Lowering BAC lmits from .08 to .05....

[KFC911]

Been out around, but come home and see this on the morning news...made me go hmmmm.
Particularly in light of what I've been posting in the opiate thread. To be clear...I abused alcohol as a youngin'...back when it was "OK" to drive afterwards if impaired ....if course it never was. Times change....can't remember the last time I even had one beer, so this has no impact on me whatsoever...none.

The local news is having a poll, and the consensus is that there should be zero tolerance...even .05 is too high.

Oh, you don't have to blow even .08 here (legal limit)....if you have a hint of alcohol on your breath, you "can" be charged if you fail the roadside sobriety test...and usually will be, especially if involved in an accident.

But lowering BAC to .05 as an "arbitrary #" pretty much means if you have a glass of wine or a single beer while in a restaurant, then you "might" be legally impaired....depending upon body weight imo.

Am I missing something? Why the double standards....it seems we have collectively lost our common sense these daze.

Let's bring cell phones into the equation....

Yes, we have....lost common sense that is

Discuss....

[Taz's Master]

I'm not much of a drinker, and have family members who have been injured, one severely by drunk drivers. I believe that making the penalties more draconian as intoxication increases would do more to make society safer than lowering the punishment threshold. I'm not saying that 0.05 does not equate to some level of impairment, but the serious accidents around here often involve elderly drivers, I know what I was capable of 25 years ago, and what I can do today, and the next 25 years will likely do more to impair my abilities than a 0.05 BAC today.

But hey I'll bet the attorneys and law enforcement support it, and the money needs to come from somewhere.

[LakeCleElum]

Those pushing for .05 cannot support their cause. They cannot show many (if any) serious accidents cause by those between .05 and .08%. As KC sez, distracted driver had proven more dangerous than someone as high as a .25, yet we see that all day long. Put your efforts there.

I hope the bar and restaurant lobby fights an lower than .08. I'm not in favor of impaired driving, but like to a 2 beers with dinner sometimes........

[ckelly78z]

The party poopers who are pushing for .05 versus .08 are trying to eliminate casual drinking when out with friends. .05 would be about 1 drink in many thinner people, and not quite 2 drinks in heavier patrons. God forbid, the resturaunt or wedding reception serves alcohol.

This does sound like something the lawyers would be in favor of greatly.

[javadog]

The drunk driving incidents that make the headlines are the ones where the driver is far beyond the .08 limit. Usually they are 2 to 3 times that limit. Lowering the limit Will make absolutely no difference except how much money changes hands. Around here, a first time DUI will cost you about $7000. 2/3 of that goes to the lawyer.

Like most laws, these laws seldom do anything at all to change the problem. You should spend a day in a misdemeanor court room sometime and see firsthand just how much a waste of time most law-enforcement is.

[Jims5543]

Originally Posted by LakeCleElum

Those pushing for .05 cannot support their cause. They cannot show many (if any) serious accidents cause by those between .05 and .08%. As KC sez, distracted driver had proven more dangerous than someone as high as a .25, yet we see that all day long. Put your efforts there.

I hope the bar and restaurant lobby fights an lower than .08. I'm not in favor of impaired driving, but like to a 2 beers with dinner sometimes........

Totally agree much bigger problem with distracted drivers these days.


I have the same policy, 2 beers or drinks with dinner. I happen to own a pocket breathalyzer and took it to dinner one night, after two IPA's I blew over 0.08. I did not feel impaired at all and if I had not blown, I would have never hesitated to drive home, actually I didn't hesitate, I drove home..... while texting, emailing, and posting to FUbook that I was out to dinner.

[Gogar]

funny how I can’t have 2 glasses of wine at a restaurant but it’s ok to hop in an uber whose driver may have just popped a couple of Ativans and a 80mg cheeba chew

[Tervuren]

I have seen the direct result of alcohol on different folks with racing sims, or private karting events.

I don't drink, but my take away is that it very much varies from person to person.

Guys that are too tense by nature, will actually improve a little with 3-4 beers.

Guys at the top of the game will fall off a little around 4 beers, but still be better than most.

I think if its seen you aren't in control of your vehicle, that should be the threshold. That includes cell phone, etc.

[KFC911]

Originally Posted by Gogar

funny how I can’t have 2 glasses of wine at a restaurant but it’s ok to hop in an uber whose driver may have just popped a couple of Ativans and a 80mg cheeba chew

...while talking on their cell phone.

[javadog]

I may be out of touch with the hip crowd, as I don't even know what a cheeba chew is...

[sammyg2]

I don't drink at all anymore, but i believe they should be more concerned with the stoned mush-heads than the people who have one or two drinks.

[wdfifteen]

Originally Posted by Tervuren

I have seen the direct result of alcohol on different folks with racing sims, or private karting events.

I don't drink, but my take away is that it very much varies from person to person.

Guys that are too tense by nature, will actually improve a little with 3-4 beers.

Guys at the top of the game will fall off a little around 4 beers, but still be better than most.

I think if its seen you aren't in control of your vehicle, that should be the threshold. That includes cell phone, etc.

Being able to control the car is not the the big issue. Loss of concentration and nodding off are the big problems with drunk driving.

[David]

I find it funny (and sad) that people who know the least about something, know it the loudest. I'm not talking about folks here but about folks who think the problem is with drunk drivers at 0.08 BAC.

Jeff Sessions comes to mind on another front.

[Gogar]

Originally Posted by javadog

I may be out of touch with the hip crowd, as I don't even know what a cheeba chew is...

It’s a little tootsie-roll thing with enough thc in it to knock out an elephant. Creates those mush-heads Sammy is talking about.

[legion]

Big article about this in our local newspaper yesterday. I'd like to know who is feeding the media this story. My bet is the ABA.

[Jeff Higgins]

Why is there not some kind of a progressive scale? I.E., a speeding ticket for 100 in a 60 is a good deal more than 70 in a 60. I just can't see hammering someone as hard for .05%, or even .08%, as we should for .25%.

Of course, like many other things, I guess we should just follow the money. An entire industry has been built around DUI laws, and a quite profitable one at that.

[RKDinOKC]

They are just trying to make the roads safer for all the newly legal stoners driving around at 10mph.

[Tervuren]

Originally Posted by David

I find it funny (and sad) that people who know the least about something, know it the loudest. I'm not talking about folks here but about folks who think the problem is with drunk drivers at 0.08 BAC.

Jeff Sessions comes to mind on another front.

Appear to do something vs actually doing something.

Same applies to a lot of regulation of "Things" over "Harm"

[dewolf]

Been .05 in Australia for years. Learners and probationary drivers (must display P plates for the first two years of driving) are zero. No one here really cares.

[Bill Douglas]

We are .05 in New Zealand too.

But it's the rotten drunk drivers who cause the damage. And it's not just drunken young men. More than often it's a middle age or elderly woman who has downed half a bottle of gin who mows down a group of cyclists. Or the smart business woman who has downed a bottle of pinot gris with lunch.

My dad was NZ's second highest alcohol level while driving conviction. So I've seen it all