The recent rash of OWI’s on campus and in the surrounding area is enough to make anyone uneasy. Although the circumstances and details of the situations are unknown, there isn’t any reason to be driving under the influence.

At the risk of sounding like your mothers or the new billboards popping up all over Des Moines, buzzed driving is drunk driving. Whether it is a beer run or the laziness of not wanting to walk to the bar, there is no excuse, especially on a campus as small as Simpson.

Simpson’s campus is five blocks at most in the longest area. Use the walk to sober up or to lose some the extra pounds you just drank. With the nicer weather and the bars a mere few blocks away, a walk would do everyone some good.

Better yet, pick a place and if you plan on getting so drunk that you can’t walk, stay there.

There are numerous ways to get from point A to point B without driving under the influence.

And honestly, if you don’t have one sober friend you can call for a ride or a favor, you may want to re-think the people you’re hanging out with.

When you are under the influence and get behind the wheel, you are affecting more than just yourself-you are putting those in your vehicle, and any other innocent bystander that may be driving on the road, in grave danger.

More than 16,500 people were killed in 2004 alone by those who chose to drive drunk, and we will reiterate, buzzed driving is drunk driving. At this rate, a person is killed in an alcohol related accident every 31 minutes.

Not only could you get into an accident and kill yourself, you could live knowing that you took the life of another, just because you may not have wanted to walk to the bar because it was chilly.

An OWI isn’t easy on the pocketbook either. At an average cost of well over $4,435 including fines, court fees, required classes, the loss of wages and the increase in car insurance, you may have to take out an extra loan or two to cover your expenses.

We may be at a place of higher education, but it seems as though some may be lacking in the area of common sense. Drinking and driving is illegal, expensive and can have some pretty horrible consequences.

So, there’s the lecture-take it to heart.

Statistics taken from www.alcoholalert.com and Iowa Alcoholic Beverages Division http://www.iowaabd.com/alcohol/misc/OWI_costs.jsp