You should have the ability to retake your driving test while intoxicated to increase the level at which you can legally drive at.
Posted by hellarios852@reddit | CrazyIdeas | View on Reddit | 58 comments
Fawn_Chicken@reddit
I don't think it should allow you to drive while drunk. I think you should be able to take the diving test while fairly blasted as some kind of challenge mode, for fun. Enclosed safety course, speed limited beater cars. Have the leader board posted in the lobby. Partner with a taxi service so participants can get home safely. Charge like $100 a try and only one try per month. Use the money from entries to fix the roads.
ah_o_kaiden@reddit
This could be an interesting charity fundraiser. Partner with a bar/pub too so the people don't have to drive drunk to get there. Add extra airbags and safety things to the cars before the drunk people drive them. The people get a score based on how quickly they complete the course, if they manage to avoid knocking over all the traffic cones, and what they blow on the breathalyzer at the end. Winner gets some sort of prize e.g. a case of good beer.
dkesh@reddit
People will reason that if they did okay on the course, they can drive drunk on real streets.
msmsms101@reddit
No because people will feel the need to "practice" so they can beat the high score
ah_o_kaiden@reddit
That is true, but to be fair this problem would still occur with the original crazy idea and people practicing to take the drunk driving test
ilustruanonim@reddit
If you make it "1 time per month" you'll have people driving drunk in real life on real streets just to practice for their attempt. I'm only half joking.
seppukucoconuts@reddit
Wisconsin checking in. This is a bad idea.
Ok_Dog_4059@reddit
My uncle gave everyone sobriety tests as my cousins 21st birthday he was a police officer and thought it could be a good lesson. I was passing while legally intoxicated. It made me realize that I was fairly drunk and neither myself or a trained professional really knew for sure. That kept me from ever driving if I drank anything. I was worried nobody including me would realize if I was drunk until it caused and accident or killed somebody.
Vespasian79@reddit
Like the field tests right? Not a breathalyzer
Ok_Dog_4059@reddit
Correct, we saw how well or poorly we did at a field test then did a breathalyzer. For most (as expected) kids failed before the .08 limit. It was to help all of the cousins and friends understand how normally a couple quick shots or what ever was enough. For the most part it worked because so many of us where surprised how little it took to hit .08 and everyone realized staying put or having a designated driver was the smartest move.
Mahoka572@reddit
I'm intrigued. Tell me more
seppukucoconuts@reddit
I have been to a bar inside of a gas station in Wisconsin.
Wisconsin treats alcoholism the same way we treated smoking…in the 1950s.
For example. A friend of mine wanted to get sober. I took her to the hospital. She walked in, was coherent and seemed normal. A little drunk but normal. They took two blood tests because they didn’t believe the results of the first. .40. That’s lethal for most people. She could have drove there.
Jumanji420@reddit
I to know some alcoholics in Nebraska. I don’t think it’s specific to any region, alcoholics are everywhere.
Major-Tourist-5696@reddit
“I could outrun Usain Bolt”
meaty_t@reddit
Name you region, Wisconsin has them beat. They aren't just bragging, they have the data
SquirrelyBoy@reddit
Wisconsonite here too, I personally know 3 people off the top of my head who've had BACs of that level and were equally coherent.
Knightmare4469@reddit
I was gonna say bs but after googling, they have had multiple cases of people over 1.3. what the fuck.
BrainlessDipsticks@reddit
Well I have to say this relates to basic alcohol sales training videos where they try to suggest every single person is totally beyond doing anything after that first beer...
Meanwhile somebody in Wisconsin just chugged a 14%+ and is killing it in the attached arcade because it's a weekend and time to party.
JustAberrant@reddit
The big problem with drunk driving imo is reaction time not coordination.
Most people can physically drive a car while mildly drunk or high and could probably pass a normal driving test, but your ability to react to other cars, pedestrians, or just road hazards is greatly compromised.
lakewood2020@reddit
And if you don’t pass the test you get a DUI on the spot
realityinflux@reddit
Given that everyone is affected to some degree by any amount of ingested alcohol, whether a little or a lot, you are suggesting that before getting into a vehicle weighing, on average, a couple of tons and powered by an engine with between 150 and 300 horsepower, a person could legally decide to impair their driving ability, their judgement, their reflexes to any degree and then get in the vehicle and drive it around pedestrians, bicyclists, and other cars. On purpose. Not crazy, just bad; a bad idea.
174wrestler@reddit
You realize the limit is never 0? Even if you're under 21, there's a positive limit to account for some stuff like medication.
Rather than assuming everybody can drive at 0.08, you start them at 0 and prove they can drive at 0.08.
realityinflux@reddit
I took the crazy idea as one that allowed people to be legal with higher blood alcohol concentrations if they somehow demonstrated they could pass a pass/fail test. That's bad. You're saying get everybody slightly drunk, in stages, and find out how far they can impair their driving skills until they fail a pass/fail test. Still bad.
Not that the current system is really logically fair and effective.
174wrestler@reddit
So why does one take an eye exam to determine if their eyes are good enough to drive without running over pedestrians? Why do old people (in many states) take road tests to see if they're safe to drive? With your logic, that's somehow bad.
Super-Bad3441@reddit
what kind of alcoholic do you have to be to feel like its unfair to ask you not to drink when you're driving because "you can handle it"
174wrestler@reddit
Tell that to the majority of countries that let you drive with a positive alcohol limit.
realityinflux@reddit
It's a matter of drinking being so ingrained (no pun) in our culture(s) that we accept the risks, in the same way we think it's OK to drive fast when traffic accidents are the second leading cause of accidental death in the U.S. We tend to accept that everyone has the right to drink--and I accept that that's true--and are lenient when this results in accidents, because, well, they were just out with friends at a bar, and everyone does that, etc.
The idea of individualized BAC limits is theoretically OK, but in practice, carrying it out is ridiculously impractical. In a perfect world, we could all be tested for vision, hearing, reflexes, judgement, intelligence, presence of moral terpitude, etc. before being issued a license. This would probably result, finally, in adequate public transportation.
realityinflux@reddit
In my objection, I didn't even consider the fallacy of testing a person with one episode of alcohol ingestion and expecting that to be the consistent norm for that person. The eye test is good, of course. You're grasping.
7-Inches@reddit
I have been drunk off my tits throwing up, and when they tried to give me a mental maths test to see how drunk I was, I corrected their workings as they got the answer wrong
Suspicious-Bowl4444@reddit
Kind of on topic kind of off topic. I saw a dude play a piece on the drums and progressively take a shot after each try. Dude took a fuck ton of shots and he kept playing it perfectly.
7-Inches@reddit
Now have someone throw a tennis ball at him randomly and unpredictably. See how he physically reacts. Unnecessary dodges count as hits.
Hates-Picking-Names@reddit
Was watching a cop show once. Guy gets pulled over and admits to just drinking a 6 pack. Cop gives him a field test and tells the guy he's more coordinated than he is. Let the guy drive off without a breathalyzer.
MajorPaper4169@reddit
This is what I want to see on this sub.
cliko@reddit
Right?! This is a terrible idea. It will obviously never get implemented, nor should it, lest thousands of people die every year.
Instant upvote
PiemasterUK@reddit
Same! The ideal post on this sub is "very out of the box and feels like a very bad idea, but actually has some logic behind it."
What we usually get is either ideas that are pretty boring/common or ones that are just flat out bad and fall at the first logical hurdle.
Steve-Shouts@reddit
Honestly... Seems like a good idea. Some people handle intoxication better than others.
PiemasterUK@reddit
In a lot of countries you still can, as long as you aren't over the limit. Obviously if you get seen doing so, you are probably going to be pulled over instantly for a breath test, but if it's yor first beer you will likely be fine.
confuus-duin@reddit
They do, given the timing is good. But it won’t work. I’ve had days where I could drink 3-4 beers and acted nearly sober. I’ve also had days in that same month I felt and acted wasted after just one of the same beer.
realityinflux@reddit
Think it through, though, if you're capable. What could go wrong? Honestly, I can't believe anybody is defending this ridiculous idea.
matt95110@reddit
jaspersgroove@reddit
Would ya look at that, only Sunday and we’re already gotten the one actually crazy idea that gets posted in this sub per week.
goa7@reddit
Legal Drunk Drivers from the 1960s, England.
The big problem is alcohol affects your judgement about how alcohol affects your judgement.
That isn't tested on a driving test, and it will change in different environments.
benedictfuckyourass@reddit
I will say i've raced in series where there may or may not have been alcohol involved for some drivers. And i'd trust them drunk over alot of other drivers sober tbh.
That's not to say this is a good idea, but we should really be more strict about who is allowed to drive. And i'm saying that from a country where getting a drivers license may well be a college degree compared to countries like America where driving is seen as more of a fundamental right.
Jaalan@reddit
How well you can drive really has nothing to do with the primary issue with being drunk. Even a few drinks increase your reaction time significantly. So if somebody falls into the road, pulls out in front of you, or the light turns red, you are physically incapable of reacting as fast as a sober you would. Making a U turn and staying in the lines may keep you out of the police spotlight, but that doesn't address the main issue.
timeout320@reddit
This sounds exactly what someone who drinks and drives would say
uhdoy@reddit
Sounds exactly like someone who “drives better when I’m drunk” would say.
jeffmc81@reddit
And speed and ability
BigWhiteDog@reddit
Come spend some time inside my head and live my nightmares, a retired fire/ems guy, to see why this is a very bad idea.
therealgunsquad@reddit
Bruh do you know what sub you're on?
BigWhiteDog@reddit
There's crazy then there's insanely stupid
manatelier@reddit
too many factors to influence how alcohol is processed in your body at any given time. this is a bad idea.
AttentionNo6359@reddit
Ya, let’s let your pathetic ass increase the likelihood that you kill someone else’s daughter because you just fucking had to drink and drive you pathetic waste of life.
I hope it’s you in the other car one day OP.
BreakDownSphere@reddit
I remember that mythbusters episode
FocalFalcon@reddit
I’d rather not since I got my back broken by a DWI and I have chronic pain because of that lol
BearablePunz@reddit
yeah but did they take their licensing test at that abv? /s
to_walk_upon_a_dream@reddit
well. i came to r/CrazyIdeas and. i found crazy ideas. suppose i can't be mad
discostud1515@reddit
No
evilbrent@reddit
With the proviso that it's a pass fail thing - you get get full marks you get to increase your limit, but if you fail on a single item your limit goes straight to zero, and if you fail further then you automatically get put on more and more restrictive conditions, like installing a mandatory facial recognition camera that monitors attentiveness and an app that makes your phone fully inactive if the engine is turned on.
Oh, and it's actually impossible to pass the test because you get at least one fail mark for asking to take it.