hit him head on... I am now helping his 13 year old son build a car the he and his dad started....It's a pretty emotional thing working on this chassis in his shop without him......

 

you not changing the oil in your own car and having the motor blow is one thing...it's your motor....

imagine doing something that causes your buddies perfectly good motor to blow, through no fault of his own. different story...


ElP.....take away the alcohol factor, and there probably wouldn't be an accident in the first place.

I know I wont change anyones mind or decision, but none of you are in Texas so I'll be alright

 

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This post is one for the moderators to lock up and throw away.

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I disagree. And I'm completely against driving while drunk.

Here in Pennsylvania the legal BAC level was just lowered from 0.10% to 0.08%. For a 175 pound guy like me (although I weigh 275 in a fight) that means that I'm over the limit after three beers. I'm certainly not drunk after three beers.

I like to hear ways to protect myself against guys who say otherwise.

--Matt

 

K&R I think you missed the point of my post completely. people die in car accidents without alcohol involved, every day!

It is a very tough subject to look at objectively. I read about alcohol involved accidents often and you could easily replace "fatigue" with "intoxication" and end up with the same results. There is no political-legislative movment against driving your vehicle drowsy. In fact you rarely hear about it but it still happens, alot!

Could you imagine drowsyness checkpoints, arrests, jail time, fines and community service and loss of licence because you stayed up too late. Silly isn't it, but just as dangerous.

Never said alcohol doesn't impair judgment, it does. People still drive too fast, take too many chances, run red lights, charge down oncoming lanes to pass at the wrong time, etcetera. Maybe more while intoxicated but all of those things on their own are dangerous to others even when sober.

Blame

Big alcohol
Big Tobacco
Big Oil
corporate greed

anything to shift blame

 

I think you missed my point.....

what percent of accidents that happen every day involve alcohol? Take that percentage, and toss it out the window. Those accidents would not be REPLACED by others, they would simply not exist. The number of alcohol related accidents has absolutely no effect on the number of accidents caused by other means.



Blame.....stupid people who do stupid things. Alcohol and Tobacco companies are not at fault.

 

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This post is one for the moderators to lock up and throw away.

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I disagree. And I'm completely against driving while drunk.

Here in Pennsylvania the legal BAC level was just lowered from 0.10% to 0.08%. For a 175 pound guy like me (although I weigh 275 in a fight) that means that I'm over the limit after three beers. I'm certainly not drunk after three beers.

I like to hear ways to protect myself against guys who say otherwise.

--Matt

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...and if your Grandma has two glasses of wine with her dinner, she goes to the slammer, too.

It's a money machine... and the people who can least afford it get the shit end of the stick.
IMHO... It's the M.A.D.D. mother's money, pouring all over Washington. They have the money (and time) to lobby politicians for votes and pad their election funds (That's legal). They show a few pictures of their dead kids (Where were you, mom, when junior went out drinkin') and next thing you know... The States are being blackmailed by the Fed to lower the limit, and they use highway funding to do it. The States love it. They get their funding from both ends...
But, nobody sees the real economic toll.
Not just on individuals, but to the economy.
I'm one guy, and I'm out thousands in fines, fees, insurance (like those fuckers need more money), lost time from work... etc.
...and I've never so much as put a scratch on another vehicle in a wreck... not a scratch, not a dent... in 25 years.

It's money...

It's wrapped in a thing called "Implied Consent".
By accepting a license, you waive certain rights.

Maaaayybeeee... we should look at it more realistically.
To me, when I took my license, at a time when that law didn't exsist, I knew that by going out there... there was a RISK to me and that I was a risk to others. I consented to that risk.

This is the only "crime" on the books where you don't have to DO anything. The guy that get's shitfaced and crosses the line and kills someone... He has committed a crime.

This is only a crime, because "THEY" keep lowering the limit... and where it crossed over into a place where a "Non-action" was a criminal act... I have no idea.

People still drink and drive.

A pack of cigarrettes is 6 freakin bucks and people still smoke..
Mostly govt. imposed tax for health care... Where's my fuckin' health care? I don't smoke...

I didn't intend for this post to do anything but supply a little knowledge...
Afterall, you NEED a driver's license if you want to drive your HOT ROD.

JOE

 

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This is the only "crime" on the books where you don't have to DO anything. The guy that get's shitfaces and crosses the line and kills someone... He has committed a crime.

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Tell me the difference between a guy who gets shitfaced and drives all the way home without incident, and a guy who gets shitfaced and drives into a minivan full of kids killing them all. One way, everythings cool, the other way people die. I mean if you want to make it black and white....then should the driver be automatically charged with murder? He didn't MEAN to do it, completely unintentional......but it did happen. The other guy just got lucky.

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This is only a crime, because "THEY" keep lowering the limit and people still drink and drive.

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good point.....

 

Your cigarette tax went to drug companies so they could make drugs to sell for 100 bux here, and also ship to Canada so they can sell 'em for for 15 $Can....

I often wonder why having a cop tell me to change a bulb, rifle through my shit, complain about a roll of pennies and a pocket knife, and treat me like a murderer cost ME 100 bux...???

It's all about the money...

Buy war bonds and lightning rods... Only you can prevent forest fires...

 

[ QUOTE ]
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This is the only "crime" on the books where you don't have to DO anything. The guy that get's shitfaces and crosses the line and kills someone... He has committed a crime.

[/ QUOTE ]

Tell me the difference between a guy who gets shitfaced and drives all the way home without incident, and a guy who gets shitfaced and drives into a minivan full of kids killing them all. One way, everythings cool, the other way people die. I mean if you want to make it black and white....then should the driver be automatically charged with murder? He didn't MEAN to do it, completely unintentional......but it did happen. The other guy just got lucky.

[ QUOTE ]
This is only a crime, because "THEY" keep lowering the limit and people still drink and drive.

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good point.....

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You answered your own question.
Now... You tell me the difference between a guy who has a couple beers with his pizza and gets pulled over for speeding and the guy who knows his tires are bald, has a blowout, drives into a minivan full of kids killing them all...

You know your car is a potentially lethal projectile
But you keep driving.
If your tie rod ends are worn and one breaks... and people suffer a loss... is it a crime or an accident?
Who wants to live in a world where it's a crime to have worn tie rod ends?

I think, if you keep an eye on your own personal situation, responsibly,it SHOULD NOT be viewed as a crime. If you misjudge that responsibility, and someone suffers... yes, you should pay.

Just like the guy who knew his tie rod ends could kill someone SHOULD pay, but, to charge him before it has caused harm? No.

JOE

For anyone wondering... K&R didn't misquote me or edit my wording. I did. I edited mine while he was writing his post. No foul.

 

Fuck it...just DONT DRINK AND DRIVE<,,i started to read this thread,,but it was like reading chinese...so anyways...


,,when i was younger,,i thought i was invincible,,i would drink and drive alot..i got POPPED,,costed me big time,...then i STILL drove and drank...i wrecked a nice BMW i had and didnt get in trouble,,after that ,i figured that was enough and that i was LUCKY,,,


..im PARINOID if i get behind the wheel after having a sunday lunch with my family and have a beer with my meal...

..no drinking and driving for me...i may have even been a turd at the national hot rod reuinion this past summer to some who may have met me for the first time cuz everyone was partying,,i DID have a few beers,,but had to maintain,,,

dont get me wrong..i like to drink beer,,but i dont like to get behind the wheel when i ve been drinking....BAD MOVE,,i dont care WHAT OLSKOOLRATRODZ sez...

 

A good freind in college was crippled by a woman who was passed out drunk , fell off the seat in her van onto the floor and crossed 4 lanes of traffice to hit him at over 70mph. Yeah, I think alcohol was a factor. And yeah, I can sit atop my high horse and preach. I drive, but never after drinking. Period. I agree there are too many fees, they should just take your license. First offense, a year. Second offense, ten years. Third strike, you walk for life.