Should Drunk Drivers Lose Their Driver’s Licence for One Year?
Abstract
The United States of America has a very serious issue related to the regulation and restrictive measures for drunk drivers. The paper demonstrates the statistics of drunk driving on the roads of the U.S. It tells about the influence of the alcohol on drivers. Moreover, it explains why drunk drivers should lose their driver’s licences for one year after they are caught in such condition despite the amount of alcohol they consumed. The paper emphasises the importance of restricting measures for drunk drivers.
Keywords: drunk driver, driver’s licence, accident, alcohol-related crashes, alcohol
The United States of America is the country that is overloaded with cars on the roads. Almost everyone in the country who reaches the necessary age has the driver’s licence. Drivers sometimes do not realize the responsibility they take when sitting in the cars. It seems to them that nothing wrong cab happen to them on the roads. Many Americans prefer the fast driving in order to show how well they can control the car. Some of them like to listen loud music or speak on the phone. They do not think about others who share the same road with them. They are confident until they are involved in an accident. The only justification for such people can be the fact that in some cases they are not able to fix the situation before the collision happens. However, some American drivers, who like to drive the car when they are drunk, do not have any ability to escape the crash. Consequently, the U.S. government has to provide strict laws that will make people drive the car being sober. One of such laws can be that people who are caught driving after consuming alcohol should lose their driver’s licences for one year.
Drunk driving is one of the most serious problems in the USA. In 40% of traffic accidents, the alcohol is considered as a factor that leads to the fatalities on the roads. The current laws and regulations in the United States of America are not strict enough to make regular Americans think of the idea of driving the car in a sober condition. In some states, the policeman does not have the right to stop the car without a specific reason in order to take a breath test. In general, penalties for drunk drivers include fines, community services or imprisonment for up to sixty days. One of the heavy fines is the revocation of the driver’s licence for six months. However, these regulations are not working in all the states. In some of them, the driver who is caught driving drunk will get just a fine. It is not the just regulation that has to be integrated for American drivers. This problem has to be treated more seriously than it is now. The drunk drivers are the serious danger not only for other drivers, but for pedestrians too. It is very easy to pay a fine and then continue to drive the car. It is not the right punishment for Americans that will stop them from consuming alcohol before and during driving. People, who are caught driving drunk by the policeman, have to lose their driver’s licences for one year. It will help to decrease a rate of drunk drivers.
In order to understand the deep seriousness of the issue, it is necessary to take a closer look at the statistics and facts that tell about the accidents that are caused by the drunk drivers. Each year more that 2 million people are arrested as a result of drunk driving in the United States. It is only the small part of those who drive under the influence of alcohol drinks, but are not caught by the police officers. It is estimated that the total cost of all alcohol-related crashes is more than 50 billion dollars. However, it is not that important, if one takes a look at people’s mortality on the roads. Every day approximately 30 people in the U.S. die in motor vehicle collisions that involve drunk drivers. In 2010 more than 10,000 people were killed by drunk drivers. It is about 30% of all deaths that relate to traffic accidents, whereas 211 children were killed by the drunk drivers (“Drunk Driving Statistics,” 2010). Some Americans drink too much and this fact is reflected in the high mortality rate in the car accidents. Thus, the drunk drivers have to be punished with more severe laws. There are some European countries that practice the loss of driving licenses for the rest of the life. Some people say that it is too severe punishment for those who drive the car after alcohol consumption. However, one should think about the loss due to such accidents and possible victims that should not be forgotten.
Client says about us
The regulations in the USA are not tough enough to the drunk drivers because the influence of alcohol on the driver is not completely examined by the government. One has to observe the details of alcohol influence in order to understand its danger to the drivers. The drunk driver on the road is an emergency. He or she is a threat to life and health of other drivers as well as pedestrians. Alcohol is the most common cause of accidents. Despite the constant struggle with it, it still remains an unsolved problem. If one asks the driver, why it is dangerous to drive the car while being intoxicated, they would probably answer the following. Alcohol distracts the driver’s attention. It damages memory, increases response time and harms the coordination of movements. There are many factors that show the psychological changes that impair the central nervous system. It is believed that if a young healthy driver drinks a glass of any alcohol drink, the rate of his or her psychological processes will decrease.
It should be emphasized that the driver’s licences have to be confiscated for one year from those drivers who even drink a little portion of alcohol. Some people claim that alcohol is not a serious threat to the people who participate in traffic. They base their arguments on the idea that very drunk drivers are a rare phenomenon on the roads and those who consume a little amount of alcohol do not pose any threat. The experience of deaths in alcohol-impaired driving crashes shows that the majority of accidents due to alcohol consumption appear exactly when the driver consumes a small dose of alcohol. Hence, it means that the reason is not only in reducing the physiological capabilities, but also in other factors. When a person drinks a large proportion of alcohol and is not able to drive the car, he or she usually asks someone else to do this. In the case, when the driver is in such condition and decides to drive on his or her own, they will be as cautious as possible. In order to compensate the slowing of the psychological processes, he or she will be careful while driving the car. Without a doubt, it is not the option for all drunk drivers, but some of them are more careful than those who just consume a small portion of alcohol. The fact is that person who drinks a bottle of beer or glass of wine usually does not feel that he or she is intoxicated. However, such a small amount of alcohol still continues to have its effect on human’s body. The driver feels more powerful and, worst of all, stops to adequately assess his or her capabilities. In the case of weak and strong intoxication, the causes of accidents are fundamentally different. Under the strong intoxication, the accidents occur due to reduced physiological capacity of the body. Under the weak intoxication, the accidents occur due to the psychological effects. People underestimate the complexity and danger of the situation. Even a small dose of alcohol shows how dangerous it can be to drive a car under the alcohol effect. Subsequently, such measures like the withdrawal of driver’s licence should be taken in order to protect innocent people in traffic.
The possible refutation of such measures may lay in the fact that the confiscation of the driver’s licence for one year will not influence the driver’s consciousness. However, it will work as a warning measure because for many people in the United States it is difficult to “survive” without a car. Americans is the nation that relies on a car more than other nations. Many people drive cars for a job purposes. It is very difficult for them to risk the loss of driver’s licences because of driving drunk. Therefore, this measure will definitely work. The driver will keep in mind that he or she can lose the driver’s licence in such a case. It is very different from thinking that driver can pay the fine. More strict measurers for drivers will make a positive effect on young generation who do not have proper experience on the roads and usually think that they are not responsible for what happens while they are driving. It gives them the feeling that a car is a vehicle for entertainment rather than for transportation needs. From the very beginning, it should be a signal for them that taking the role of driver on the road is more serious than they expect.
Drunk drivers should be given more severe punishment like seizure of their driver’s licences for one year. It will decrease the number of car crashes and death accidents on the roads. Moreover, it is a preventive measure to fight an alcohol abuse and give a proper guidance for future drivers.
