Man Gets DWI After Riding Motorized Cooler

[MTK]

Originally Posted by onlydarksets

Right, but the danger there isn't due to him operating heavy machinery - it's due to him putting an object in the road and causing other cars to have to react. The laws are designed to protect against certain occurrences, and I don't think DUI laws are designed to protect against what this guy was doing.

How fast is 13mph, anyway? Slower than a bike and faster than you can run?

I dunno... I would think the laws are in place to prevent accidents and injuries regardless of what the person is driving or operating. I know it seems trivial, but to me if you are drunk it makes sense that you shouldn't be on the road operating anything.

[onlydarksets]

Originally Posted by Mattyk72

I dunno... I would think the laws are in place to prevent accidents and injuries regardless of what the person is driving or operating. I know it seems trivial, but to me if you are drunk it makes sense that you shouldn't be on the road operating anything.

DUIs almost uniformly apply to vehicles, so it depends on what you think the motorized cooler is most analogous to - a vehicle or "something else". A lot of states struggle with the definition of vehicle regarding bikes, and several states (like CA) have different laws for operating a bike under the influence.

For me, it's closer to a bike than a vehicle. I'm not sure how VA treats bikes, though.

[onlydarksets]

Along the same lines, did anyone see this:
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/25123570/

OCEANSIDE, Calif. - On a Monday morning last month, highway patrol officers visited 20 classrooms at El Camino High School to announce some horrible news: Several students had been killed in car wrecks over the weekend.

Classmates wept. Some became hysterical.

A few hours and many tears later, though, the pain turned to fury when the teenagers learned that it was all a hoax — a scared-straight exercise designed by school officials to dramatize the consequences of drinking and driving.

[Monkeydad]

There is far too serious of a discussion going on here.

Check out that cooler!

[Schneed10]

Originally Posted by Buster

There is far too serious of a discussion going on here.

Check out that cooler!

Dude I'm with you. That cooler is high on my Father's Day wish list!

[BDBohnzie]

Originally Posted by Schneed10

Dude I'm with you. That cooler is high on my Father's Day wish list!

I was telling my wife the other day that if we ever get season tickets for the Skins or Terps, I'm definitely getting this thing. I mean, how else are you going to get from your car to the port-a-john and still have your booze in tow.

AMD - we should get a few of these for next Regents Cup and have a race.

[onlydarksets]

Originally Posted by BDBohnzie

I was telling my wife the other day that if we ever get season tickets for the Skins or Terps, I'm definitely getting this thing. I mean, how else are you going to get from your car to the port-a-john and still have your booze in tow.

AMD - we should get a few of these for next Regents Cup and have a race.

Better get Lojack for it, unless you're going to take it into the Don's John with you.

[ArtMonkDrillz]

Originally Posted by BDBohnzie

AMD - we should get a few of these for next Regents Cup and have a race.

Abso-freaking-lutley!!!

[Daseal]

onlydarksets: I went through VASAP (Virginia Alcohol Safety Action Program). Believe me, people were convicted for that. One girl in my class blew a .07 on the breathalizer then her blood test showed .01. It's no big secret that breathalizers are horribly inaccurate and typically skew to hurt women due to smaller size, etc.

Let's be honest here. DUIs like that aren't meant for anything other than making money for the state. Also, our legal system isn't about who's right and who's wrong -- it's about who has the money to fight the case. The people in my class, a majority of them were under the poverty line -- and I'm willing to bet that there aren't many more poor folks driving drunk, but that they don't have the money to fight, and win cases.

But onlydarksets, I guarantee you in Virginia you can be arrested, tried, and convicted for having a BAC of under .08. Not only did we spend a day covering it in class, we were shown plenty of examples by the teacher.

[onlydarksets]

Originally Posted by Daseal

But onlydarksets, I guarantee you in Virginia you can be arrested, tried, and convicted for having a BAC of under .08. Not only did we spend a day covering it in class, we were shown plenty of examples by the teacher.

I can't say I'm surprised. I didn't have any statistics, so I was acknowledging the possibility not a lot were convicted. Great point about the inaccuracy of breathalyzers.

[GhettoDogAllStars]

A key point in this discussion is whether you believe the government has a right to protect you from yourself.

I personally don't feel they have that right, but if you do, then it's pretty clear: operating any machinery under the influence of alcohol should be illegal. In fact, you could go as far as saying drinking alcohol should be illegal, since you can die from over-consumption.

[ArtMonkDrillz]

Originally Posted by GhettoDogAllStars

A key point in this discussion is whether you believe the government has a right to protect you from yourself.

I personally don't feel they have that right, but if you do, then it's pretty clear: operating any machinery under the influence of alcohol should be illegal. In fact, you could go as far as saying drinking alcohol should be illegal, since you can die from over-consumption.

Are you saying that you don't think drinking and driving should be illegal?

[GhettoDogAllStars]

Originally Posted by ArtMonkDrillz

Are you saying that you don't think drinking and driving should be illegal?

No, because that endangers the lives of others -- not just yourself.

[Monkeydad]

Originally Posted by GhettoDogAllStars

A key point in this discussion is ...

A key point in this discussion is that every man should have one of these coolers on wheels.