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Subscribe to RSSPermits allowing people to drink alcohol then drive should be issued to make it easier for those in isolated, rural areas to visit the pub, according to a motion passed by a local government in Ireland.
Kerry County Council, which governs an area with a population of more than 120,000, is to formally ask the Irish government to allow some drivers to have the equivalent of up to three pints of beer.
The motion -- passed by five votes to three with seven abstentions –-- said this would “greatly benefit people living alone looking at four walls and restore some bit of social activity in local pubs and may also help prevent depression and suicide.”
The idea has been condemned by leading politicians, including Ireland's Transport Minister Leo Varadkar, so it appears unlikely to be adopted. Kerry does not have the power to change the law itself, the country's justice department stressed.
However, Danny Healy-Rae, the councilor behind the motion, was sticking to his guns Thursday.
Healy-Rae, who runs a pub in the village of Kilgarvan, said because people couldn’t drink alcohol in pubs then drive home, they were instead buying it in supermarkets and drinking at home. This could lead to a downward spiral that ended with some taking their own lives, he argued.
“I know of instances where the local garda [police] have to call out to these people to see if they are all right, to see if they are still there,” he said.
'Wouldn't harm or hurt anyone'
Healy-Rae said that under his plan the permits would be issued only to people in isolated rural areas who use narrow country roads where it is difficult to travel faster than 25 or 30 mph. Police would decide who was eligible to drink the equivalent of two or three pints of Guiness and then drive.
“You have to travel the roads and travel the terrain to understand -- honestly what I’m suggesting … it wouldn’t harm or hurt anyone,” he said.
"It would allow these people to meet with their friends and neighbors and to discuss the topics of the day, the price of cattle and whatever,” he said.
The mayor of Kerry, Terry O’Brien, was among the three councilors who voted against the idea.
Asked why, he said “because it’s absolute lunacy to allow anybody behind the wheel of a car with a drink in them.”
“We’ve come a long way from those days,” he added.
O’Brien said wearily he had been “on the phone for the last two days explaining that.”
Varadkar admitted rural isolation was a problem, but added “the solution to it is not to hand out drink-driving permits. Obviously it's something we very much disagree with," according to the Irish Independent newspaper.
"Most of the accidents that are happening are happening in rural areas and on country roads," he added.
The number of people who died on Irish roads is at a record low, with 161 people killed in 2012, down from 186 in 2011.
Varadkar's comments prompted a fighting response from Healy-Rae, who said Varadkar was refusing to help ease the plight of people who were “greatly suffering from rural isolation.”
“He’ll be judged accordingly by those people in the upcoming election,” the councilor said.
“We’ll have to keep the fight on because I’ve got massive support right around the country and from different countries around the world,” he added.
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"That's a grand idea, sure as me name is O'Schwartz."
I think I will start a scooter franchise in Ireland, as that's what all the drunks in the US drive (either that or golf carts).
and lawnmowers
I don't understand why people cannnot go out socially and not drink liquor! Sounds like they are all a bunch of drunks and should not be driving!
RIposter, this is Ireland, in case you missed that in the article.
Fortunately there's not a lot of Mexicans in Ireland!
Why do the Irish dislike Obama?
Because he gives the letter "O" a black eye!
I am so tired of Irish stereotypes. As soon as I finish me whisky I am going to punch someone in the face
Only in Ireland. I'm sure Saint Patrick will protect them....
That gave me a good laugh, as George Thorogood says
I drink alone, yeah
With nobody else
I drink alone, yeah
With nobody else
You know when I drink alone
I prefer to be by myself
Time for a beer
This is a great idea. Why stay at home and risk killing yourself, when you can get a license to drive drunk and kill someone else instead?
If they can pass a driver's test at .08, they should get a licence saying that they can drive at .08. It's like corrective lenses. (paraphrasing Doug Stanhope)
Why not have each pub designate a driver to go round up the rural folks and bring 'em home after?
How about a party bus?
At least they're honest about it. Americans try to call it medical marijuana.
It seems that this guy Healy-Rae is a pub owner, is that just a coincidence or what. I also think that this bill would work if all the rural people were driving bumper cars.
What is their legal limit? The article makes it sound like they don't have one - like you can't have a sip and then drive. If that's the case, then this should pass.
2-3 pints of Guiness? I wonder what the penalty is there. Considering Guiness is a low alcohol beer anyway, I can't imagine that it would stop too many people from going to the pub anyway. But, after 2 or 3, would one really be in a position to stop?
Seems to me they've gotten way too strict on this. I'll have one for the road!
3 Pints of Guiness and a nice fat roadie of Dewars in the travel cup and Scottie is good to go. It's a rural setting, if they miss a turn a bunch of sheep will die so who cares. This will be the day the sheep die....bye, bye......
"Considering Guiness is a low alcohol beer anyway,..."
Last time I was there was in the late 70's, drank 3 YARDS of Guinness and I was ready for relations with farm animals. That stuff @!$%#ed me up!
In Ireland the legal limit is .05 however, for levels between .05 and .08 the fixed penalty is a fine of 200 euros and 3 points on your license for a first offense - no jail time or license suspension. If you are over .08 but less than .10 the fixed penalty is a 400 euro fine and 6 month license suspension (again for first offenses). You have to pay these fines within 28 days and if you do not you have to go to court and the penalties change (increase) to include license suspensions for first offenses of 6 months for .05 to .08 and one year for .08 to .10. Above these levels or for a second offense at these levels you have to go to court. Then the penalties can vary at the judges discretion. The minimums for a second offense at are one year suspension for .05 to .08 and 2 years for .08 to .10. If you get caught from .10 up to .15 the minimum penalty is loss of license for 2 years (first offense) or 4 years (second offense) and .15 and over the minimum penalty is loss of license for 3 years (first offense) or 6 years (second offense. The penalties can imposed by the court can be higher up to a maximum of a 5,000 euro fine and/or 6 months in prison and loss of license for however long the judge says. For all the details you can go to this site .
These limits were lowered in 2011 ad this is why this proposal was made. Prior to 2011 the legal limit in Ireland was the same as the US and England at .08, which allowed people to have a couple of pints and still be OK to drive. With the reduction to .05 it obviously takes less alcohol to put you in trouble. An pint in Ireland is 19 ounces, or about 1.6 standard US 12 ounce beers. Since one beer will raise the typical mans BAC by .03 and takes two hours to get out of your system, it is pretty clear that more than one pint within anything less than two hours would put you over the limit in Ireland since one pint puts you pretty close to the limit (.0475). I do not know too many people who are going to go to a pub and keep their consumption to about one pint every two hours, so going out for beers in Ireland is pretty much impossible if you are driving. Obviously allowing drunk driving is not the answer and this proposal has no chance of becoming law. I think that the only answers are either a designated driver or a taxi service if you want to go drinking in Ireland and it is too far to walk to the pub. I am glad that the limit here is .08 instead of the .05 it is in most of Europe. At least with the limit at .08 you can keep a one US beer an hour pace for four hours and still be OK to drive.
What did people do before the age of the automobile?
Oh, that's right they rode their horse-drawn buggy to town. And the horse knew its way home.
Ok, then let's require those that want to have a drink and drive home alone to use a self-driving car.
They are available, you know.
.
These are lanes not streets.I can see that the social aspect would combat depression but alcohol in itself is a depressant.Irish pubs are social hangouts where entire families and neighbors hang out and most pubs serve food.I'd love to have Irish pubs in California instead of sports bars.
good idea
God, city people are stupid. And so are reporters.(see below)
They are not drinking liquor, they are more than likely drinking a stout or an ale. And don't tell me you don't have wine with your meal, or have a couple drinks with friends?
Or perhaps I am just reading it wrong. But it seems to me the article, and therefore, the law, permits those who don't have access to public transportation, to exceed the normal legal limit which according to JS in SD {since the reporter here failed to report it} is .05%. to maybe a level of .08% or .1%?
You know, just because the law says you are impaired at .xx% BAC, doesn't mean everyone is impaired at that level, some people have higher tolerance than others, these numbers are arbitrary and averages.
Back when I was in college (circa 1984) when drunk driving was becoming a "College Awareness thing", they actually had a few students, myself included, get drunk and drive, not unlike a Myth Busters episode. My blood alcohol content was over .13 before I started dropping in points on driving test, which had actually been improving during the first few beers. (I was in an accident several years later. I was about an inch and a half from having a traumatic amputation of the right foot. When the doctor finally set it [TibioCalcanous Fusion] I was taken to ICU after the surgery and given Morphine. I will never forget the look on the doctors face, "I gave you enough for a 350lb man", and I weighed 175) So, different strokes for different folks.
The best joke I ever heard, (being of Irish decent); Two Irishmen walk out of a Bar,........It's possible!
Maybe they could take a lead from the Lee Marvin character Cat Ballou that had a horse that would take him home when he got drunk.
@ DumbFarmBoy
You're right about some people being able to drive with a higher percentage of alcohol in their system. I know people that could not have more than two beers without behaving like a drunken fool and I know guys that can drink all day and not show any signs of it. It's all how the body handles it.
There's an old saying that goes, "God invented alcohol so that Irish would never rule the world."
"Beer is proof that God loves us and wants us to be happy" ~Ben Franklin
Whoever proposed this stupid idea is dumb enough to be a Republican.
Don't they fill their baby bottles with whiskey instead of milk? Or is that the Scotts. I can never remember...... ;)
DumbFarmBoy-- I gave you a thumbs up for the Irish joke--funny!! I am part Irish--my mom's side of the family, my great great great great grandpa emigrated from County Cork during the Potato Famine. I'm a retired Substance Abuse Counselor, and I can tell you that when a person has a high tolerance, well, that is part of the progression of the disease. If alcoholics with a high tolerance don't get sober then eventually they loose that tolerance (the 'tolerance factor' finally burns out) to where they get blotto with the first couple of swallows. I am familiar with the kind of studies that you were part of. The one we studied, the results were that people become impaired before they realized they were impaired.
Obama Biden & Hillary Are Scum banned, expanding a derailing history to include some weird racism.
"Danny Healy-Rae, the councilor behind the motion, was sticking to his guns Thursday.
Healy-Rae, who runs a pub in the village of Kilgarvan..."
- Ah, now I get it.
-----------
Cappy-1911
"If they can pass a driver's test at .08, they should get a licence saying that they can drive at .08. It's like corrective lenses. (paraphrasing Doug Stanhope)"
- everyone registers an 0.08 in Ireland, even the driving examiner. I think it's required by law.
Here's a bill Bohner could get behind... and Texas would probably go for it too...
Too bad Ted Kennedy isn't still around. He'd have supported it.
"Drink driving permits" and a legal piss station at every utility pole! I love Ireland!
And this idea cam from where? Ireland.................hmmmmmm I'm so surprised that ya coulda knocked me over with a feather! And he's a pub owner too, what an amazing coincidence!
"Here's a bill Bohner could get behind"
Steve - I believe it is spelled Boner as in
an erect p#&i$a mistake.if "O"bama was there he would outlaw cars so drunks couldn't drive. and eather way Boner is a Boner.
JUST IN TIME FOR ST. PADDY'S DAY!!!
how about just hire the taxi when you're tipsy.
No Taxi's in that area too rural. Same here where I live.
Sounds like the perfect opportunity for a shrewd businessman.
Tipsy Taxi Transportation.
uh...hey fins, just wondering...you have fins on your vehicle(s) and that's where your vine handle came from???
How about a designated driver? How drunk can you get on three pints of beer? Maybe you could always make sure there is some big guy that can withstand that amount along for the ride.
It's never fun to be the odd man out who has to be DD.
Which is how the other DD - Designated Decoy - came into play.
@Shelia
First, I pint is 4 ounces (about) larger than a typical can or bottle of beer. Second, beer in Ireland is much stronger than it is here, so look at it as someone consuming 8 beers here and there ya to.
They can't hang around and drink water or eat something until they get sober?
They go home for breakfast.
They are talking about Imperial pints, which one pine is 20 OZ's, that's 1.25 tall boys.. Three imperial pints is about 5 12 OZ beers. Surprisingly the British and US beer alcohol content is about the same.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pint
http://wiki.answers.com/Q/What_is_the_alcohol_content_of_beer
Ah, but you are all forgetting the shots of good Irish Whiskey you just gotta have so that you can chase them with the beer.
However, I agree, a good pub owner would put together a side business, shuttle customers and their cars to their homes if they happen to drink too much.
@Tracy
Tracy you obviously never drink any American Microbrews. They can be up to 9.6% Alcohol by Volume. So don't try and pull the old, "beer is stronger over there" BS because this isn't the old days where you only have a choice of Bud, Coors, or Miller. And BTW... Guinness is only 5.6% Alcohol by Volume MADE IN IRELAND!!!!
Tracy, Tracy, Tracy,
Where on earth did you 1) get the idea that a pint was 4 oz, and 2) that beer in Ireland was much stronger?
You are wrong on both counts. You should have learned in first grade that a pint is 16 oz (USA) or 20 oz (Imperial). Secondly, you will be surprised to learn that there is a very wide range in beer strengths, both in Europe and Ireland and the USA.
Reading comprehension people....
Tracy said a pint was about 4 ounces MORE than a regular can or bottle of beer.
Thanks 1SG
Just proves what the general public thinks of politicians, in this case the Kerry County Council: low IQ, unemployable elsewhere and never, ever have the public interest at heart.
@Canadian,
well Danny Healy-Rae has a job, town drunk!
I know my uncle Mike rides his bike to town on weekends cause of the drinking and driving.
They kinda don't bother you if you're on a bike.
Good thing its a bike built for two; at 93 he still picks up a lass here and there.
What is this a Penthouse Forum?
I don't think I want to hear that story.
No, but I could get behind the idea.
The councilor behind it owns a pub? Shocking. He just sees dollar signs in this, I'm sure.
“We’ll have to keep the fight on because I’ve got massive support right around the country and from different countries around the world,” he added.
- Probably other pub owners!
I'm gonna say no. They use Euros.
Yeah, and those Euros are worth a lot more than the dollar is.
Glad to see there is no conflict of interest here! Councilor owns pub! Ha! I have a great idea, he should supply transportation for these fellas.....................
I guess no one thought to investigate what the result of hitting a tree at 30 or 35 miles an hour will do.
R.Scalzo,You can't drive 30 to 35 miles an hour sober sown those lanes in Ireland.They are talking about country folks riving after drinking down itty bitty lanes not streets with stop signs and traffic signals.
How about a drunk bus?
If God had not invented Whiskey the Irish would rule the world
Ah, but they do, secretly don't ya know.
Every night they gather at the local pubs and solve all the problems of the world.
And in the wee hours of the mornin', their wives remind them that it is they who really rule their worlds, openly and with a mean look that'll wilt any thoughts of rule.
The implication of both the article and quotes made within the article imply that the current law allows zero tolerance for any alcohol at all.
In the USA legal limit for DUI is 0.08 which means in any state of the USA 1 drink does not make you drunk and does not impair one's ablity to drive home.
A bunch of drinks - well in every state of the USA that will make you drunk and you must not drive - no exceptions.
It seems that in Ireland the current law is 0.00 tolerance. The proposal being made is instead of changing the tolernace to a non zero number for everyone they want to issue permits to just those who might have a reasonable need to be allowed to drive with a minimal non zero tolerance. Coming from a country where we have a 0.08 tolerance its my observation that for all who remain within it, there are no issues. I do not see any issues with other societies being accomodated the same consideration/ablity.
I don't think anyone stays within those limits in this country, at least not while they are out barhopping.
That's exactly what I was wondering, Paul. Are there any real Irishmen here that can clarify if there is a legal limit for blood alcohol content while driving in Ireland, and if so, what that limit is?
Ireland's blood alcohol legal limit is 0.08.
The issue that is going on though is that most accidents happen in rural areas, as the article states. People are concerned because this permit is basically now making it legal to drive drunk in these areas for those who live out there. This sounds more like the man behind the permit push is looking to make more money because he is losing business on those who prefer to stay home and drink instead of making the trip and waiting a few hours before being able to go back home.
Irish people drinking. Now, who would of thought?
People should be allowed to drive when they are too drunk to walk.. ☺
They can ride a bike.
(actually you can be arrested for drunk driving on a bicycle, too.
And for being intoxicated in public.
Usually only happens to those who were in a good safe private bar, got drunk, then got thrown out, into "public" (thank you Ron White. :)
actually I think you can be arrested for merely breathing..
I wouldn't want to ride my bicycle down those little roads with drunks out there. At least now, they shouldn't be drunk and would be arrested for it if they were caught. Yes, I understand I'm talking about Ireland. How different is it than Wisconsin's reputation?
didn't see that one coming What a nice way to start the daY
Alcohol is a depressant, so it makes depression worse, not better.
I must be doing it wrong
So you're saying they need Jaeger bombs, right?
Alcohol is first a stimulant, then a depressant. Funny drug, really.
Is it only seems that way, because the first part of the brain which is depressed by alcohol is the neocortex. The neocortex governs our inhibitions. People don't become stimulated after a couple of drinks. They become uninhibited.
Looks like the drinkers will die either by via suicide or an accident due to drunk driving!!!
Since once or twice in my younger (stupidly wasted driving) passed out AND thank GOD for only about a second, then woke up to regain control of my car & make it home!!!! Now I just buzz-drive yeah maybe a heavier buzz than my wife wants, but also now a more experienced drinker/driver I can make it. Not all of us drinkers have the skill/control though. I dont reccomend man!!! But I repeat...Looks like either way they will unfortunately kick the (Beer) bucket!! Good luck though Ireland!!!
The Irish are 'funny'-----they are 'great'-----that is why we English say "We Like the Irish, tolerate the Scots and dislike the Welsh!!"----------the Irish are unconcience comedians!!--lol!!
This is the stupidest thing I have ever heard of. Make me ashamed to be Irish.
I do not believe you are allowed to call yourself Irish if you are drunk on three pints of beer.
There is a stand up comic called Kathy Maddigan who says you should be allowed to drive with a higher blood alcohol level if you have an Irish surname. "How much did you have to drink? Six beers?....oh, but your name's Maddigan....off you go now."
I'll drink to that.
This story was making me thirsty, anyway.;)
Another solution to the problem might be that Mr. Healy-Rae makes accommodations available in the back of his establishment. When his patrons have had a few to many they can sleep it off in the back room. In the morning he can serve them breakfast and send them off all fit and fed. All of this, of coarse, for free because he cares for there welfare.
I have no clue about the laws in Ireland on this issue, but in the U.S. it is illegal to have a bed on premise where alcohol is served (restaurant/bar), it has to be separated from the drinking part of the establishment completely. Now they could open up a motel or b&b but locals wouldn't utilize it.
westchesterbob,Call this guy up.He needs more business and your suggestion is just the ticket.
If you are going to drink alcoholic beverages, drink them at home. If you want to socialize and need to drive to do it, drink water, fruit juice, coffee, tea, or milk.
3 pints?
In Ireland?
That's nothing.
Hell - the baby bottles hold three pints !!
Just for kicks here it the law in Ireland. Yes, I am of Irish heritage but alas am allergic to beer so have only had a pint once on my birthday in Doolin many years ago....
The new offences, introduced by Section 4 of the Road Traffic Act 2010, reduce the drink driving alcohol limits for all drivers. They also differentiate between experienced drivers and new drivers – those with learner permits or who hold a driving licence for 2 years or less, or have no valid licence/permit. Lower alcohol limits apply to new drivers than those that apply to experienced drivers. The lower alcohol limits applying to new drivers also apply to drivers of buses, lorries, trailers, work vehicles, taxis and other public service vehicle drivers.
The new offences are as follows:
- 50 milligrammes of alcohol per 100 millilitres of blood for experience drivers
- 20 milligrammes of alcohol per 100 millilitres of blood for other drivers
- 67 milligrammes of alcohol per 100 millilitres of urine for experienced drivers
- 27 milligrammes of alcohol per 100 millilitres of urine for other drivers
- 22 microgrammes of alcohol per 100 millilitres of breath for an experience driver
- 9 microgrammes of alcohol per 100 millilitres of breath for other drivers