Drunk Driving Shamefully OK
By Cathy Finio
Opinion Editor
The town of Shippensburg has been dealing with a lot of crime in the last couple of months.
The multiple break-ins and burglaries put students and residents of Shippensburg at a great risk.
Knowing that doors have been kicked in despite deadbolts being in place is a scary thing to realize.
It can make anybody living here feel like they are not safe, even in their own homes.
Extra precautions have been taken to ensure our safety, such as personal alarm systems being installed in apartments and keeping windows and all doors locked at all times.
But what if there is something just as dangerous, if not more than, that is in our town and for which we cannot take any precautions?
I was sitting in the CUB the other day and I overheard two girls talking to one another about their plans for the upcoming weekend, which is the one that just past.
They said something about going to the local bars for a friend’s birthday.
They must not live in walking distance of the bar that they were planning to go to, so one of the girls asked the other how they were going to get home.
After thinking about it for a second, the girl said that she would drive.
She then proceeded to say, “I didn’t black out last time, and I was fine to drive.”
This statement made me stop dead in my tracks.
I expected her to look at her friend and laugh it off as a joke, but she never did.
What might be even worse is that her friend failed to say something about what a stupid mistake that would be.
According to Alcohol Alert!, in 2006 there were 13,470 fatalities in crashes involving an alcohol-impaired driver.
I have no doubt in my mind that this number has increased over the past three years.
Drinking while driving is not only incredibly dangerous, but it can also ruin someone’s life.
I have heard numerous times that somebody will go to the bar, have a few drinks then drive home because they claim that they are fine.
Whether or not you think your judgment is impaired won’t matter when you’re getting pulled over by a police officer.
We also have three departments of the police in our area: the campus police, the Shippensburg Borough police and the Pa. state police.
They could care less if you were drinking one beer or seven.
Getting pulled over for speeding or going through a stop sign could have nothing to do with the alcohol you consumed, but if the police decide to give you a breathalyzer test, there will be an enormous punishment waiting for you.
Not only could your license be taken away for at least a year, but also you could be fined heavily and sentenced to community service.
If none of these options sound that bad to you, jail is the next step.
Many underage students who drink are worried to walk around the town on weekend nights for fear of being pulled over by a cop.
Driving is absolutely not the better option, even though I’m sure that they think it is.
I think Shippensburg would definitely benefit if it could somehow create a driving service for students who do choose to drink.
Instead of ignoring that underage drinking occurs or reprimanding students for something they are just going to continue to do is not beneficial.
Being safe is something that we need to strive for as a community. We need to acknowledge the problems that are happening.
Driving under the influence is something people feel that they’re capable, and that is just not the case.
It puts not only the driver at risk, but innocent lives can be taken as well.
I have seen it destroy people and, unfortunately, it is not something many people actually take seriously unless they are in the situation.
For most, however, at that point it will be too late to revoke their actions and be remorseful for what they did.
Knowing that somebody was planning to drive drunk this past weekend irritated me.
Who knows who could have be hurt or, even worse, wind up dead?
The Slate