Marzipan Pie Plate-> Drunk Drivers Don't Kill People..Cars Do

Drunk Drivers Don't Kill People, Cars Do
by Joe Mitchell

Watch any sporting event on television, and you'll find the breaks in action inundated with alcohol and automobile ads. America looks like a land of happy people drinking Budweiser and driving SUVs on wide-open dirt roads. This is an unfortunate admixture of images considering the often-deadly consequences of drinking and driving.

Strangely, in automobile accidents where alcohol is a factor, the only element demonized is the alcohol. One never hears about the culpability of the car in that morbid equation. What if the drunk had walked home? The chances of him killing someone else would have been absolutely nil unless he was an ill-tempered drunk who also happened to be armed with an AK-47.

It wasn't the drunk that plowed into the unfortunate pedestrian who had the right of way. It was two-plus tons of speeding metal. In fact, using an alternative transportation option, the drunk and the general public would have been safer than if he had ridden in the backseat of a car driven by a sober friend. If the drunk had walked, the worst he could do at his most reckless is inflict a few bruises on himself or someone else. If the sober friend made the slightest miscalculation at 15 mph or higher, the result could easily be death.

The automobile itself is deadly. There are more non-alcohol-related deadly accidents than alcohol-related. According to the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration, in 2002, there were a total of 42,556 automobile accident fatalities in the United States. Of that number, 17,448 or 41% were alcohol-related. Therefore, 25,108 or 59% of all automobile deaths did not involve alcohol.

Yet the outrage is reserved for the 41%. In November of 2002, Dr. Jeff Runge of NHTSA publicly stated, "We have a serious problem in this country when we tolerate the loss of 17,000 lives in alcohol related crashes."

I think we have a serious problem when we tolerate the loss of 42,556 lives. Period.

This is merely the carnage resulting directly from automobiles. Indirect deaths and adverse health effects here and worldwide are incalculable. The more discussed consequences of automobile dependence are global warming and pollution. Those two problems will get exponentially worse in the near future as China completes thousands of miles of new highways presently under construction and millions of new cars take the road.

Of more immediate concern, is there a connection between automobile-dependence and what is touted as an "obesity epidemic" in this country or stress-related heart attacks and other diseases? Would we be a healthier country if we reduced car trips, and chose walking or bicycling for errands close to home? No doubt, the answer to both questions is a resounding yes.

The most overlooked consequence of car-dependence is the loss of space. According to Jane Holz Kay's Asphalt Nation, one-third of all space in American cities and suburbs is dedicated to the automobile in the form of roads and parking spaces. In Los Angeles, that fraction is one-half. One can only imagine how much more pleasant the urban environment would be without the intrusion of the four-wheeled atrocity.

Of course, doing away with Henry Ford's monster is unthinkable for most Americans. Yet it is time to realize that our car culture is deadly and unsustainable. More than 20,000 Americans are killed by firearms each year. In 1997, it is estimated that over 142,000 persons died from cancer related to tobacco smoking. Over 17,000 Americans died from drug overdose in 2000. All of those killers have their vocal opponents. It is time for one of America's worst killers to lose its free ride.

*OPINION*
	Drunk Drivers Don't Kill People, Cars Do by Joe Mitchell Watch any sporting event on television, and you'll find the breaks in action inundated with alcohol and automobile ads. America looks like a land of happy people drinking Budweiser and driving SUVs on wide-open dirt roads. This is an unfortunate admixture of images considering the often-deadly consequences of drinking and driving. Strangely, in automobile accidents where alcohol is a factor, the only element demonized is the alcohol. One never hears about the culpability of the car in that morbid equation. What if the drunk had walked home? The chances of him killing someone else would have been absolutely nil unless he was an ill-tempered drunk who also happened to be armed with an AK-47. It wasn't the drunk that plowed into the unfortunate pedestrian who had the right of way. It was two-plus tons of speeding metal. In fact, using an alternative transportation option, the drunk and the general public would have been safer than if he had ridden in the backseat of a car driven by a sober friend. If the drunk had walked, the worst he could do at his most reckless is inflict a few bruises on himself or someone else. If the sober friend made the slightest miscalculation at 15 mph or higher, the result could easily be death. The automobile itself is deadly. There are more non-alcohol-related deadly accidents than alcohol-related. According to the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration, in 2002, there were a total of 42,556 automobile accident fatalities in the United States. Of that number, 17,448 or 41% were alcohol-related. Therefore, 25,108 or 59% of all automobile deaths did not involve alcohol. Yet the outrage is reserved for the 41%. In November of 2002, Dr. Jeff Runge of NHTSA publicly stated, "We have a serious problem in this country when we tolerate the loss of 17,000 lives in alcohol related crashes." I think we have a serious problem when we tolerate the loss of 42,556 lives. Period. This is merely the carnage resulting directly from automobiles. Indirect deaths and adverse health effects here and worldwide are incalculable. The more discussed consequences of automobile dependence are global warming and pollution. Those two problems will get exponentially worse in the near future as China completes thousands of miles of new highways presently under construction and millions of new cars take the road. Of more immediate concern, is there a connection between automobile-dependence and what is touted as an "obesity epidemic" in this country or stress-related heart attacks and other diseases? Would we be a healthier country if we reduced car trips, and chose walking or bicycling for errands close to home? No doubt, the answer to both questions is a resounding yes. The most overlooked consequence of car-dependence is the loss of space. According to Jane Holz Kay's Asphalt Nation, one-third of all space in American cities and suburbs is dedicated to the automobile in the form of roads and parking spaces. In Los Angeles, that fraction is one-half. One can only imagine how much more pleasant the urban environment would be without the intrusion of the four-wheeled atrocity. Of course, doing away with Henry Ford's monster is unthinkable for most Americans. Yet it is time to realize that our car culture is deadly and unsustainable. More than 20,000 Americans are killed by firearms each year. In 1997, it is estimated that over 142,000 persons died from cancer related to tobacco smoking. Over 17,000 Americans died from drug overdose in 2000. All of those killers have their vocal opponents. It is time for one of America's worst killers to lose its free ride.