The Fuga is sold Stateside as Infiniti's M sedan, which is currently at the top of my automotive want list.

Should this device become standard equipment, the list will be revised accordingly. (And I don't even drink.)

No one is "for" drunk driving.

I really hate the expression "Nobody believes X" or "Nobody is in favor of Y" because it's almost never true.

There are some people who believe drunk driving is okay and they don't want a crackdown.

This whole idea is rich. It goes in the can the first time a drunk woman is murdered because her car won't start, and the heirs hire an attack attorney.

Could it be that MADD is essentially supporting a "Minority Report" society in which people will be arrested for crimes which they haven't yet committed?

I think it was Henry David Thoreau who opined something to the effect of, "If I saw a man trudging up the pathway to my door with the fixed intention of doing me good, I should run for my very life."

Shades of the 'smart' handgun, and a pretty good example of why 'gun control' marks the top of a slippery slope that involves a lot more than guns.

Other features may includes:
- If the vehicle exceeds the posted speed limit, the engine automatically decreases output to slow the vehicle.
- If the operator turns the wheels more than 60 degrees, but the turn indicator hasn't been activated for the previous 3 seconds, a citation is automatically issued.
- If the follow distance is too small, the vehicle slows down.
- If the operator does not maintain two hands on the wheel (when not shifting), the vehicle complains.
- etc....

It would totally suck.

If you want to go back further to unexamined assumptions, drunk driving isn't all that dangerous in the first place. It used to be a personal moral failing, not a public problem, and was and still is very common.

Joseph R. Gusfield, an ironic sociologist, put out The Culture of Public Problems : Drinking-Driving and the Symbolic Order in 1981, which MADD was initially favorable to but became hostile when it turned out he was studying them, not drunken driving ; and later a more general political guide to seizing power Contested Meanings : The Construction of Alcohol Problems , wherein one first creates a ``Public Problem,'' and then takes ownership of it.

It's important to stress, for example, that all debate has already occurred, and the question is settled, in taking over a problem.

Anyway once you own it, you're in.

I should mention a nice remark by F.T.Grampp, on MADD, ``If it weren't for the drunks, a lot of them wouldn't be mothers.''

Well, how about if the car is falling faster than a certain rate it locks all the doors....er...well maybe not in light of recent events. It also reminds me of the built in features of a low open vehicle I once owned called a Mini Moke here in Australia. It is like a miniature jeep with just a top - no sides so the driver is very visible. I always reckoned it was great when it came to an attack flatulence, but a real frustration when overcome with an attack of sexual arousal.

I don't go out at night, so I'm not that afraid of the drunks.

If they want to build a safe car, put a cellphone jammer in it that activates when the wheels are rolling. The "hands free" meme was a preventative first strike by the cellphone industry to define the debate terms. The problem is not no hands on the wheel, it's no attention on the road, and you can't avoid them by being home at an early hour on Friday and Saturday nights.

I agree that this is a very slippery slope leading to a very Orwellian world.

But this bit of ingenuity dramatically underestimates human ingenuity. The air sensors can't stop the car, or it would be impossible to be a designated driver. And as for the sensor in the shifter I would bet that there would be a piece of saran wrap, duct tape or a pair of gloves around to keep sweat out of it. As we have learned many times, technology is often frusterated by low tech ingenuity.

I doubt this will go anywhere. I've seen proposals for anti drunk driving features since the 70's, none of them have ever been widely implemented; except by court order.

I used to donate to MADD. That was before they became a branch of the Women's Christian Temperance Union.

If these cars come about, it will be much simpler to ratchet down the legal blood alcohol limit. It might even be something done over radio to keep the car up with current laws as they change.

" It goes in the can the first time a drunk woman is murdered because her car won't start, and the heirs hire an attack attorney."

Or the first time the system malfunctions and lets someone drive who *is* drunk. Or someone argues that the sensitivity was set too high. Etc., etc..

I did some checking on MADD after the TABC raided a hotel bar in Irving Texas. What a mess. MADD is driven by a president more interested in fund raising than in raising awareness of MADD's overly zealous anti drunk driving campaign. Then I read the NHTSA website, in particular their method of attributing accidents to alcohol when no evidence exists. They simply use a highly refined algorithm to attribute a certain number of accidents as being alcohol related when no information supporting this assertion is available, surprisingly, the rate of these attributed accidents coincides with the numbers NHTSA wants to report.

Newspaper articles in particular aid popular misconception by reporting numbers of deaths attributed to drunk drivers when the numbers themselves are likely tainted, such as drivers not being legally drunk being reported as drunk for statistical purposes. For instance, NHTSA uses numbers that attribute "alcohol related" to an accident where anyone involved has a detectable BAC, not necessarily the driver that caused the accident. And MADD wants to follow that madness with a law that would allow only a zero BAC, which would have you arrested for having a BAC that you get from using mouthwash in the morning. The raid in Irving as intended to preempt drivers form driving drunk, a position advocated by MADD. Problem was, some people arrested were hotel guests, with no intention of driving.

The curse of drunk driving is being supplanted by the curse of the activists making a living off their fanatic pursuit of the imaginary evil in every driver.

Instead of putting all the energy and resources into making the car such a busy body, why not figure out a way to make the car drive for me so that I can consume what I want?

Can't really see me wanting to buy the new Nazi 380Z.
I went thru a dui checkpoint in Joplin a few months ago. The local MADD had set up lawn chairs and a generator with lights and were out watching people getting stopped like they were at the movies. 5 minutes of searching for registration papers on the car while the cop asks me where I've been and where I am going. So, out minding my own business (not drinking btw) and stopped by the state demanding my papers and a report of my activities. Thanks MADD!

How about Nurturers Stopping Drinking Absolute Prohibitionists

NSDAP

Makes a good name, doesn't it?

Do you 'not see'?

Until I stop reading about people being arrested for their third, tenth, thirty fifth DUI, I'm not supporting any tech behavior modification built into cars.

I'd much rather see strict enforcement of existing laws. I'd also like to see more licenses pulled for life as a consequence of a DUI with fatalities. Norway, for instance, will pull a license for life following a second arrest for DUI. It also imposes fines based on the DUI driver's salary. That's gotta sting.

Is there any way we can get an R&D Department working on busybody seeking bullets?

Wht does this car consider drunk?Is it .08,.05,.03.Almost all fatal accidents involving alcohol the bac is.15 or higher and most deaths are caused by SOBER DRIVERS.In fact it's the vast majority.We need to punish actions,regardless of drinkig or not.

I'm with GW. The problem is not a lack of laws. The problem is the existing laws are being ignored.

In my state, a person is supposed to have their license immediately suspended for a minimum of a year if they are caught driving drunk. I believe there's mandatory jail time as well. Enforce that, and you will go a long ways towards reducing drunk driving.

But the laws aren't being enforced. The courts here seem to think driving is a civil right, and will accept almost anything as an "extenuating circumstance" justifying suspending the suspension. (If you follow me.) They are also reluctant to seize the car of a person driving on a DUI-suspended license. And our jails are sufficiently crowded that DUIs are routinely released -- I suppose it's better than letting loose the deliberately violent.

This assumes the charge isn't dismissed because the courts are hopelessly backlogged, or because a skilled defense lawyer successfully argues a minor procedural violation. Mind you, that's what defense attorneys are supposed to do -- but it's the judge's job to toss complaints that really don't have any merit, and see that the people of the state get a fair hearing too.

And, finally, as a lifelong teetotaler, I resent having to pay for such devices in my car.

Or the first time the system malfunctions and lets someone drive who *is* drunk. Or someone argues that the sensitivity was set too high.

People who sue tend to go after the big money. I think we can assume that this device will have a failure or two along the way. When it fails, the drunk driver who is not stopped will assume he must be OK to drive, thereby placing the responsibility for an accident on the vehicles manufacturer.

At least that is what the attorney for the victim will claim.

How lucky for the victim that Nissan has billions to fork over whereas the drunk just has the change from his bar tab.

After one or two of these lawsuits, Nissan will claim that the 'demand' for this vehicle just wasn't there, and they will stop production.

I think there's a precedence against making drunk sensors mandatory. In the late 70's cars were equipped with seat belt interlocks. You couldn't start the engine unless you buckled up. It was a real pain when you had a bag of groceries in the passenger seat. I heard that the supreme court ruled against such interlocks. I hope I'm right; this is just from memory.

Devices have been invented (and patented, and manufactured) for the prevention of erect penises. We are safer than we thought! Now all we have to do is figure out how to get men to wear them. I don't think that's a job for MADD, so let's draft the Trial Lawyer's Association.

Now when are we going to get something really useful...like car that keeps all the MADD mothers from putting on make up while they're driving? How about a car that just automatically swerves and runs over politicians and do-gooders (like MADD) that have a compulsion to try to interfere with everyone elses life for our OWN good? THAT is something I would pay for : )

Now when are we going to get something really useful...like car that keeps all the MADD mothers from putting on make up while they're driving? How about a car that just automatically swerves and runs over politicians and do-gooders (like MADD) that have a compulsion to try to interfere with everyone elses life for our OWN good? THAT is something I would pay for : )

Big brother.

I got a survey in the mail last week from the local DOT indicating that I had been observed traveling on a local highway. Actually I got two surveys, since they must have observed my wife as well, since her truck is registered in my name. A number of roads in our area are under improvement reviews, and I had seen a couple of cars parked to the side with "men working" signs, the work must of consisted of collecting lisence tags.

The survey specifically asked for an address for the start and finish of the trip, whether for business or pleasure, and how often such a trip was made. A nasty reply with a copy to my local government rep. is all they got.

Check out the active ingredients of Hand Sanitizer. so you've just completed a walk in the woods, and put some sanitizer on your hands, and then your car may not start?

Product Description (from Amazon)
The active ingredient in Purell is ethyl alcohol, a safe and effective antiseptic. Keep a bottle at work, in the classroom, and at home. Hypoallergenic ~ Dermatologist Tested ~ Non-Toxic.

Ethyl alcohol, btw, is drinking alcohol. Isopropyl alcohol, listed in the ingredients also, is commonly known as rubbing alcohol, or medical spirits.

I was thinking of buying a Nissan vehicle next year. Not now, even if they never implement the concept, just proposing it is so objectionable that I will likely never again buy one of their products.

The post reminded me of the most amusing telemarketing call I ever had, many years ago:

MADD Rep: I'm calling from MADD, blah,blah,blah…would you like to donate $25.
Me: No, I do not.
MADD Rep: If that's too much, how about $20 or even $10?
Me: No, I don't want to give you any money. (voice inflection stressed the word "any").
MADD Rep: How about $5?
Me: I don't want to give your organization any money. (again stressing "any")
MADD Rep: Whatever you can afford to give would help.
Me: (Politely but firmly) You are not listening to me. It is not a matter of what I can afford. I don't want to give your organization any money, not even 1 cent. I don't like your organization, therefore I do not want to financially aid it.
MADD Rep: Oh..ah…(stunned silence for at least 30 seconds)....goodbye.

It was as if the person could not believe that someone may not agree with them.

If government mandates that all new cars, sold in the states, have "alcohol sensors" installed the mandate is doomed to fail from the start. That is until government starts levying taxes to help rig the "free market" in leviathans favor.

I wonder, what percentage of MADD donations go to executive compensation.

So what happens when the gear shift sensor thingy malfunctions while I'm in a high crime area?

Most first time drunk drivers are noobs who made a mistake.

Forcing this on them would be wrong because they will never drive drunk again.

beebs
ex drinker