SHAFFER: Drinking and driving is not a game
You drink, you drive, you suck.
I could have told you that before the tragic car crash that resulted in the death of Mark Angelocci.
While I never met Angelocci, I know there are hundreds of individuals impacted by his death.
The worst part of it all? It wasn't his fault.
He suffered through injuries inflicted in a drunk driving accident for days before passing away, leaving behind a multitude of people to grieve for him over something caused by the stupidity of someone else.
I've heard friends brag about the experiences they've had while driving under the influence of alcohol. The encounters with cops, their estimated blood alcohol content levels, the stories of them with a drink in one hand and the steering wheel in the other...
Two words: "Shut up."
I don't think you sound cool when you brag about your drunk escapades behind the wheel. I don't think you sound like a hardass.
In fact, I think you sound straight up moronic.
Your reckless behavior doesn't sound so awesome when you realize that, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, 10,839 people were killed in 2009 by alcohol-impaired driving.
That's one person every 48 minutes.
And that's not even counting those that survive, with mild to severe injuries.
That doesn't count the surviving friends and family members of those killed, either.
My boyfriend was hit by a drunk driver two summers ago. The accident left him injured and his mother dead.
The two were standing in the driveway of their house in daylight when they were struck by a vehicle operated by a drunk 23 year old.
I can't even begin to imagine the pain felt by my boyfriend and his family, but I've seen glimpses and tears, and I've heard stories wracked with frustration, anger and devastation.
What happened to Mark Angelocci should not have happened.
So I will continue to lecture, because obviously people still don't understand. Call a taxi. Walk. Call a friend or a parent for a ride.
Don't drive drunk. Don't drive under the influence of any kind of drug.
Because even if you are OK with risking your life, others are not OK with you risking theirs.
