The mourning after -- CC7

When I was 14 years old -- my best friend’s father Lasse was killed by a drunk driver --- the man who hit him was driving down a deceptively straight part of the highway; when for some reason he swerved -- his car hitting the median rolling over the fence between the lanes and barging in through Lasse’s front window -- instantly killing him

Lasse was only 36 years old – he never got home that day – that was the day Peter, my best friend; lost his father --- from that day Peters dad never came to watch him play --- and Lasse never got to support Peter through his teenaged years --- from that day, Lasse was gone -- leaving just a memory – a snapshot in the family album --- while ironically; Lasse’s killer survived the melee, physically unharmed

Honored toastmaster, fellow toastmasters and most welcome guests --- we call it vehicular manslaughter --- sometimes on less charitable days I think it should be called murder --- after all -- it is a personal decision made; to drink and drive

Every Friday I go to a pub to sing some karaoke --- the pub is not really on the beaten path and most of the patrons probably take the car to get there --- and most have a glass or 4, convinced it will not affect them as drivers --- because they don’t feel affected and nothing has happened --- yet ---- it is like a person playing Russian roulette convinced it is harmless because the first two attempts went well

I wonder have they --- and have you ever wondered how your body is affected by alcohol when driving? You all know that in Ontario today the legal blood alcohol level of 0.8 promille or 0.08 percent alcohol by weight --- but do you know what that much alcohol does to your body?  

I wonder if most people have the ability to excogitate that already at 0.2 promille, a mere quarter of the legal blood alcohol limit -- our mental abilities are measurably affected by the alcohol – already at 0.2 promille, a mere quarter of the legal limit; alcohol will lessen your capacity to make the rational decisions necessary to be driving safely --- and from there it only gets worse

At double that, that is at half the legal limit even if you feel alright your vision is gravely affected --- there is problem with your peripheral vision, your ability to adjust to dark and to correctly judge distances --- and that at half the legal limit. Together with increased reaction times and impaired ability to perform minute maneuvers ---- your ability to drive safely is already severely diminished at half the legal limit.

The question for many is how much can you drink and still drive. Well it is really not possible to say with any accuracy – it turns out it depends on what and how you are drinking, your body size, the time of day and what you’ve eaten before et cetera -- but what I can tell you is that a glass of wine or beer is probably too much ---

And if ever you ask me -- here is my answer even if it is not accurate in all situations nor scientifically verified --- seriously if you have to ask if you can drive, then you probably shouldn’t – and if you ever done shots with your friends you should probably leave the car parked also the next day --- after all after a night of shots you are probably still affected up to 18 hours later --- you see the worse that can happen is not that you get caught --- there are a lot of things that can happen that are much worse – if you doubt just ask Peter

You see, when I was 14 years old Peter’s father Lasse was killed by a drunk driver --- a driver; I am sure who never realized his inability to drive safely – a driver who thought a couple of drinks wouldn’t impair his driving --- a driver who’s poor decision in the presence of alcohol made him kill Peters father. So the problem with drinking and driving my friends; is not the risk of getting caught, it is the mourning after

 ----and be sure I spell mourning m-o-u-r-n-i-n-g