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Show Rep. Hansen speaks out Draumk driving affect mls all By CONGRESSMAN JIM HANSEN Almost everyone has been touched, in one way or another, by a drunk driving incident. I can speak from experience that it's every parent's nightmare when the phone rings late at night, or when someone knocks at the front door at 1 in the morning. We all recall reading the tragic story in the Deseret News several years ago of the young high school couple tragically and senselessly killed on their way home from a date when a drunk driver slammed into their car. The article vividly described the emotional and physical struggle of family and friends, and the pain, bitterness and anger that followed. Little about the death of these two teenagers makes' sense, and nothing will ever be the same again for these two families. The same story can be told by a thousand other parents across the country who have suffered at the hands of a drunk driver. Physical scars heal, but emotional scars never heal. Drunk driving affects us all. It is one of the most serious public health and safety problems facing Americans. More than half of all fatal traffic accidents are alcohol related, and conservative conser-vative estimates place the annual economic loss from drunk driving accidents at $24 billion in property damage alone. In past years, states and the courts have dealt with drunk drivers leniently, many times releasing a drunk driver with a "slap on the hand," a warning or a small fine. However, recent vigorous anti-drunk driving programs have led to a growing awareness of the problem. In 1981, 1 convinced President Reagan to appoint a commission commis-sion to address the problem of the drinking driver. A Presidential Presiden-tial Commission on Drunk Driving was established , kicking off a nationwide anti-drunk driving campaign that has had widespread wide-spread repercussions. A number of recommendations were made which are now law or state policy. While the presidential commission has now been terminated, a new organization entitled enti-tled "The National Commission Against Drunk Driving" has been established. During the 98th Congress, legislation was enacted which promoted a nationwide minimum drinking age of 2 1 . Raising the drinking age was one of the original recommendations of the presidential commission after alarming statistics were revealed by the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration (NHTSA) that, of those killed in alcohol-related accidents, approximately 35 percent were between the ages of 16 and 24. Congress also passed joint resolutions designating a week in December as "National Drunk and Drugged Driving Awareness Week." State governments, which bear the primary responsibility for enforcing drunk driving laws, have also been upgrading enforcement enforce-ment efforts. In many areas of the country, for example, police roadblocks have become a part of the anti-drunk driving campaign. cam-paign. Typically, police stop traffic on roads with a history of drunk driving violations and at times when such violations usually occur in order to identify drunk drivers and to arrest those identified. Another important effort currently underway is the upgrading of the National Driving Register, a nationwide clearinghouse through which states can identify drivers who have established unsafe driving records in other states. Additionally, groups of concerned citizens have also played an important role in changing the public attitude toward drunk drivers. Probably the most well-known of the groups is Mothers Against Drunk Drivers (MADD). Another leading organization is Remove Intoxicated Drivers (RID). Groups also have been organized for students, such as Students Against Drunk Drivers (SADD). The growing awareness of the magnitude of the problem has led to a decrease in drunk driving accidents and fatalities. According to NHTSA, arrests and convictions have increased; mandatory confinements have been imposed; and special attention atten-tion has been given for repeated offenders. Teen-age drinking is also receiving greater attention. In 1981, 9,000 youths died in drinking-related accidents. Even though there has been a 33 percent decline in the death rate of teenagers since 1981, national surveys show that about 50 percent of high school students drink in cars. Concerned? Parents have a right to be. Parents can be the single most powerful tool in reducing tragic alcohol-related teenage deaths. Parents can make a difference. Our youth need to hear about the horrors associated with drinking and driving. We need to educate our communities on the problem of teenage drinking. We need to urge our schools to put more emphasis on drunk driving education. And we need to get a commitment out of our children that they won't drink and drive. Our society is fighting a tremendous battle and we are winning, win-ning, thanks to a combination of factors, including the efforts of federal, state and local governments, and concerned citizens, educators, and organizations. It will only be through our persistent persis-tent efforts and hard work that the senseless losses at the hands of drunk drivers will continue to decline. |