January 5, 2004 -- I don't like drunk drivers, no one does, but I object almost as strenuously to the demonization of alcohol through disinformation about drinking and driving. And the latter is exactly what I found in my morning newspaper today.

The R.I.D.E. ("Reduce Impaired Driving Everywhere") program is Ontario's spot-check operation for snaring drivers with more than a .08 blood alcohol level. (Interestingly, I've never seen or heard of the R.I.D.E. program catching sleepy drivers or drivers talking on cell phones or playing with the radio dial or drivers shaving or applying make-up while at the wheel, although such drivers are certainly also "impaired.") The story on page B5 of my Toronto Star relates the stats from the recent "Christmas season crackdown on drinking and driving."

For the first five paragraphs of the article, the news is dire indeed. "Early figures suggest many motorists are still willing to roll the dice," we're told, and in York region, the 15 motorists charged with impaired driving is "a huge increase from last year's four." Adding to the sense of impending doom is York Deputy Police Chief Eric Jolliffe, who is quoted as saying: "It's obvious that some drivers are still not getting the message.... There's been a dramatic increase in the number of persons arrested for drinking and driving,"

Calamitous news indeed, but by paragraph six in the story, some details begin to emerge. Like the fact that York Region officers stopped almost 9,000 more vehicles than they did last year, and that in the much more populace Toronto, the 67 motorists charged was about the same as last year, despite the fact that officers stopped roughly 15,000 more vehicles.

In fact, when I pull out my trusty calculator, the situation begins to look much better. Toronto police charged 67 motorists out of roughly 100,000 stopped, or 0.067%, while York officers pinched 15 out of 25,000 stopped, or about 0.06%. This compares to 0.078% of those stopped last year in Toronto and 0.025% of the drivers stopped in York in 2002.

Overall the percentage charged in York and Toronto is actually down from last year's 0.0703%, although unless you read into the second column of the story and used a calculator, you'd never know that.

Obviously, drunk driving is a serious thing and anyone who chooses to drive after drinking alcohol should be responsible enough to severely limit their consumption. But spreading fear through the media is no way to combat the problem.

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