Saw this story a couple days ago...
OCEANSIDE, Calif. - On a Monday morning last month, highway patrol officers visited 20 classrooms at El Camino High School to announce some horrible news: several students had been killed in car wrecks over the weekend. Classmates wept. Some became hysterical. A few hours and many tears later, though, the pain turned to fury when the teenagers learned that it was all a hoax — a scared-straight exercise designed by school officials to dramatize the consequences of drinking and driving.
The reaction was 50/50 according to one student interview. Most students who felt the exercise went too far agreed that the methodolgy made sense. So how is an effective deterrent against drinking and driving going to far? Personally, I'm all for the scared-straight approach. I also think it's better to be proactive than reactive, especially when it comes to teen drinking and driving. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) reports motor vehicle crashes are the leading cause of youth deaths, aged 15 to 20 years. In the United States, 12.8% of all fatal traffic crashes were alcohol-related, and 40% of that number involved teens driving while drinking alcohol.
Statistics don't lie, kiddies. Better be scared and crying for your "dead" friends now, then when you're standing over their burial plot later. And I certainly don't want my friends and family members crying over my body because some dipshit teen thought it was cool to drink and drive. Got it?
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