[drsebby]...the generalized statement you have issued is essentially true.
but then so is the law prohibiting murder...yet i do not require the threat
of punishment to adhere to the notion. much the same i do not suggest anyone
to drink and drive.
[Mermaid]Sebby, Reality is the other side of the coin. The comparison
between drunk driving and murder is erroneous. Drunk driving is an action
that *might* lead to loss of life or limb or property or if one is lucky,
just chaos and nuisance. Murder is the *act* of willful, congnizant and
planned termination of another life. Attempted murder is the same as drunk
driving. Only, drunk driving is even more pathetic. It doesnt require the
callous intelligence of someone drawing the map to plot another's death. You
just need to be drunk and lose that one second of concentration(which you
normally would or would not mind and keep it well stocked). Losses of any
kind that occur due to drunk driving is simply a pity. Because one doesnt
'mean' to cause harm, but 'if only he wasnt drunk'. "Dang!!" It is wholly
avoidable and thats the whole logic behind the laws against drunk driving.
It is completely AVOIDABLE. Yes, you can have an accident while chomping
down a ShitMac, but then you are eliminating one more danger to a road
disaster if you avoid drinking and driving. That is all. There is no room
for comparison. If you make a list of things that would go wrong on the
road, i bet it will be a long list. Responsible driving and safety lies in
trying to keep that list short and striking out the innuendos. One at a
time. This law, at least, was not meant to interfere with one's rights or
drafted out of jealousy just to bring grief to the slosher who is having a
mighty fine time.
If murder wasnt punishable, there would be more murders around. I bet if I
keep goading you, you will want to murder me and even the threat of
punishment wont stop you...lol. Do not credit humanity with too much
compassion. There are reams and reams of evidence in our history.
[drsebby] i am quit certain that as i am in an odd category with
many things, my scenario is quite individual...and as yet i imagine many
others might say the same, i am quite certain that i AM in a rather peculiar
scenario:
[Mermaid]I think that you are odd and peculiar too..:) I will even sign any
document that says so... Finally, we can agree on something!!
[drsebby]i have a very controllable reaction to alcohol, im smart enough to
truly compensate for nearly all incumbent handicaps, and i do not lose sight
of long term implications and how they might interfere with my personal
goals etc.
[Mermaid]I will take that assertion with a pinch of salt. But assuming, you
are right, the laws will not change for self-proclamations of control and
level of tolerance with alcohol. There is nothing in the system that will
hold you accountable if you slip from your position of absolute control.
There is only way things can be regulated. Do not drink and drive. Period.
[Mermaid]Lets not forget that the cops(as far as I know) do not randomly
pull up cars unless they sense erratic driving or something suspicious. I
can only unfairly dismiss your claims of alcohol tolerance, but I do not
know you personally and have never seen you drive. If I knew you on an
personal level and have confidence in your words, I would still insist that
you should not drink and drive.(when I say 'you', as usual, I mean anyone,
not just drsebby, who would make similar arguments..i.e. claims to high
tolerance to alcohol, reasonable control and judgement.) Until there exists
a solid system of eliminating bad drivers from our roads, there is
absolutely no point to even discussing the merits and demerits of the
draconian laws and legal consequences of drunk driving.
[drsebby]....but moreover, as you so agree to the general public's notions
to this act of "impaired" driving, you also breeze over dozens of other
considerations that could and likely do easily match or exceed the 'across
the board' effects of drinking and driving...<snip>...i say youre buying
into popular and extra focused propaganda on one complex issue.
example:...<snip>...it's not yet a popular carrier for public hatred, so you
skip it.
[Mermaid]This is when you go from being defensive to the offensive. For a
group that claims to be rational and logical, slips like these occur from
all corners of CoV and all too often. An example of where similar
defensive-offensives crop up: This is exactly like saying-"tobacco is legal
and its worse than weed..so its reason enough to support legalisation of
weed." If weed has to be made legal, let it be made legal for the right
reasons. If you want to ban cell phones while driving(it is illegal to talk
on handheld phones while driving in some states now..NY, off the top of my
head), then work on that. For the right reasons. It has no place in an
argument justifying drunk driving. There is absolutely no reason to confuse
two issues.
[Mermaid]I'd rather not skip it, as you would like to imagine. But it would
only be a digression and a complete distraction from the issue at hand. More
on that from National Safety Council:
http://www.nsc.org/news/policy/multitasking.htm
[drsebby]i suspect the pro-christian/anti-alcohol/drug psychological cartel
has much more to do with your opinion than flat out reality.
[Mermaid]I disagree. I am not pro-xian neither am I anti-alcohol or
anti-drug. Personally, I am anti-drug, which means that *I* would not risk
my health or freedom under the current legal system. This is a personal
choice which I do not impose upon others. However, I would demand that any
drug/alcohol user to limit any ill effects wrt behaviour due to his
drug/poison of choice to his backyard or bathtub because if it affects me or
my family or just about anyone I care about, he will have hell to pay.
[Mermaid]Reality is that people do drink and drive irresponsibly. Reality is
that not everyone's opinion about themselves is neither valid nor true all
the time. Reality is that there is loss of life and limb, destruction of
property and generally *avoidable* disasters on the road when there is a
drunk driver behind the wheel. Reality is that the law is a bitch and the
consequences of blatant rebellion to a sensible law will be costly...on
several different levels. Reality is that the state DOES have the right to
interfere and dictate to you and me and everyone else that they will be
floating up shit creek if they break this law because the state is
essentially defending the right of other citizens to live and be safe.
[Mermaid]Cell phone use has NOTHING to do with drunk driving and it speaks
volumes about your argumentation skills. If this is all you have got to say
to defend drunk driving, then you havent said much at all and whatever
little you have said has only strengthened the case against driving under
the influence.
[drsebby]add the fact that nearly all alcohol fatalities involve people with
a serious problem handling the effects of alcohol(eg..would be helicopter
pilots as i mentioned before), and i'd say your point is empty or at least
seriously equalized by things you dont yet confront.
[Mermaid]Ad hominem, to call me pro-xian/anti-drug/anti-alcohol to make your
argument in the first place. Secondly, a sad lack of facts to back your
position.
[Mermaid]Concluding, I do not care how it comes across to you...if you are
half as smart as you claim to be...you would not be drunk when you are
driving again. You dont even have to accept that in front of us. For your
safety, freedom, security and for the safety of everyone else on the road,
try not to drink and drive. Well..trying is not good enough..just dont
fucking do it.
[Mermaid]Nothing has changed. The position is still the same. Do NOT drink
and drive. DrSebby is essentially saying the same thing to others, but he is
claiming that he is superior to everyone else in that his drunk driving can
be forgiven and he gives his word..HIS WORD that he will not harm anyone on
the road. It is worth what it is worth. It is certainly not worth the breath
of life or even the cost of mending a broken fence. Definitely not worth the
time spent battling the insurance folks.
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This archive was generated by hypermail 2b30 : Sun Sep 22 2002 - 05:06:15 MDT