Drink Driving

Aussies love to drink; this we all know. Thankfully, Australia is very strict on drunk driving. The only thing is, they call it drink driving. I am not sure how I feel about this phrase; it works because it does imply the present...you are currently driving while under the influence of a drink. If a person consumes a certain number of drinks, then they become drunk, not drink.

This phrase may come from the awesome fact that you can drink in a moving vehicle, if you are not driving of course. Therefore, if you are tagging along with someone at a bar and decide to visit another pub or head home, there is no need to chug the stubby down, you just take it with you. So potentially, drink driving is showing a strong prejudice against driving with a drink.

It may also derive from the legal limit, a strict .05. That is about a sip of beer for me. Just a drink for some. This is basically a big do not drink and drive warning. The police here are big on the random checks. They indiscriminately pull people over at all times of the day and give breathe tests. For a normal licence the penalties are about the same as in the states. For those with their provisional licences even a drop of alcohol will take away driving privileges for one year.

So, overall, despite the silly name, this is a big deal. Good for you Australia.