Nothing But Love :: golf blogger

Drunk Dialing

I read in The New York Times that in a study of cell phone usage on the roadway, drivers "who use cell phones are four times more likely to be in a crash while using a cell phone" than those who do not and that there "is no difference in the cognitive distraction between hand-held and hands-free devices." The author goes on to say that the likelihood of being in an accident, that is, the four-fold increase, is akin to the likelihood of drivers who are drunk getting in an accident.

The comparison to drunk driving didn't seem quite right to me. A few years ago, the federal government mandated the states to lower the blood alcohol concentration at which a person is considered driving while intoxicated from .10% to .08% in order to remain eligible for federal highway funds. All states and the District of Columbia, as well as Puerto Rico, lowered the limit to .08%, which is, according to the rule of thumb used by many for a 150-pound male, the equivalent of 4 alcoholic drinks imbibed in one hour, whether it be a 12-ounce beer, 4-ounce glass of wine, or a mixed drink. By the way, on the 150-pound weight, don't be calculating amounts of alcoholic drinks proportionate to the weight because it doesn't work that way. Everybody and every body is different.

A driver with a blood alcohol concentration of 0.10% or greater is seven times more likely to be involved in a fatal motor vehicle crash than is a driver who has not consumed alcoholic beverages, and a driver with an alcohol concentration of 0.15% or greater is about 25 times more likely to be in a fatal crash than the person who doesn't drink and drive.

So, that's death-producing crashes -- let's move on to non-death-dealing crashes. I found statistics in an article, but I didn't spend a lot of time trying to get source material. Boy, that sounds pretty serious -- "source material."

If you have a blood alcohol reading of .04%, which is, if you'll remember, a couple beers in 60 minutes, which is half the legal limit for "drunk driving," you are 1.4 times more likely to have an accident than someone who has not had a drink (or any drugs). That is less than the risk of getting in an accident if you are on the cell phone; but I know a lot of you talk on the phone when you've had a couple drinks; that means the risk of getting in an accident is multiplied -- six times as likely.

You decide to quit drinking, just after four beers -- you have a decent lawyer who can work a deal -- and you're at .08%. You'll risk the drive home. You've done it many, many times, but you're 11 times more likely than the non-drinking driver to be involved in a crash. Maybe it's not such a good time to leave the pub -- you've been there for an hour, and why leave at 9 o'clock.

You stick around. After all, your kidneys do filter some of the alcohol out of your bloodstream over the course of the evening -- and you know that because you need to use the restroom. Three more beers, but you've decided to slow down -- that's in two hours, and it's 11 p.m. You're feeling pretty good? The likelihood of having an accident is 48 times higher than the stupid, no-fun teetotaler at the table across the room. You're at .12% -- a really good lawyer who knows the judge might get a DUI reduced, depending on if this is your first offense. Don't call home while you're driving, though, because then you are 200 times more likely than the non-drinking, phoneless, dumbass, no-fun teetotaler, who was rooting for the other team, to crash.

Fuck it, you say. Your team -- the Celtics -- lost to the Cavaliers. Too bad. Hang out until 2 -- nurse three more beers. Don't want to have too much -- have to go to work in the morning. Couldn't hurt, right? You're hovering near .15%, and you are now 380 times more likely to have an accident than the teetotaler who left a few hours ago.

And don't do any drunk dialing while you're driving.

Do the math -- well, you probably can't. You're pretty well hammered.

Posted by Bill at January 17, 2009 09:52 AM