Drunk Drivers Should Be Imprisoned on the First Offense - Essay Example

?Argument Essay: Drunk Drivers should be imprisoned on the first offense All over the world, the menace of drunk driving has been highlighted due to a number of reasons. These include the fact that drunk driving leads to deaths and injuries each year and the topic gets noticed by people but nothing substantial ever comes about. One must understand that the basis of drunk driving stems from the fact that this is something which is done when individuals are driving in the wake of drowsiness since they have consumed a lot of hard drinks. When they succumb to drinking, driving a car does not often lead to sane results. Drunk driving therefore must be dealt with a stern approach and one of the reasons behind dealing with the same is through punishing the first time offenders. This leads to a chaotic situation where imprisonment seems to be the only way forward. Imprisonment is therefore a grave reality which shall open the eyes of the offenders once and for all and it ought to bring solace to the pedestrians and other drivers on the road that have made no mistake to be present there. Moving ahead, it has been seen that drunk driving leads to problems of magnanimous effects as this has been researched upon through studies and evidence that has been discerned to date. Hence imprisonment seems to be the only harsh reality that can dawn upon an individual when he is doing the undoable, i.e. driving whilst being drunk. If the offenders know beforehand that they would be imprisoned for a set duration of time, they would abstain from getting into such realms in the first place. Also it would mean that the people would have little choice than to forego this habit of theirs forever. These offenders would know that if they commit something wrong in the future, they would not be spared and hence their driving license would also be canceled as a result of the same. (Lobmann, 2002) is of the view that they will not be allowed to drive a vehicle until their license gets active again and hence this would serve as a deterrent to curb the menace of drunk driving all over the world. It is understandable that the problems which this individual will face under such realms would be immense but then again these are needed to tackle this issue once and for all. The accidents have increased all over the world. This is because people are in a rush to make it to their desired destinations. Also the fact that drunk driving cases have increased drastically. People just do not care if they have to make it to their destinations while they are in a state of being drunk. What they forget is the fact that drunk driving makes them feel dizzy and drowsy which is indeed quite a problem for the other pedestrians and drivers on the road. The latter feel that they are at the direct mercy of these drunk drivers and that they would have to do it themselves in the case of safety on the road. Wagner (2011) asserts what is even more discouraging is the fact that some people believe in drinking whilst driving which is doubly dangerous for just about everyone. However precautions need to be taken by the authorities to make sure that drunken individuals do not hit the roads. No matter what happens, it would be a good starting point to put them behind bars for a certain amount of time and revoke their licenses to curb this problem once and for all. From a personal example, I have seen cases when drunken individuals have come on to the road and created absolute mayhem. This has meant that they have lost their control completely and hit different vehicles on the road and even the innocent pedestrians. I have seen accidents so severe that I have not been able to sleep properly after that. What is needed however is an understanding that drunk driving is one form of evil that must be avoided as much as possible because it creates trouble for the people on and off the road. The property that is destroyed under such domains is another aspect that needs to be given proper significance as well. In essence, the drunken drivers should be told to spend some time in prisons so that they can value the true importance of life and property. This would tell the other members of the society how to nip the evil in the bud, and how to make sure that sanity prevails at the end of the day as Dens (2011) puts it. The points which come about in the wake of opposition here are also important to analyze and understand. These are determined through the people who support the claims made against the drunk driving regimes and indeed the drunken drivers. They believe it is the right of the driver or the individual to do whatsoever he wishes to do, and thus drive whenever the need be. They are of the opinion that the people have raised a great amount of hue and cry because drunk driving is being seen as a very serious issue even though this is not entirely the case. It is simply an instance of one off accidents which happen every now and then, and nothing more should be written about it. Kubacki (2011) believes they hold the opinion that accidents usually happen from time to time and it would only be natural to investigate the other causes apart from drunk driving regimes which are always blamed because the society at large does not believe in them. Essentially speaking, the opposing point of view is being aired by those very individuals who believe in drunk driving and propagate it to make sure that people do not suggest something serious against them at all times. However, to reach a consensus here, it is significant that the drunk driving realms are understood from the very core basics. The drivers who oppose the aspects of their drinking being a negative aspect within the lives of others should be taken to task. They must be told that it could happen to their own family and essentially they would never like the same to come about. They must be taught about the ways under which sanity could prevail and what more needs to be done to make sure that it remains at the end of the day as Lopez (2010) puts it. The need of the hour is to shun away the claims made by the drunken drivers and all those who support the drunk driving regimes because it is indeed something wrong that they are trying to manifest in the first place. They need to set their radar in a righteous way and tackle the issues once and for all. In the end, it would be wise to suggest that drunk driving settings should always be dealt with a stern hand. The need is to set the basis of imprisonment for the first time offenders no matter how old or how young they are. The element of doubt must not remain within the minds of the authorities as law should be one and the same for just about everyone. Markewich (2009) suggests that this would set the basis for achieving harmony across the ranks as far as the drunk driving realms are concerned in the long term scheme of things. All said and done, the rule for the first time offenders must always be to put them behind bars so that the society at large benefits from the very same. If the laws are strict and severe, success could be achieved to tackle the curse of drunk driving within this day and age. Works Cited Dens, Nathalie. Fear appeal effectiveness for familiar and unfamiliar issues. Journal of Social Marketing, 1(3), 2011 Kubacki, Krzysztof. College binge drinking: a new approach. Journal of Consumer Marketing, 28(3), 2011 Lobmann, Rebecca. Drunk driving: probability of detection and its perception. Policing: An International Journal of Police Strategies & Management, 25(4), 2002 Lopez, Kristina M. Recovery and punishment: Reconciling the conflicting objectives of coercive treatment in correctional settings. Research in Social Problems and Public Policy, 17, 2010 Markewich, Evan. Social marketing campaigns aimed at preventing drunk driving: A review and recommendations. International Marketing Review, 26(3), 2009 Wagner, Paul A. Institutional Moral Architecture: From Schools to Prisons. Advances in Educational Administration, 12, 2011 Read More