Resources
How to stop a drunk driver
Let’s say it’s late Friday night. You’re walking past a popular bar in town, and see 3 or 4 guys, clearly drunk, leaving the bar and heading towards the parking lot. As you watch, they head towards a car, clearly intending to drive home. What do you do?
Or let’s say you’re driving down the highway, Saturday afternoon. For the past couple minutes, you’ve been seeing a car ahead of you swerve slightly in his lane. The car seems to be swerving more and more. The driver is clearly not fit to drive, and yet he’s on the road. What do you do?
Don’t try to intervene. Just call 911.
A recent article in Omaha World-Herald featured a man who reported a drunk driver to the police, but wished that he had done more later, after the driver crashed. But had he done so, he would have put himself and others in danger.
You should make every attempt to keep a friend from getting behind the wheel, but it’s risky to try and stop somebody you don’t know. Don’t try to physically stop them, just call the police, giving them the license plate number and a description of the vehicle. Don’t put yourself in harm’s way in trying to keep them off the road.
Same for vehicles on the road. Call 911 and give them a description. Maintain a safe distance behind the driver. There’s very little you can do to safely get him off the road, so leave it for the police.
Thoughts? Things you’d add? Drop us an e-mail at info@centurycouncil.org
SoberRide rides again!
One local program we’re very proud to support is SoberRide. SoberRide offers free cabs to everyone in the Washington DC Metro Area on some of the most dangerous weekends of the year for traffic. By doing so, Sober Ride helps keep those who’ve had too much to drink from getting behind the wheel and getting them home safely.
Funding for SoberRide has been lower this year, to the point where it was in danger of being cancelled for the July 4th weekend. Thankfully, many of SoberRide’s private sponsors joined The Century Council in generously donating to keep the program alive. As a result, Washington DC is going to a much safer place this holiday weekend.
SoberRide is run by the Washington Regional Alcohol Program (WRAP), a public-private coalition to promote healthy, safe choices regarding alcohol in the Washington DC metro area.
To use SoberRide this weekend, just call 1-800 200-TAXI. You must be 21 years or older to use the service.
National Youth Traffic Safety Month!
May is National Youth Traffic Safety Month, and a perfect time to refocus efforts on keeping America’s youth safe on our roadways. Youth and organizations across the nation will host and participate in events and projects to increase awareness about youth traffic safety.
National Youth Traffic Safety Month addresses the number one cause of death for youth in our nation. Every year more than 5,000 youth die in traffic-related crashes. Many of these crashes are caused by avoidable behavior, and specific actions can be taken to be a safer driver and ensure passenger (and other motorists’ and pedestrians’) safety.
You may recall The Century Council’s efforts last October during National Teen Driver Safety Week, in which we produced an eCard designed to highlight some of the distractions teen drivers are approached with when they drive. Cell phone usage, eating, loud music and other similar distractions provide unnecessary interruptions to all drivers, but youth are especially affected by these annoyances due to their lack of experience behind the wheel.
We commend the National Organizations for Youth Safety (NOYS) on their hard work preparing for National Youth Traffic Safety Month! We encourage you to visit NOYS’s website and check out their toolkit to see how you can get involved. We can all play a part in helping to keep our roadways safe for all!
Distracted driving: The focus of 'Heads Up Driving Week"
The AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety are challenging drivers to put down their phones for a week.
Declaring October 5-11, 2009 as ‘Heads Up Driving Week,’ they’re urging drivers to put away all the distractions that can occur while driving, and to just drive.
We believe that distracted driving is a grave threat to those on the road, particularly teen drivers. We support The AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety in their efforts.
Century Council Tweets!
Want more updates from The Century Council? Follow us on Twitter – we have been "Tweeting" away! Our Tweets will keep you up-to-date with our events around the country to fight drunk driving and stop underage drinking, as well as fill you in on information related to underage drinking and drunk driving.
Check out our current status here: http://twitter.com/centurycouncil
Tell your teen: Think before you drink
There are a lot of reasons why teenage drinking isn't a good idea, beginning with an increase in all sorts of risky behaviours
ANTHONY E. WOLF
Many parents today are ambivalent about their teen and drinking.
"They're probably going to drink some day anyway. Besides, adolescence is supposed to be a time for fun. How bad is it if they drink? There's a lot worse stuff than drinking. And what control do I have? I can't keep them locked up in their rooms all through high school. And maybe if they do drink, if somehow it's supervised, they'll be more responsible, their behaviour will be less risky."
These are the kinds of arguments that fuel many parents' uncertainty. Add to that the fact that parents today try to be more reasonable - which is good, but makes it harder for them to take a stand where issues are complex.
It doesn't help that teenagers echo many of those issues: "What is the problem? I drink because it's fun. I drink because all of my friends do. I drink because it's totally boring around here, so what else do you expect me to do? Who does it hurt? Nobody. I know drinking and driving is bad, but I don't personally know anybody who actually died that way."
Should teenagers drink?
"Dad, is it okay if I go over to Richie's tonight? He's having some kids come over and we're going to get totally hammered. It'll just be beer and Jack Daniels. Okay?"
I'm not a fan of teens and drinking.
Yes, many will drink later on. But what's the hurry? Let me list a few arguments why I believe teenage drinking is not a good idea.
A fact that you can't get around: Drinking as a teenager significantly increases the risk of being involved in a fatal car accident.
Alcohol consumed in large quantities can be toxic to the point of death. Alcohol consumed in combination with other drugs can be more toxic than alcohol alone. (This is particularly troubling given that some teenagers experiment with prescription drugs to get high.)
Teens who drink are far more vulnerable to incidents that could damage their future. Getting seriously hurt. Seriously hurting someone else. Trouble with the law. Irresponsible sexual behaviour - unprotected sex resulting in greater risk of STDs or pregnancy. Non-consensual sex - as perpetrator or victim.
Fun becomes defined as drinking. They are less likely to have non-drinking fun, or even know that there is such a thing. Hence, they become dependent on drinking in order to have a good time.
Teens say one big reason they drink is stress relief - not a good pattern to set early in life as it gets in the way of the development of other non-drinking stress-coping skills. You learn to drink rather than cope.
Last, alcohol has a power of its own. Teenagers, like adults, vastly underestimate that power. They all think they can handle it.
Yes, it is true that you have only limited control over whether your child drinks or not. But there is something that you can do that can produce in your child a more reasoned and responsible approach - whether or not they are a drinker or will become one.
Talk with them.
Talk about what you genuinely think about them and alcohol. I offer the above thoughts as a place to start. Have the conversation often. Be as honest as you can. With anything you say, ask what they think. And listen.
"Sara, I want to talk to you about drinking."
"Must we?"
Then plunge right in.
"I worry that if you drink you might do stuff that you will later regret. Especially with guys."
"Mother!"
"Well, it is more likely to happen with drinking."
What does this do? If nothing else, it puts these words in your kid's head. When drinking comes up in her life, maybe, just maybe, some of those words will still be there. Maybe those words will influence what your child decides to do. But the words can't be there in their heads, of course, unless you say them.
Drinking is part of the world they live in. They may well end up drinking. But wouldn't you rather that they enter into that world - or not - having certain facts in their head that may yield a more considered approach to drinking? Wouldn't you rather that they approach the world of drinking with a little more thoughtfulness?
Clinical psychologist Anthony E. Wolf is the author of six parenting books, including Get out of my life, but first could you drive me and Cheryl to the mall?: A Parent's Guide to the New Teenager.
source: Toronto Globe and Mail