Drinking and driving is not big or clever, we all know this. But the Irish town of Kilgarvan has passed a law that means the people of its community can have a few beers before getting behind the wheel.
Who is the genius behind all this? Pub landlord and politician Danny Healy-Rae, who reckons this move will preserve pub culture and lower the risk of suicide in the small town. But, he says, the law isn’t meant to apply to everyone:
“I am talking about mainly elderly people who live in very remote places who come to town to get a bit of shopping, enjoy a couple of pints and a chat with friends and then drive home at less than 30 miles an hour. These are not the ones causing accidents. What is the alternative for them where no public or other transport is available? Staying at home lonely, staring at the four walls?”
See? He means well. But if anyone should be legally permitted to drink and drive, should it really be the people who have a hard enough time seeing, hearing and reacting as it is when sober? I get that they live in super remote areas where they probably won’t encounter any traffic, but what if in an alcohol-induced stupor they think they see a cat run across the road, or the ghost of an old relative waving at them in the distance, or something?
I guess if the alternative is mass old Irish person suicide, as the dude says, then it’s worth giving this thing a try. Cheers fellas!
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