In a recent article I found online, a school in Houston, TX gave a real visual of what it's like to be involved in a drunk driving accident. The students were brought out to the back of their school only to find their most well-known classmates (fake) dead in a head-on car accident. The police, ambulances, fire department, and the works were all there. The goal was to allow the students to see what it would be like if their fellow classmates were to be in a car accident due to driving under the influence. They then took the students to the trauma center of the local hospital and stayed the night; but this wasn't any classic slumber party. The students watched from a distance as person after person was brought into the hospital in need of surgery due to a car accident involving drunk drivers. I found this simulation/ realization to be very effective.
The amount of innocent people getting killed my drunk drivers is increasing at an exponential rate. To make it worse, teens now believe that it's okay for them to drive while under the influence of alcohol. According to the article, it is found "that 1 in 3 drivers will be involved in a drunk driving crash, whether victim or perpetrator, in their lifetime. On average someone is killed every 22 minutes in the United States in a drunk driving-related crash. And approximately 6,000 teens are killed in crashes each year, the leading cause of death for teens." There is enough problems with adults driving drunk, and there is too much at risk for teens to be doing the same.
I believe that the increasing numbers of people getting killed in drunk driving accidents is a sign that something needs to be done. There should be a requirement for all school districts to have to carry out a drunk driving awareness day in which students learn about the negative things they are capable of doing by just one mistake. The simulations similar to the one used in this article is very affective. Teens nowadays refuse to listen to adults ramble on about things that they find useless and irrelevant. But, put them in the actual situation and you will find that they realize this is a big problem and something needs to be done about it.
In the video, you can see some of the students faces as they are in the simulation and at the trauma center of the hospital and they are blown away. The problem we face today is teens don't think about the consequences anymore. The only thing that matters is how many beers my friend can chug without puking. The only thing that matters is why my ex tweeted song lyrics that imply something about me. The only thing that matters is the fact that my best friend hooked up with a random guy at a party because she thinks it's cool to do stuff like that. Our generation needs a reality check, desperately. This is what really matters: how many lives can be saved by preventing teens from making the wrong decision of drinking and driving. Everything that you do in your life is completely irrelevant to me until you bring in the risk of not only hurting yourself, but facing the possible situation of putting another person's life in danger because of your lazy mistake. Find someone to drive you home. Stay the night at whoever's house you're at. Call a taxi. Do anything but drive home drunk.
Robin Garza from the Shattered Dream program found in the article states that "if we can just save one child, then everything we have done is worth every minute of it." Instead of turning ourselves into a selfish society, let's think of the other lives that we can take away in just a matter of seconds because of one single mistake: drinking and driving. Look at the following photos and try to think about the lives lost because of drivers under the influence.
Very moving blog post, Addy! You did a wonderful job persuading the reader to not drink and drive through the use of pathos and logos. I thought that the pictures at the end were a very effective way to end your post, because it left a lasting impression on the reader that made them still think after finishing your post. It also allowed the reader to see the first-hand consequences and it helped to give us a stunning visual of the horror of drunk driving. I completely agree with you, that the “accident” created behind the school was a successful way of portraying what driving and drinking could do. I think it was very effective, because often teens lose focus when we are just being lectured at, but by the school taking the time to showing them, it helps for the teens to realize the severity of the situation. I think if this were done at least once a year at schools across the country, it would greatly decrease the amount of teenage deaths per year. I think our school does a good job of stressing not to drink and drive. For the past few years a lady has come and talked to us about the dangers of drinking and driving as well as the dangers of using drugs. Also, three years ago the school had a texting and driving simulator that allowed junior and senior students to try texting and driving at the same time. Gradually I think texting and driving is becoming another immediate issue, similar to drinking and driving. Just like drinking and driving, students think they can text and drive safely, but this isn’t the case. Overall, wonderful job! You successfully used pictures, statistics, and pathos to stress your audience to never drink and drive in order to save teen lives.
ReplyDeleteAddy, I really enjoyed reading your blog post as it urges today's teens to get a reality check. As teenagers often we forget the great impact that our decisions can make.It is very common to hear of some of my fellow peers going out and drinking over the weekend. This could lead to the potential consequences you mentioned through your post such as inducing possible deaths with drunk driving. The students in our school are in need of the reality check that was administered to the students In The article you cited. Along with the reference to the article, the way you expanded upon the topic greatly attributed to your excellent message. With your use of words such as "innocent" and "killed" helped to convey the great tragedy that drunk driving can cause. The word Innocence helps to describe the young lives that are at risk when concerning drunk drivers. The word killed shows the great impact of death that can occur with the abundance of drunk drivers. Finally, your use of visual images in the end of your blog post offered another source of information to exemplify the horrors that can result from drunk drivers. This helped to further convey your message to your audience. In conclusion, your blog post proved a very informative and important message that all individuals should take into consideration.
ReplyDeletewow! your p+ was totally and completely effective! the way you used pathos and logos to push the audience into not driving while drunk was very impressive. I did not realize you were using pathos and logos until after because I was so concentrated and fascinated on what you were saying. at the beginning, you used rhetorical questions which made the audience think and really deeply analyze why you were asking what you were asking, which was very effective once I understood what you were asking. you describe what the school did in order to make the crash and the situation seem as real as possible. the fact that the school puts on this charade is so smart and I one hundred percent think our school should do a day dedicated to drunk driving. I mean, no person I know would drunk drive after seeing friends and classmates dead in a drunk driving accident. I totally agree with you when you said teens don't think about the consequences today. because they don't. I know this because sometimes I don't. when you gave examples it was really eye-opening because we have all been in a situation like the ones you were giving and thinking it was the end of the world or the only important thing in our lives. it made the audience connect to you post and relate. my absolute favorite part of your post was when you said, "Find someone to drive you home. Stay the night at whoever's house you're at. Call a taxi. Do anything but drive home drunk." it was very demanding and authoritative, but in a pleading and concerned tone. the short sentences were a sort of call to action. it was effective because some think that driving home is the only option. it isn't. and the short , declarative sentences make the audience realize that there are other options that are just as simple. your pictures at the end were the perfect way to end your post. instead of leaving with a last declarative sentence or a question, you let the pictures do the talking.; these pictures were so effective because it made the audience look at the effects of drunk driving. overall, your post was pretty much amazing!
ReplyDeleteI can only nod and agree. Alcohol is such a part of the youth experiences now, that it is as if DUI accidents are to be expected. We hear a lot of stories about how a rowdy, fun ride ends with this kid hitting a tree, or that kid destroying the parents' car. It is even told in jest at times, when it shouldn't be at all. DUI accidents are terrifying, not only to those behind the wheel, but also to the people that witness or unwillingly become participants of it. So it is wise to put a more sobering face on that whole thing, especially for those at a very young age.
ReplyDeleteFaith Brady @ K Hunter Law
Drunk driving has definitely caused a lot of incidents where in a life or two has been jeopardized, and even lost. Yet, society still somehow fails to take keep this in mind— especially in teens. Anyway, thanks you so much for sharing this with us, and help raise awareness about it.
ReplyDeleteJoanne Krueger @ Kurtz & Blum