Big Brother or Strictly Safety?

Recently I was watching the evening news and there was a story about a local mother who had voluntarily elected to have an ignition interlock device installed in her car; the very same car her teenage daughter was learning to drive with.

Many states have chosen to order repeat drunk drivers to install these devices, which force the driver of the car to blow into a Breathalyzer before being allowed to start the car, in an effort to curb repeat offenses.  When legislation was passed recently in Massachusetts requiring those with two or more OUI convictions to have these devices installed in their own vehicles, with the offender footing the bill, I admit I thought it was a good idea.  I was a little hesitant at first, but the sad truth about drunk drivers is that often they don't kill themselves when they choose to get behind the wheel, but instead kill or seriously injure an innocent bystander. 

Then this news story showed up.  Mom had the ignition interlock device installed voluntarily in order to prevent her 16 year old daughter from being able to start her car if she had been drinking.  In fact, these devices can be programmed to have a zero tolerance standard that will prevent the car from being started if any alcohol is detected on the driver's breath. You can also customize the system to allow for retesting at a particular time interval or set it so that the driver will not be able to start the car until the device is reset.  Parents can also elect to receive a report that states how many times the device was engaged and what the results for each test were.  Quite a nifty little system, isn't it?

Well, my gut reaction was similar to what many teenagers had to say about this system: Whatever happened to privacy?  What ever happened to trusting your kids?  Whatever happened to teaching them about the dangers of drunk driving and then allowing them to make the right choice when inevitably faced with the question of whether or not to get behind the wheel?

Then something the mother said really hit me.  She said, and I'm paraphrasing here, "It's not that I don't trust my daughter, but she's a teenager and teenagers make mistakes. I'm just not willing to risk her life if she makes this particular mistake."

Well now, Mom does have a point, doesn't she?  I mean, her daughter, after originally being against the device because she felt like her mother was saying she didn't trust her, now thinks the device is a good idea so that even if she was tempted to drive after drinking alcohol she wouldn't be allowed to.  She said that she understood it was because her mother loved her and not because she didn't trust her that she had the ignition lock installed.

But I'm still conflicted.  I'm one of those people who is very sensitive to all the "Big Brother is watching"  scenarios.  I've read "1984," "Brave New World," Fahrenheit 451," etc. and I take a lot of what those authors had to say very seriously.  So if we "voluntarily" allow devices like these to be installed in our automobiles, how long will it be until these devices become mandatory?  What about devices that monitor our speed while driving?  After all, that again would be a safety issue on the surface, but what if the DMV could issue tickets through such a system.  No more pulling people over and requiring a police officer, who risks his life every time he makes a traffic stop, to engage with the speedy offender.  What if you just got a speeding ticket in the mail because the computer printout from your car said you were speeding at a particular date and time?

Then again, drunk driving and speed related deaths are at an all time high in many states and are particularly prevalent in the deaths of inexperienced, teen drivers.  So is it more important to keep our children safe than it is to protect our rights to privacy?

As the mother of two small boys, I'm really not sure, so I'm hoping some of you might be able to shed some light on this one for me.

Comments

[Leah]

I think that there is a big difference between doing it voluntarily and having it be mandated. The government should not mandate this. As a libertarian, I would be flat-out horrified if they did. However, I see no reason to regulate what this woman can do with a vehicle she owns either - that would be just as bad to me as the other way around...

I agree, i's creepy. I do like the mom's reasoning though.

[Sonia]

I agree with Leah's comment wholeheartedly. As a Libertarian, I too feel the government has no business dictating what equipment you install on your vehicle as long as your car is worthy of driving and safe.

And the mom part of me agrees in that, she (the mother, not Leah!) took steps to ensure the safety of her child. And whether she comes off as a control freak or not trusting of her daughter is not for me to judge, she is technically not doing anything to harm her daughter, though I would wager her daughter may be appalled by this to some degree.

Interesting post, had not heard the story...very thought-provoking considering we are three short years away from our oldest child getting his learner's permit. I'm prematurely terrified of his being on the road!

[azgreeneyes]

I would (and am) consider placing one of thise into a car that my kids are going to drive. Granted, I still have 9 years before that is going to happen, but still. My mother educated me to no end on the dangers of drunk driving. She was a nurse in the long term care facility, and even took me there to 'meet' 2 young women who were reduced to vegetative state after drunk driving accidents (not their fault). However, peer pressure being what it was for me, I succumbed one night and drove after drinking. I totaled my car into a tree at 70 miles per hour. I walked away with one scratch on my cheek, but had I hit another car, that would not have been the case. I will do anything to prevent my son from having to feel what I did (and do) and having to go over the what ifs. He's too important to me to lose over something as stupid as peer pressure.
Nice to emeet you, BTW!

[Soccermom Nancy E.]

Yes, if parents want to install these devices in their cars voluntarily then that's their right.

But the more I think about it, I guess my fear is that if statistics came out about how much safer teens were with the devices in their cars, then states may find they want to mandate that all teen drivers have these systems in place in order to obtain a license. And it's not that far fetched. I mean, wearing a seatbelt in MA is the law and it's the law because the state says it's their job to keep me and my family safe. Less drunk drivers keeps us safer, right?

As a parent I start thinking about other "safety" devices. What about speed monitors installed in cars for teen drivers? Or GPS? Would you track your children to be sure that they're going where they said they were in the name of safety?

These are all things that may contribute to keeping our children safer, but is it the best way? To tell them that we're ALWAYS watching so don't get into trouble. To say, "I love you so I'm going to make it virtually impossible for you to make a decision that could harm you," - to me that just isn't the answer.

The risks are HIGH, but I also want my children to learn how to make those tough decisions, to stand up to peer pressure and to find the strength to do what's right in even the most difficult of circumstances. These situations will come up over and over again and as parents we won't be able to control most of them.

My parents, and the parents of my friends took risks, and we made it out all right on the other side. Azgreeneyes, you may have made a BIG mistake, but thankfully didn't harm anyone (and I realize that's not always the case), and didn't you learn something you never forgot after that? It wasn't an easy experience to have, but easy doesn't usually teach very much.

Yes, drunk driving is a serious problem among teenagers, but is it so prevalent that we need to start controlling whether or not our children can start their cars?

And what if you have one of these devices and your child just doesn't take your car when he/she wants to go out to a drinking party? (Because they do go no matter what we tell them) They figure they can drink as much as they want since they won't be driving ... but then say a friend wants them to drive their car? Will your child be able to be strong when their parents aren't telling them the answer with a mechanical device?

(Nice to emeet you, too, azgreeneyes!!)

[CPA Mom]

Nothing relevant to add but as a mom, I'm all about this device. When my kids drive years and years from now, I will want one of these.

However, that is MY choice and MY husband's choice, not the GOVERNMENT's Choice. They need to MTOB.

[Alex]

Great post! I have a couple concerns about this device. The first is what others have already said about the concern that they might become mandatory. The second though, is that they will create a false sense of security. Like Azgreeneyes said, this doesn't prevent your drunk child from driving someone else's car. I also think it's pretty likely that kids will find some way to get around it. In the meantime, will parents stop talking to their kids about the dangers of drinking and driving because they think they are protected? My husband is in the computer industry and he doesn't trust any of the parent controlled internet software out there nor do most of his co-workers. That's not to say they don't have them, but they use them to deter, not completely prevent. Just also as a minor point, if you set it to zero tolerance for alcohol and then you yourself want to drive drive after having half a glass of wine at a restaurant are you SOL? I think it's a good idea in principle, but I'm just not sure how pratical it is.

[Azgreeneyes]

I have to agree that it is a deterrent, and not a solution. I see it as a way for my kids to have an excuse wen their friends want to know if they can be the driver after they have been drinking. "sorry, my parents are such pains in the @#$ and installed this, so I can't, I'll be busted." I was lucky that I didn't kill anyone, but my friend (at a different point in time) wasn't so lucky. He killed one of his passengers and the other is seriously disabled. I'm hoping to use as many tools as are available to me as supplements to talks and being open about my history and the ramifications.

Oh, how I wish kids came with handbooks!