For years now I have volunteered my services as a designated driver. The reason I have done this is not because I limit my drinking when I go to bars or clubs. I am seldom at venues where beverage alcohol is served. I do not drink. When I was at business meetings, dinners, or gatherings with friends I was available to provide a safe ride home.

My first contact with overdrinking was at a business event offered by a company where I had just become their purchasing agent. There was an open bar for the customers that were invited. A man who worked for a company we did business with was inebriated. His coworkers and the people who knew him tried to convince him to let them drive him home. He refused.

He staggered to his car and attempted to unlock his car. The keys dropped to the ground. As he tried to find them, one of his friends helped direct him to the passenger door. He was so out of it that they retrieved his keys and helped him home without incident.

A few years later a friend and I were driving down a road when a car pulled out in front of us and ran a red light in front of us. They hit a small truck and flipped it on its side. The two men in it were fortunately both securely belted in. The driver of the car staggered away and was stopped by other witnesses. He had three prior DUIs and a revoked driver’s license but was allowed to plead guilty and enter a treatment program. He did not complete this treatment and was arrested again for the same problem.

Over the last forty years, I have heard of numerous occasions where this happened. I have heard coworkers talking about near misses while driving home from bars or parties. One of my friends was killed by a drunk driver. I do my best to try to help others get home safely.

Again, and again drunks kill people and politicians refuse to face the problem. Time after time legislators and other politicians have been stopped for DUIs. I am not mentioning the children and family members of these public officials who have also been arrested for these same offenses.

I have determined that drunks, their families, and friends should not be elected to political offices. When I consider a candidate for any office I check to see if they or anyone connected with them has ever been arrested for drug or alcohol charges. I seem to be one of the few who care about this.

Too many children, moms, and dads have died. Not enough drunks are taken off the roads. Judges let them out too soon. The offenders continue to drive without a legal right to be behind the wheel. I know some of you think that this is a minor problem. That makes you a major part of this situation.

If you have never done it, begin to help others who drink more than they should to stay out from behind the wheel. I don’t go to bars. If you do, cut down on what you consume, look for a designated driver, be one yourself, or call someone to get you home. The season for excessive partying is closing in on us. Don’t be part of those statistics. I want to see you next year.

©Copyright 2024 by Charles Kensinger