I hate drunk drivers!

[Kai Robinson]

Today was not a good day for me. I got an email from the sister of a close friend of mine, to tell me that she'd been involved in a serious car accident, and is currently on a life support machine in a coma.

Her car was driving across an intersection when a DRUNK DRIVER in a pickup truck T-boned her and slammed her into another car.

Doctors don't know if she'll make it through the night and she may have more internal bleeding. I'm not entirely sure how to feel right now - i'm angry, upset, i can't help do anything, i'd like to pull the a-hole that did this into a dark alley and kick the living s**t out of him.

This girl JUST got over f*****g CANCER! Literally, had a tumour removed from her brain 4 weeks ago, and was on the way to recovery when this s**t happens.

I know this is kind of a rant, but i really, REALLY don't know what to do, or to say to her family

[noroger]

not trying to be an ass, but was it a pituitary tumor?

[Kai Robinson]

I don't know what kind of tumour it was. And thats not really the issue here.

[noroger]

well hopefully she wasn't behind the wheel because people that had tumors removed aren't allowed to drive for at least two years.

but anyhow, it's not only the drunk or stoned drivers, even people on heavy pain meds are a serious threat on the road. They just think that it doesn't affect them.

[XS_Rich]

Really sorry to hear that Kai, hope she pulls through.

well hopefully she wasn't behind the wheel because people that had tumors removed aren't allowed to drive for at least two years.

Depends where they were driving, in the UK there's no strict time limit, instead it's a doctor's assesment ; "Can drive when there is no debarring residual impairment likely to affect safe driving.".

http://www.dft.gov.uk/dvla/medical/ataglance.aspx

[Kai Robinson]

She was behind the wheel. There were no 'issues' and she wasn't on any pain medication for at least the last two weeks. Either way, being hit by a speeding pickup truck after it ran a red light would make it very much NOT HER FAULT.

[ahmad]

Not trying to be a jacka**, just a realist. You play with fire, you are going to get burned. You want alcohol to be legal and available, but you don't want all the negative side-effects. Thats my rant.

It's like not locking your shop door with a sign on the window saying "the door is not locked, please don't steal anything".

This is the opinion of less than 0.000001% of the population.

I feel bad for your friend, I hope she recovers successfully.

[zanzabar]

Not trying to be a jacka**, just a realist. You play with fire, you are going to get burned. You want alcohol to be legal and available, but you don't want all the negative side-effects. Thats my rant.

It's like not locking your shop door with a sign on the window saying "the door is not locked, please don't steal anything".

This is the opinion of less than 0.000001% of the population.

I feel bad for your friend, I hope she recovers successfully.

things get/got much worse when u ban alcohol from a country thats got a long history of making/using it, it creates and underworld of drinking and then on top of gangs that form u also get bad products and people get injured or go blind on top of the public degradation. and most of the time its not drunk drivers that cause problems, its tiered drivers drunk or not (im not saying that its a good idea to drive impaired.) that said it really sucks when this happens

[Kai Robinson]

Okay, i think some people have been confused - she was NOT drunk, she was stone cold sober, and not on any kind of f*****g medication, she was HIT by a drunk driver!

[Charles Wirth]

I was hit and badly injured by a drunk drive who ran a red light at 65Mph, t-boned in the passenger door. He sped up to make a yellow light a few seconds too late, the passengers in his car told the cop that he ran the red light. He had just left a party with a car full of people. He put the engine in through the fire wall a little, the dash was pushed into them at least a foot. I was in a "five star" side impact Crown Victoria where it knocked my car 20 feet and spun him around 180. The Vic barely survived being totaled and good thing it was a five star side impact vehicle.

Last year, a drunk driver ran the stop sign here by my house and hit a pregnant woman and then hit a wall where he knocked that over and had his front end up on rebar and blocks, when he hit he had the beer bottle in his hand and realized after the truck had stopped that he had a beer in his hand, he threw the half full bottle behind the passenger seat and tried to take off in reverse to find out he was stuck on something, he got out and tried to pull the blocks out from under his truck and gun it in reverse when we were trying to get the 8mos pregnant woman out of her car where he hit her in the drivers door. Her car was directly behind his and he was flooring it trying to get unstuck. Several other guys jumped in his window and took his keys until the police came. he was cuffed and questioned in front of us where he said he didnt hit anyone and he was not driving, he was concerned with getting hot food home and kept demanding to call someone.

[HuffPCair]

I actually lost my motorcycle to a drunk teenager this last summer. All I got was some really bad road rash and my bike totaled out, but could of been worse. I got a new bike so not all is bad.

For you Kai sorry to hear about that. I truly hope your friend comes out alright and hope the driver gets what he/she deserves.

I lost a friend in high school that was very close to me because of a drunk driver. Killed her on impact and the jackass is still walking the streets to this day because of ty cop work. So I know how you feel right now it is very angering. So I hope all goes well for your friend and how ever France deals with that kind of stuff over there.

[DosDuoNo]

i am sry to hear of your friend Kia, i feel the same way about drunk drivers, what is it about these morons that makes them think they are the exception to the rule, and that 'they' wont get caught/kill anyone?

all for a drink or a joint? they should be shot

my prayers are with your friend tonight, she sounds like a tough cookie, im sure she will pull through.

[P-Zero]

Not trying to be a jacka**, just a realist. You play with fire, you are going to get burned. You want alcohol to be legal and available, but you don't want all the negative side-effects. Thats my rant.

It's like not locking your shop door with a sign on the window saying "the door is not locked, please don't steal anything".

This is the opinion of less than 0.000001% of the population.

I feel bad for your friend, I hope she recovers successfully.

I agree 100%.

I was hit and badly injured by a drunk drive who ran a red light at 65Mph, t-boned in the passenger door. He sped up to make a yellow light a few seconds too late, the passengers in his car told the cop that he ran the red light. He had just left a party with a car full of people. He put the engine in through the fire wall a little, the dash was pushed into them at least a foot. I was in a "five star" side impact Crown Victoria where it knocked my car 20 feet and spun him around 180. The Vic barely survived being totaled and good thing it was a five star side impact vehicle.

WOW! That's a heavy car to move 20 feet sideways. Glad you made it. If you had been in anything smaller you would've been dead.

And those people got lucky that they didn't die either. The last ones around here that did that blew through a railroad crossing. Train going 65 killed all 5 passengers instantly. Quite sad really, they were all between the ages of 14 and 19. Stupid kids.

but anyhow, it's not only the drunk or stoned drivers, even people on heavy pain meds are a serious threat on the road. They just think that it doesn't affect them.

i am sry to hear of your friend Kia, i feel the same way about drunk drivers, what is it about these morons that makes them think they are the exception to the rule, and that 'they' wont get caught/kill anyone?

all for a drink or a joint? they should be shot

my prayers are with your friend tonight, she sounds like a tough cookie, im sure she will pull through.

Have you guys ever been in a car with a stoned driver? The thing that happened to fugger would have never happened if the driver had been stoned. Sure he might've ran the red light, but the difference is he would probably only be going 6.5 MPH.

Now alcohol on the other hand makes people think they're invincible. I've heard/read/seen so many accidents about the driver being drunk and failing to "negotiate" a turn. Usually it's because they were going 100 MPH.

Meds are a little different as they can work in a variety of different ways. Some might make people sleepy, some wired until they pass out, others just lose sight of reality and do all sorts of strange and crazy things.

BTW, I do not condone driving under the influence of any sort of controlled substance, just saying that a stoned driver is usually not a danger ( I happen to live in a city that has a lot of them).


KAI, sorry to hear that your friend was seriously injured. I hope she pulls through. She sounds like a fighter so hopefully everything will work out for her. And I hope the person responsible gets punished to the full extent of the law.
As for what you can do, if they allow it, go visit her in the Hospital. Even in a coma, supposedly, they can still hear. So go up there and talk, read a book aloud. That could very well help her get better faster.

[Kai Robinson]

Actually, they were in Louisiana. Which is even more annoying - because i can't DO anything.

[Petra]

I was hit and badly injured by a drunk drive who ran a red light at 65Mph, t-boned in the passenger door...The Vic barely survived being totaled and good thing it was a five star side impact vehicle.

It's stuff like this which causes me to have second thoughts about my love of smaller cars.

Best wishes for your friend, Kai... regardless of what happens, they better throw the book at that drunk. Drunk driving is totally inexcusable and, to me, demonstrates such a failure of judgement and forethought as to render one unfit for life within our society.

[Kai Robinson]

Well, she was in an 05 Taurus. I've been mailed a pic by her sister - the thing was torn in half.

[[XC] gomeler]

I'm sorry to hear that. I positively hate drunk drivers, just take a cab home. I live within stumbling distance of my bars, one of the selling points of my apartment I hope your friend recovers, keep us updated.

[saaya]

how come 90% DUIs happen with pickup trucks?
if you ask me, the law is obviously not strict enough...
why do you think so many people drink and drive?
its unlikely to get caught, and even if it does happen, the same people do it again... and possibly again and again...
its pretty clear how the law isnt enforced properly which then causes all those accidents...

hope shell be fine man, best wishes!

[zanzabar]

the problem isnt the laws its that its socially acceptable, and there arnt many drunk driving fatalities (compaired to road way fatalities, (old people and non drunk tiered people are the majority) but they are an easy target to get more laws against drinking, and with those mormen and other richly backed religious groups they get alot of publicity for things that they dont like. as for pickups, if u hit some1 in a car with a pickup they are going to get hurt, a torus is 3k lbs and a truck is 5-6k lbs mostly in the front so its like a moving wall hitting a car but then to make it worse its 1-3 feet off the ground so it will slam over the bumpers or the lower door frame.

the 2nd thing that i think gets people to drunk drive is the lack of public transportation, were i live for example there is no public transportation except from the subway in the next town over to the biz park were there is nothing near it. so that give people the choice of walking a long way or to drunk drive. so if there was useful public transportation i would be that there would be allot less drunk driving.

[Kallenator]

Thats pretty much as unlucky as an individual can get. Hope her condition stabilizes!



Some of the states has some serious numbers compared to their total population.
http://www.alcoholalert.com/drunk-dr...tatistics.html

[saaya]

hmmm good point... in the uk calling a cab to get home can easily set you back 50$...
and if you get caught dui the fee is between 0-150$... so...
still, if the fee would be 1500$, people would rather walk or plan how to get home...

thats one thing about asia that opened my eyes... people think all those fees here are ridiculously high, like 200$ for eating chewing gum in the subway or throwing trash on the street... well, it works... ridiculous as they might be, they do work...
and talk about pollution and saving the environment... people only recently started to care, and why? because of money...
money is the best way to regulate something imo...

[RADCOM]

I'm sorry about your friend Kai, I hope she pulls through she's obviously a fighter

I've been guilty of drinking and driving ( I didn't hit anyone or anything though)..... believe me I've learnt my lesson. In the UK attitudes has changed and it is considered the second most heinous crime behind murder. I was just talking to my friends about it the other day... what do you tell the parents of the child you've inadvertently murdered!! The drink drive campaigns are getting more and more graphic and we need to educate ourselves and deliver the hard sentences ( mandatory 12 months jail for being over the limit ). Breath test before the immobilizer releases the car??

[WrigleyVillain]

Not trying to be a jacka**, just a realist. You play with fire, you are going to get burned. You want alcohol to be legal and available, but you don't want all the negative side-effects. Thats my rant.

Oh yeah prohibition (both alcohol then and now drugs) has made society SO much better off and safer. Tell that to the the 35 Chicago Public School students gunned down last year. Give me a break. You're not a realistic at all if you think it's feasible and practical to control people's intake of substances etc through laws and imprisonment (or worse). Well at least in a society that doesn't physically maim people for petty, even victimless, crimes.

I'm sorry to hear this Kai and I hope she pulls through. Life is so harsh sometimes.

[saaya]

taxes... im telling you guys... taxes
prohibition doesnt solve problems, it makes some things more attractive to kids even...

just put a huge fee on everything you dont want people to do... its as easy as that...
fees work way better than morals and conscience in my experience... sad, but true...
everybody is oh so sad and outraged about how we rape our planet... but continue supporting companies that destroy vast environments and pollute like theres, literally, no tomorrow... but as soon as you make them pay more for their products, you can go and watch them change their buying habits within a second...

[zanzabar]

were i am in CA its about $10k for getting arrested for drunk driving and u loose your license for 3 months and then u cant drive except to work, school or child care for the next 1-2 years. the fine idea seams interesting or making it like germany were the fees are tailored to your income, but outside of large cities there is no public transportation or taxis, but taxing alcohol wont work work its already heavily taxed and with no/expensive drinking i dont want to know what people will start to replace it