Photo from the archive of "Zagranitsa"
There is no doubt that Americans will listen to the president. After all, he knows what he is talking about. He himself broke all ties with the green serpent three decades ago. And the reason was just an incident on the road. Once Bush admitted that on September 4, 1976, he drank too much and got behind the wheel. What happened next, the president kept silent. However, according to his own words, after this incident he has not touched alcohol.
Nevertheless, accidents on the roads involving drunk daredevils are a frequent cause of death in the USA. Only last year, 16 thousand people died here due to drunk drivers. The president promised to make every effort to influence the sad statistics. As part of his month of fighting drunkenness, Bush intends to focus on educational work. On US roads, so-called sobriety checkpoints will be set up, where drivers will undergo a blood alcohol test and, if it is detected, they will listen to an appropriate lecture with reprimands and instructions. In addition, George Bush promised to allocate more than $80 million in grants to those states where the permissible level of blood alcohol content for drivers will be legally reduced.
Help the driver – deflate the tire!
"Use one of ten ways to stop a drunk driver! You can steal his car keys, hide his glasses, quietly deflate a tire, or plug something into the exhaust pipe," – this is the main slogan of the campaign against drunk driving launched by the Swedish Union of Sober Motorists, which unites almost 40 thousand people in its ranks. Drunk drivers are also the main culprits of accidents on Scandinavian roads. Last year, 150 people died because of them in Sweden, which has a population of 10 million.
Swedes are trying to defeat lovers of having a drink or two before getting behind the wheel by all available methods. Sweden is the only EU country with the lowest allowable blood alcohol limit for drivers – 0.2 promille. In fact, this is one good sip of beer. If such an 'exhaust' is detected in a car owner, they can take away his license for a month to three years, and if the caught driver significantly exceeded the norm (from one promille and above), he may face imprisonment for up to one and a half years.
They also fight drunkenness with technical methods. Sweden was the first in the world to introduce in practice in 1999 the so-called alcohol lock – an electronic device installed in a car that blocks the ignition system. To start the car, the driver must blow into a special tube: the engine will come to life only if the breath does not contain an acceptable level of alcohol vapor.
At first, the alcohol lock, which costs about $600 to install, was offered as an alternative punishment for drivers caught on minor violations related to alcohol. Now many bus companies, especially those that transport children, voluntarily equip their vehicles with alcohol locks.
A drunk will be asked... to serve about three years
And in the country of the world's best autobahns, perfectly clear markings and even, in places, unlimited speeds, there are fewer and fewer accidents every year. Last year in Germany, for example, was 3.4% less 'fruitful' in tragedies than the year before.
The main secret of success remains unchanged in Germany: don't confuse 'green' with 'red' and respect all road users, including pedestrians. Being a traffic violator here means equating yourself to a masochist. After all, German police officers do not take bribes. And how could they, when all official procedures are under the watchful eye of a video camera and a partner?
An effective medicine against 'drunk driving' in Germany is the really working principle of the inevitability of punishment. There are countless radar traps and automatic photo cameras here. A receipt with a demand for payment and a printout of your own face is sent by mail. Big problems await those who do not have time to run to the bank within three days. Penalties in Germany grow rapidly.
It will not be funny for those whom a traffic police officer personally familiarizes with the entire list of penalties approved on April 1, 2004. Ran through a 'red' light without an accident – 3 penalty points and €50. If you hit someone – 4 points in the nationwide data bank in Flensburg and €200. If the central computer has 18 penalty points under the driver's name – put your guilty head on the block! The license is confiscated, a costly medical-psychological examination is carried out at the expense of the guilty person, after which – the torment of a new exam on knowledge of traffic rules.
And if some madman is ready to have a close encounter with Bacchus before a long journey, he will have to sit down. Behind bars. For about three years. Losing his driver's license at the same time. Forever.