Tragic News

Sometimes the news just makes you sick. Such was the case last Saturday when I read the front page story of a fatal auto crash near us. A family from Delaware County had come to Lancaster County to purchase a puppy. They were headed home when a drunk driver who was speeding tried to pass on a double line and crashed into them. A young woman and the puppy were killed instantly. One of the preteen children was critically injured. The drunk driver was not hurt. Police reported that he had previously been charged with a DUI and he was driving with a suspended license. That just makes me sick. It is probably good that I can't make the laws because I have no time at all for people who drink and drive. I think that if a person is charged with a DUI it should result in at least ten years in prison and permanent loss of their license. It seems to me that if we got serious about this problem, strong enforced laws would reduce and maybe even eliminate this problem. And if a DUI causes an accident it should be twenty years in prison. And if it results in a fatality it should be life in prison. And if a person is caught driving with a suspended license it should be permanent loss of license. Few will agree with me, but possibly the family in this accident might. It will be interesting to see how easy the courts treat this murderer. I guess DUI gets me upset since my mother was killed in an auto accident when a teenager hit my parents broadside. I don't know if he was drinking but I know that his parents quickly whisked him away from the scene and he was never tested. And he never suffered any serious consequences. On the other hand, we lost mother. With drinking and drugs so common and accepted today, one risks his life each time he enters an auto to go somewhere. I guess that it just is not politically correct for our laws and courts to come down hard on such offenses. But I just can't help but wonder how much safer we would be with strict laws that were enforced. There is one other sad side to this fatal accident. The police said that the young woman who was killed did not have her seat belt on and she was holding the dog. For the life of me, I can't understand why people, especially young people, won't buckle up. That too should be an offense. However, I guess the difference is that when you fail to buckle up you are risking your life. When you drive under the influence you are risking the lives of others. But such is life today. Keep safe!