I saw this in the Los Angeles Times (would have added a link, but they are in a pay for everything mode currently). Take a quick read and then below is my take on the topic.
I was all set to rant against the interlock device but after reading and re-reading this opinion piece, I think I semi-support it. If changes are added.
If the machine is set to the legal limit and not ratcheted down to protect against the almost drunk and as long as that information stays in the car, I could support this. But here is the BIG if: it must be set uniformly across the country. I do not want to deal with 50 different versions. Beer laws are already needlessly complex.
A piece of electronics that would save lives and the cost to the driver (other than the cost of adding it to a car) is simply time and nothing else? The only thing a craft beer fan would have to do is change their drinking habits by adding water and food (if they don’t already) and then if they are over the limit. Guess what? Take a walk. Find a coffee house. Wait it out.
Of the percentage of drivers that this would affect, craft beer drinkers would be the minority. Just as they are now. And of that minority, I would like to think that craft beer customers are smarter. (They already pick better beer). Smart enough that the percentage affected among the small percentage should be smaller than the typical BMC water lager drinker. And I think it would do us all good (myself included) to learn what our limits are occasionally. Lest we forget.
It would force so many people to re-evaluate and change their behavior. More designated drivers would be on the road. More taxis called and more people staying alive. And I don’t think it would stop people going out all that much. Because, craft beer fans love beer on tap and won’t be able to get some of it in bottles, so they will HAVE to go out.
Here is the kicker. If deaths caused by drunken drivers falls, the oft repeated complaint of road danger would be weakened. How could an anti-alcohol crusader use a statistic that was being addressed to stop future craft beer locales from sprouting? It takes a big arrow from their quiver.
