不要酒后驾车。\ nPlease。我今年夏天遇到一位母亲，她在一次酒后驾车事故中失去了18岁的儿子亚当。他不喝酒。撞他的人是无辜的，但那个人活了下来。亚当对这个秋天寄予厚望。他计划和交往多年的女友一起去密歇根大学读书，并打算将来和她结婚。他是个远离麻烦的好孩子;他从未出过车祸，也从未收到过交通罚单。但他完全没有准备好面对超速行驶的汽车，那辆车越过中线，迎面撞向他，使他当场死亡。“至少他马上就死了……而不是痛苦，”他的母亲说，泪水在她的眼睛里膨胀。 If nothing else, I remembered that quote from our conversation. It has haunted me ever since.\nImagine losing your life at 18. Imagine losing your life at any age before you've had the chance to experience a fulfilling life. Then imagine losing your life at the hands of someone who decided they could drive after having a few drinks. That's not fair. \nDrunk driving is the nation's most frequently committed violent crime, yet it is most often not a felony for the first offense.\nIndiana had 978 total traffic deaths in 1999 and 379 (38.7 percent) of them were alcohol-related. A driver with a Blood-Alcohol Content of .15 is more than 300 times more likely to be involved in a fatal crash. One in three of us will be involved in an alcohol-related accident in our lifetime. In the United States today, there are two alcohol-related traffic deaths per hour, 45 per day and 315 per week, according to Mothers Against Drunk Driving ... that is the equivalent of two jetliners crashing week after week, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Don't drink and drive. Please.\nWith every DUI death comes a web of suffering. It starts with the victims' families, spreads to their friends, the people who knew them, the people who loved them. Then it crosses to the other side ' to the people who drive drunk. Their family suffers, and their friends suffer. It is a lose-lose situation with tragic results. Not convinced? Ask how the families of the 6,886 victims between the ages of 18-24 feel.\nIndiana recognizes the first offense for operating a vehicle while intoxicated as a Class A misdemeanor. You'll receive a one-year suspension of your license, plus a two-year penalty for refusing to take the breathalizer. A $1,000 fine will follow. In most cases, your costs will exceed $10,000 ' not only for attorney fees, but also court costs.\nThe second and subsequent offenses within five years are classified as a Class D Felony. You'll likely serve jail-time.\nAn American Auto Association study showed that nearly one-third of all drivers arrested or convicted of drunk driving each year are repeat offenders, and as many as 75 percent of those who lose their licenses because of driving drunk continue to drive on suspended licenses. \nThe American Medical Association says that .03 is too drunk to be driving. \nNext time you plan to go out drinking, plan ahead. Have a designated driver. Call a cab. Walk home. But don't drive. Please. \nAdam already lost his life. And I promised his mother I would spread the word. Because you're not just taking your own life in your hands. You're taking mine, too.
