The other night I was watching the news when they did a segment on impaired driving.
The news anchor ended the segment with the statement that across Canada there was four deaths caused by impaired driving every day. This did not include how many were injured or crippled by impaired driving. Every single day !
I was surprised and very disappointed by this. I did not think it was still such a big problem with all the ads and graphic videos we are bombarded with that show us the results of drinking and driving.
I thought we were getting smarter about this.
I checked out the Stats Canada web page. I was disappointed to see that their stats had not been updated since 2011, but did find some interesting information. While impaired driving decreased in the 1980’s and 1990’s, in 2011 there was a two per cent increase, the fourth increase since 2006.
Increase? Wow, I did not like the sound of that. I phoned our local RCMP Detachment to get their thoughts on this.
The officer I spoke to said that one of the reasons for the increase could be the result of them working harder to catch the drunk driver with more check stops etc. Another help to them is the RID (Report Impaired Drivers) which is starting to be used more often lately.
These reasons made me feel a little better.
I know there are still the drinkers who get angry about getting stopped, even after seeing all those graphic ads.
I think they should remember that the police and first responders don’t just see a video; they get up close and personal with the real thing. They get to see the bloody bodies and hear the screams of pain.
Police also get to go knock on a door and tell someone that their loved one is dead. How would you feel about drinking and driving if you had to do that?
The RID program would be a bigger help if more people would use it.
I understand that people don’t want to report friends, they don’t want their friends to get angry with them, but would you rather have an angry friend or a dead one? It’s your choice.
Drinking and driving is just plain stupid. How would you feel if your loved one was dead because of someone else’s stupidity?
Sadly, holidays seem to bring out the stupid drivers. Maybe they think that the magic of the season will keep them safe. It will not!
This Christmas let’s be smart. Don’t drink and drive, let’s try and make this a safe and very Merry Christmas for everyone.
Merry Christmas to all!
by Lois Perepelitz
