BC's "New" Drunk Driving Laws

[StoneMtn]

Some of you are from BC, some of you have just heard about this, and some of you may be interested because if it happens here first, it's just a matter of time until it happens elsewhere.

BC has enacted amendments to its drunk driving laws, to make them tougher. Normally, this is probably a laudable thing, but in this case there are good arguments that we've just granted vast power to non-elected, non-court-related police officers, basing their decision on unreliable technology.

If you're interested, here's a good article on it, which makes this comprehensible even to me:

http://www.whistlerquestion.com/article/20100929/WHISTLER14/309299948/new-drunk-driving-laws-just-the-old-ones-on-steroids

[SaggyBalls]

As long as infrastructure/relief is put into place to remove the stupid excuses people make to drive drunk (can't afford a taxi, there's no other way home etc.), toughening drunk driving laws are only there to punish offenders and grab at their wallets.

And while people should not be driving impaired, I don't see a push to make taxi fares tax-deductable and public transit/shuttle bus services available in rural areas and smaller cities with limited mass transit.

We need help to break our bad habits, not more damnation when we do.

I am sick of looking forward to a time when we'll have figured this all out because we should have done it by now.