Keeping drunks off our roads
By John Snobelen
Toronto Sun
March 2, 2008

Some columns are easy to write. This isn't one of them.

During my years in government the issue of increasing the penalties for drunk driving would come up from time to time. Having grown up in the trucking industry, I know first-hand how worried professional drivers are about the chance of encountering a drunk on the road. Nothing, not ice or whiteouts or equipment failure, scares a driver as much as the thought of some fool winding his way home from a bar.

Like everyone else, I get particularly incensed at those totally irresponsible drivers who repeatedly get busted for driving while impaired. They are a time bomb waiting to go off on our streets.

Like most governments, we set tougher fines and even jail time for those convicted of impaired driving but I never felt very hopeful we would make much of a change in the habits of repeat offenders.

Many of the people who get more than one impaired driving charge are alcoholics. Their chemical addiction to alcohol runs their lives. They will gladly give up careers, families, friends and fortune to get the next drink. Prison time, suspensions and heavy fines mean nothing to those diseased minds that are bent on the slow suicide that is addiction.

We hope that high fines and tough penalties will keep people from drinking and driving but I always fear that the end result will be drunks driving with suspended licences and no insurance.

I wasn't surprised that the McGuinty government recently announced a plan to impound and then sell the vehicles belonging to drivers with multiple impaired driving charges. It's just the next step in getting tough.

I don't mean to criticize the government for this initiative, I honestly believe it is well intended, but I don't hold much hope for a dramatic change in habitual drunk drivers.

CARS RARELY OWNED

The cars driven by drunks are probably rarely owned by them. My guess is the majority are owned by banks and leasing companies. I am not sure how a rental or leasing company can do much to control the drinking habits of its customers.

Cars owned by drivers with a previous conviction are often titled to a spouse and may well be a true family vehicle. I am pretty sure the attorney general doesn't want to impound the family car.

The government has said they will put the revenues raised from the sale of impounded cars in a fund for the victims of drunk drivers. I hope they will give a moment or two of thought to the silent victims of alcoholism.

The family car weaving home with its drunk driver is returning to a worried spouse. He or she will be relieved when the car is finally in the driveway and out of harm's way for the evening. The thought of their alcoholic spouse killing themselves or some innocent victim is never far from mind. The more awful thought is the very real possibility the alcoholic will have one of their own kids in that weaving car some day.

AN EVIL LOTTERY

When the alcoholic parent makes it home unscathed there isn't a sense of relief for their children because the children's nightmares have just begun. What kind of mood will mom or dad be in? Overly affectionate or angry? Sloppy kisses, angry yells or much, much worse. Every night is like an evil lottery from which there is no escape.

The children of alcoholics have an eight times greater chance of abusing drugs or alcohol than an average kid. The cycle keeps repeating itself. They are the silent victims.
I honour the effort the government is making to get tough on drunk drivers. We all want our roads to be safe. I just hope the tough stands will make things better, not worse, for the silent victims.

I know how those kids waiting for a drunken parent to come home feel. I was one.