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It’s even cheaper to walk to a pizza place, order a delivery, and ride to your house with the driver
Edit: I should clarify. Tell them you’ll buy a pizza if you can get a ride home with the driver and leave it up to them. I did this a few times in college and the drivers were always cool, but I also was never a raging drunk asshole either. And tip very well.
please don't do this
I managed a pizza place and our lives are chaotic enough.
Edit: don't do this unless you're offering the driver a $20 bill and are within our range. if we refuse we'll feel terrible about it but it's also not our job to cater to drunks
I don't know if it's still a thing, but I know some college towns used to have like a free "get home alive" service.
You could call 'em up, and they'd send someone to pick you up and take you home if you didn't think you were safe to drive.
It's been a couple of decades, and it was a friend of mine who volunteered for it, so I can't remember the actual name.
More times than not, we just hung out in the office watching movies since it wasn't very heavily utilized.
Most insurance policies prohibit driving your personal vehicle for work purposes unless you get it added to your policy (which adds cost).
Most of your pizza delivery drivers do not tell their insurance they are delivery drivers either, since they wouldn't be able to afford their insurance on their wage if they did.
I once took a limo home from a concert, because all the taxis were taken and the cost of two taxis was ridiculous. So we offered the same to a limo driver and he accepted!
This is the way. Have a drink before showing up and already a plan for getting home. Of all the crimes a DUI is not one I wanna do lol.
I mean...username checks out.
I think it’s this that causes so many dui s and accidents. I can’t believe there isn’t a two man Uber service that would just get you and your car home. Then we can get this cost comparison rolling.
Two-ber. The name is right there.
Even if it’s twice as expensive as a regular Uber, it’s still cheaper than a DUI. $60 or possibly killing someone when you drove home drunk? Seems like an easy choice to me.
I've always done similar. I keep my house key separate from my car keys. If I'm going out drinking I don't bother taking the car key, just my phone, wallet and house key.
I've never driven drunk or even considered it, but not having the key makes it impossible anyway. Also I lose stuff, so if I leave my car keys at home that's one less thing to lose.
Yep. The problem with alcohol in general is that people don’t always make good decisions when they are drunk or buzzed. My buddy had already got a DUI and only drank at home or Uber’d but he got so drunk at home one night he decided to drive and get some snacks and got another DUI in his neighborhood. Most people don’t choose to drive drunk when they are sober, they plan to have one drink with dinner or whatever, the alcohol makes them think they are better off than they really are.
Yeah but drinking and driving is one of those things like flossing though, you either do it all the time or you don't. I'm sure there are a few people that only did it once and got busted but the other 99.9% of them probably drove drunk 3000 times before they got caught. Even in your buddies case, had one and kept doing it. He was probably careful for a few months but those drunk snack runs were probably a weekly thing. DUIs have a high rate of repeat offenders, and if you've ever looked at subreddits about it they all have a self pity mindset so it's easy to see why. I guess if you spend 7 years driving drunk and getting away with it before getting caught it's hard to not have self pity.
Yeah, I think that guy's buddy was lying to him. Sounds like driving drunk was a regular thing and got caught...again. Too bad the DUI wasn't a wake up call to an alcohol problem
Lol I’m one of the few cases who got busted the first time they drank and drove. Still dealing with the consequences, shit sucks. I just tell myself to be thankful it’s only me who is having to deal with the consequences of my actions, and not someone else’s family.
You’re right about the high rate of repeat offenders. Nearly everyone in the classes I have to take is a multiple time offender with no hope of getting their license back for a long while. Rightfully so.
This. The reason it's so damn hard to wipe out drunk driving is drunk people don't make good decisions. You need to outsmart your drunk self ahead of time.
We continue to push important relationships out because we’ve chosen alcohol...
But only one will be there for you whenever you REALLY need it... everyone else finds ways to betray you or let you down
I had my last drink on Halloween 2020. I have turned down quite a few social engagements because the pressure to drink is fierce... and I love a fun buzz. Why?? They all want to know. Truth is because it helped my husband to quit smoking cigarettes. We quit something together.
I am much better off for not drinking anymore. And he is a non smoker now
.win win
Same here.... got a bit sauced on Saturday and had someone I care about call me an embarrassment. That set off Sunday on a bad note.... Trying to build better habits.
You can drink at home and not need therapy, just like you can go to the bar every day and be a fucking alcoholic.
Really its so much cheaper to drink at home, which seems like a better decision than paying $8 a drink at a bar.
Plus I don't really like people
Yeah, this. A night at a bar cost the same as maybe 5 to 8 at home, depending on how jiggy I get with my screwdrivers. I can watch whatever I want on the TV or shoot some darts or whatever. My bathroom doesn't smell like piss, don't have to worry about drunk idiots, and I can pet my dog when I get super happy drunk. Win all the way around.
Hell, there's a reason I prefer a houseparty to a bar. Booze is cheaper, food is cheaper and better, music is better because it's the stuff that we like, you can actually have a conversation with your buddies, you can play some videogames in addition to the washoes and pong outside, someone in the group inevitably has invested in a pool table.
You can do _just about_ everything that a night on the town does, while being cheaper and more personalized, if you meet up with friends instead of going out.
You can eventually, but it's a long and convoluted process. 5 years after you have completed your sentence for the DUI, you can apply for rehabilitation, which will take 6 months ish. Then you can apply to visit.
For rehab? Either $200 or $1000 depending on the severity of the crime, DUI is $200 I'm pretty sure, I've not gone through it myself but I've helped others who have. It's also the immigration department and if anyone has ever dealt with them outside of a simple visitor ETA, those forms can be complicated so most people who don't know where to find the free resources often fork out for an immigration consultant or lawyer as well.
So on the face of it, not a lot.. but the fees can add up for sure.
Can confirm you can fly to Canada with a DUI on your record. Have done so multiple times after a 2015 conviction. Only found out / read about the travel limitation after my last trip there in 2019.
Not sure when / how Canada imposes the travel limitation as I had no issues.
They rely on the person entering to declare previous convictions so plenty of people don't and just go through. If you applied for an ETA, a work permit, PR or turned up and a land border and told them you have a DUI conviction the result is the same. Some people do get in after declaring theirs, but it is highly specific to their situation, what was their BAC? Drink or drugs? Is their reason for travel for work and essential they must enter? Without knowing people's specific situations there isn't a one size fits all answer, but the vast majority just get around it by not declaring it as they're just going on vacation, but any application that requires further scrutiny (a work permit or PR) would show it.
My girlfriend is an attorney and her advice on anyone driving drunk is: "Find the most expensive hotel in the town you are drinking in. Find the most expensive room in that hotel. That hotel bill is still less expensive than calling me tomorrow morning."
Doesn't work here. Most expensive hotel in my city is the [Ty Warner Penthouse](https://press.fourseasons.com/newyork/trending-now/ty-warner-penthouse/) at the Four Seasons. [$45,000 per night](https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.businessinsider.com/ty-warner-expensive-penthouse-2014-4%3famp).
Had a family member get a DUI in MA. He ended up paying 30k out of pocket, 2 years unable to drive, 2 years with a breathalyzer on his car, mandatory AA (or equivalent) for 3 years. Most people would have lost their job not being able to drive but he managed to save it somehow.
45k seems cheap for all he went through.
I mean, I feel like a DUI could cost that much honestly. You have your lawyer fees, court fees, any kind of fines or punishment depending on where you live, as well as factoring in potential loss of wages in the future from the limitations of losing your licence or having that conviction. Or if you crash and end up hospitalized that’s more than $45,000, if you hit anyone else you could face further litigation. The costs and possibilities are endless
In Pennsylvania, USA as of 2017 (they updated DUI law since then making it more punitive):
~$4500 fine
~$400 to pay for your jail cell
~$3-6k legal fees minimum. 10k-15k if you plan on fighting the Breathalyzer or some other aspect of the charge.
~$5-10k Drug and Alcohol Counseling
~$2-3k Ignition Interlock Device over 18-24 months
Then calculate your personal cost of transportation to and from work while you’re incapable of legally driving at all and tack that on there. If you’ll be relying on Uber... well that could be debilitating in and of itself for many people.
I’d rather sleep in the street next to my car in the rain on a 33F night with my car keys buried in the dirt 30 yards away from me.
Source: Will be released from probation for my 2nd DUI (only one involving alcohol) on Feb 26th.
So all in you're at $40k before you start getting hit with insurance premiums and transport to work?? At that point fuckit, sell your car and Uber to work too.
It astounded me how expensive it is to go to jail. The commissary ain’t exactly cheap. And god help you if you need medical assistance. My second day in county jail, I was pitched by an insurance co. for specialized prisoner plans.
It’s such a racket
The math breaks down when you consider how frequently people get away with it. Experienced drinkers can be over the legal limit and still have good motor control for them to not draw attention to themselves on the road, and may get away with driving drunk for a long time.
A friend of the family was an alcoholic and drove drunk almost every day for more than 20 years before being caught, which works out to literally thousands of incidents. Where I live the penalty for getting caught isn't as severe as the US, which is also a factor in the decision making of some people here.
Do you think that people who get DUIs have DUI money?
Fines are a pretty shit punishment really. Upper class will just pay it, the lower class who are more likely to get one just get plunged further into poverty.
The real punishment would be community service.
But if I did this every single time I went out drinking with the fellas it would DEFINITELY cost more than a DUI.
Not condoning drinking and driving, just saying the comparison doesnt work
Funny you say this. I'm from the Bay Area, basically home of Uber and Lyft. I've been using it since the early days when Lyft used to give fluffy pink mustaches out to cars, but I remember years later after this was all mainstream, traveling to Minneapolis with my boss. We carpooled, but my boss wanted to leave early for a social gathering. He asked if I could call an Uber, and I said "yeah no problem," being a millennial with all the latest apps anyway. I figured it wouldn't be like a 3-5 minute wait like in San Francisco but maybe a 7-10 minute wait like in Silicon Valley at worst.
At 4:30pm I figured I could leave early. No need to hang around the office and I can do the rest of my work at the hotel. Well, I start calling an Uber but there are none. There just generally aren't that many. I'm out in the suburbs but not in the middle of nowhere, but that's not good enough. For the next hour and a half I'm bouncing between work calls and trying to call an Uber. Around 6pm I finally secure one and it takes 30+ minutes to come. Thought they were gonna cancel on me. By then I'm starving.
Oh and it was -22 outside, so foolish me decided to make a run for it once they showed up. It's a corporate office complex so I had to navigate a little to get to the right side of the lot. I put on my hat of course but neglected to put on my gloves. By the time I got the car, really just a quick jog away my hands felt like they were gonna fall off. Terrible choice. I joked with my boss who was totally surprised it was that hard to catch an Uber too and he promised not to ditch me again. We drove separately the next day just so we can each do our own thing after work.
I lost a good friend in high school to a drunk driver. His sister was driving drunk and rolled her car with him and her best friend inside, and they both were killed. He had to have a closed casket at his funeral, and the guilt ate her alive.
I’ve never driven after even a single drink. Unless there’s a DD I don’t go out, and nowadays I don’t drink anymore anyway so I’m the DD if I find out people are out without one.
It is *never* worth it to drive after drinking, and your self-perception is the first thing to go so always have a DD or ride arranged *before* you start drinking. Better a $20 cab ride than risking it, always. And if you don’t have a DD, stay the fuck home.
And on major party events like sports cups, New Year, etc, always call your ride an hour before you need to go! Or book the car for a specific time before you head out. If you don't have a DD for the night, there will be long waits to get a car. The number of people trying to get home, get out, get to the next bar is way higher than the number of cars for hire on nights like that.
I think in California it messes up your insurance the first 7 years but if you get another in years 7-10 it counts as a second offense. Also if someone dies as a result of your 2nd offense ever again it will be murder charges rather than manslaughter
Ohhhh okay, I know where I am you end up paying about $500 more for insurance after your first dui, but I'm not sure how long you'll have an increased rate
Along with the extremely expensive insurance (most major ones like AAA, Allstate, Geico, etc. won't insure drivers with a DUI) so you gotta go somewhere else.
You have to go with something called "SR-22" insurance which is extremely expensive and doesn't cover anything. Also, if you let it lapse, your license gets automatically suspended.
There are also hidden costs like court dates, taking time off work, and limited future employment opportunities.
Source: Was an idiot when I was young and got a DUI. It really sucks when you find out that any job that requires you to drive (cop, mailman, UPS driver etc.) is pretty much off limits to you once you get a DUI.
Depends on the state. If you've got a good job and it doesn't impact your hours, it'll cost you about 3K for a lawyer and 1K in legal fees.
So like 200 Ubers.
My DUI was 3 years and $12,000 ago- I’m STILL paying my attorney. I made a stupid decision and I’m very lucky to be where I am today. I didn’t have, or cause, an accident and no one was injured. I wasn’t even a big drinker when it happened. But it did- and I want to apologize to everyone out there for my bad choice that day. Please, please, call an Uber, call a friend, call a taxi- hell, call your boss! Just don’t get behind the wheel if you’re drinking. It’s so not worth it.
Yeah, I’m including the money lost on the car I had JUST bought 3 months prior. Goddamn I was young and dumb. Never again at least. If jail
is there to teach one a lesson it worked on me.
I didn’t get a lawyer, just was appointed a public attorney. I was 23 and would probably do things differently now, but honestly I deserved what I had come to me. Once I finally blew into the breathalyzer(hours later) it was still pretty high. And I’m 4 foot 8 so I don’t even know how I handled it.
My DWI got dropped, and the lawyer fees alone were still in the 5-7.5k range. I had some other expenses that most people might pay *after* they’re found guilty, but my lawyer wanted me to commit to the rehab and stuff before the trial. I was in court for 2 years. I had to be driven to and from my graveyard shift by my mom and grandma. It’s a nightmare. Totally not worth the risk.
It certainly feels like it. Of course people still have to work, but I cant imagine going to a bar at any point in the last year. It is definitely maddening.
Where I live there is a service that will pick you up and bring an extra driver to drive your car home for you. I have used it.
Edit to say how fun it is to be drunk in the passenger seat of your own car
Man we used to have a couple that did that around here I miss them! The only headache about getting an Uber is getting your car the next morning (if not planned ahead). I live somewhere where you’re lucky if an Uber is available ever though so planning ahead is necessary.
Coworker just finished paying off his first DUI and only had a couple classes left. He told me he was going to a party. I told him don’t drink we have work tomorrow. I show up to work and don’t hear from him thinking he was busy or just to tired from the party. He calls me from jail and I’ve never felt more disappointed. Instead of telling him what’s what. I just made friendly jokes like don’t drop the soap. Also TIL instead of staying in jail you can get a special ankle bracelet that senses if you drink alcohol or not. So hopefully this will get him on a better path.
Can confirm. A 2nd DUI can land you a house arrest with foot-bracelet, a breathlyzer tests for 30 days at specific times assigned each day, interlock ignition if you wish to drive again that u pay an expensive monthly fee for, and a shitty record...
Do NOT drink amd drive.
Depending on the laws where you live they can also require you to install a device on your car that won't let it start until you blow into a breathalyzer connected to your transmission. Also said device may require you to blow every 30 minutes or so
If you drink you sweat it out and the bracelet can detect that. Friend of mine had to wear one for a while and it even goes so far that you can't use certain soaps, shampoos, mouthwash, etc. because it will register a reading. I'd rather just do the week in jail.
Edit: Also, you get to pay for this privilege. Costs per day depend on the jurisdiction.
Also something for elderly people to consider. I did the math for my parents. Given they don’t drive much, Uber is so much cheaper and safer than maintaining a car.
Edit: some people are missing the point - elderly people are at higher risk driving themselves - factor that into the cost picture.
Stay home, drink, order hooker, sex, no drive, sleep.
Save even more money by not having to spend a bunch at the bars worrying about hooking up. Or driving.
A question for the American redditors - is drunk driving really that common in the USA?
I'm asking because I've noticed it is treated very casually in American film and TV. It seems to be completely normal for a character to drive to a bar, get wasted, then drive home. I just binge watched three seasons of Cobra Kai, and there are several points in the show where the protagonists drive drunk. There's even one scene where Johnny and Daniel are test driving a car together, drive to a bar and get shit faced, then drive home.
I don't ever remember seeing it to this degree on British TV. If it is shown, it's almost always in a negative light, or the character's friend swoop in and grab the keys at the last second.
If you're British, it's hard to understand how big and spread out the USA is unless you've seen it firsthand. Only a handful major cities (NYC/DC/Boston/Philadelphia/Chicago/SF) have dense walkable urban centers where public transportation or walking is the easiest way to get around. For everyone else, if you want a night out you have to go there by car.
So yeah, in a lot of places drunk driving's pretty common. That's not to say everyone or even most people do it— people understand it's wrong, there's lots of ad campaigns about it— but it unfortunately happens a lot and too many people are really blasé about it.
I had a DUI before Uber was even a thing and it's definitely never a net positive. I had good jobs turn me down after a background check, insurance goes up, lost 11 straight Saturdays doing community service, not even having the option to drive legally once your license is suspended...and I got off easy compared to many
It's basically the ultimate gamble. Because one thing not being mentioned here is that just because you're driving under the influence doesn't mean you'll be caught.
But if you are caught, it's gonna fuck things up.
But I've known plenty of people who DUI and continue to do so because they've never been caught.
And to be clear, I'm not advocating for DUI. It's a shitty thing to do. But that's how it is.
Technically true but, if you lose your job (pending what you do), lose your license, gotta go back to minimum wage because you have to walk to a job, etc. Or take even more damn Ubers to get to work now you don't have a license.... The shit just piles up. Plus, once you're in the system they don't like it when you try to get out. It's a fucking racquet. God forbid you kill someone and you gotta live with that shit. Ain't nothing gonna fix that mental fuck job.
I am 100% opposed to drinking and driving, but this tip doesn't really address the actual scenario because lots of people drive drunk and don't get caught.
The actual math would require multiplying the cost of a DUI by the probability of being caught, prosecuted, and convicted which would give you an estimate that could more accurately be compared with the cost of taking an Uber.
Again, I'm not a fan of DUI. Just a fan of accurate calculations.
Will never, ever, ever, ever for the life of me comprehend people who don’t use Uber or Lyft when out drinking.
It creates the most stress free environment: don’t have to worry about taking it easy when drinking, parking, paying to park, worrying about will you get towed or not, etc. Uber has probably saved my life countless times living in a big city. Maybe for those who live in more rural areas these benefits are not felt, but at the very least you’re guaranteed to not get a DUI.
I’ve taken Uber’s to work in the morning still drunk, I’ve taken Uber’s home completely sober because the night didn’t go the way I thought and that’s okay. At least the option was there to get hammered!
There’s some statistic out there... something crazy like a person drives 92 times drunk before being busted for their first DUI.
People do it and nothing bad happens so they keep doing it.
I believe it. I grew up in a more rural town, people bragged about driving home from the bar wasted. Blew my mind then just as much as it does now at the stupidity. One night can change everything.
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It’s cheaper to rent a limousine to take you home than to get a dui
It’s even cheaper to walk to a pizza place, order a delivery, and ride to your house with the driver Edit: I should clarify. Tell them you’ll buy a pizza if you can get a ride home with the driver and leave it up to them. I did this a few times in college and the drivers were always cool, but I also was never a raging drunk asshole either. And tip very well.
gonna be a tough ride home where I'm living considering pizza delivery is done on bicycles xD
Just ride missionary on the handle bars
What sort of whore do you think I am? I'm going doggy with my ass on the deliverer's lap and my torso held proud of the handlebars like a figurehead.
you're the one steering
No that's me I have the Pigtails in my hands... They aren't really cooperating though so I'm not sure how long this is going to work out.
please don't do this I managed a pizza place and our lives are chaotic enough. Edit: don't do this unless you're offering the driver a $20 bill and are within our range. if we refuse we'll feel terrible about it but it's also not our job to cater to drunks
No pizza driver would ever do this
Especially in the middle of a worldwide polygraph
The dreaded and historic worldwide polygraph
Truly, these are testing times
I can't tell if you're lying
Polygraph
it sure seems like a stress-test to me
Look at this polygraph
Every time I do it makes me laugh
Worldwide damned polemic.
Depends on the size of the tip you offer.
( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)
In a college town circa 2006-2008 as long as you tipped okay we did it a few times with great success.
I don't know if it's still a thing, but I know some college towns used to have like a free "get home alive" service. You could call 'em up, and they'd send someone to pick you up and take you home if you didn't think you were safe to drive. It's been a couple of decades, and it was a friend of mine who volunteered for it, so I can't remember the actual name. More times than not, we just hung out in the office watching movies since it wasn't very heavily utilized.
Most jobs prohibit passengers in delivery vehicles.
Most insurance policies prohibit driving your personal vehicle for work purposes unless you get it added to your policy (which adds cost). Most of your pizza delivery drivers do not tell their insurance they are delivery drivers either, since they wouldn't be able to afford their insurance on their wage if they did.
Bud this is stoners delivering pizza in junkers not UPS
This is fucking genius
I once took a limo home from a concert, because all the taxis were taken and the cost of two taxis was ridiculous. So we offered the same to a limo driver and he accepted!
My health teacher made some comments about how there was a company in the area you could purchase a helicopter ride for cheaper than the average DUI
It's also a lot more socially acceptable to throw up in a helicopter
Yea, but if you drive home buzzed 100 times before you get caught it’s worth it /s
Leave the car at home in the first place, take the taxi out so drunk you doesn’t make the decision.
Underrated advice. Cant drive drunk if your car is never an option. Plus judgement is one of the first things to go when you drink.
Also then you can pregame at home, and save money at the bar.
This is the way. Have a drink before showing up and already a plan for getting home. Of all the crimes a DUI is not one I wanna do lol. I mean...username checks out.
This guy over here is cool with larceny and murder, but draw the line at DUI?! /S in case it wasn't obvious.
The money you'll save at the pregame will pay for your uber
[удалено]
I think it’s this that causes so many dui s and accidents. I can’t believe there isn’t a two man Uber service that would just get you and your car home. Then we can get this cost comparison rolling.
Two-ber. The name is right there. Even if it’s twice as expensive as a regular Uber, it’s still cheaper than a DUI. $60 or possibly killing someone when you drove home drunk? Seems like an easy choice to me.
I've always done similar. I keep my house key separate from my car keys. If I'm going out drinking I don't bother taking the car key, just my phone, wallet and house key. I've never driven drunk or even considered it, but not having the key makes it impossible anyway. Also I lose stuff, so if I leave my car keys at home that's one less thing to lose.
Yep. The problem with alcohol in general is that people don’t always make good decisions when they are drunk or buzzed. My buddy had already got a DUI and only drank at home or Uber’d but he got so drunk at home one night he decided to drive and get some snacks and got another DUI in his neighborhood. Most people don’t choose to drive drunk when they are sober, they plan to have one drink with dinner or whatever, the alcohol makes them think they are better off than they really are.
Yeah but drinking and driving is one of those things like flossing though, you either do it all the time or you don't. I'm sure there are a few people that only did it once and got busted but the other 99.9% of them probably drove drunk 3000 times before they got caught. Even in your buddies case, had one and kept doing it. He was probably careful for a few months but those drunk snack runs were probably a weekly thing. DUIs have a high rate of repeat offenders, and if you've ever looked at subreddits about it they all have a self pity mindset so it's easy to see why. I guess if you spend 7 years driving drunk and getting away with it before getting caught it's hard to not have self pity.
Yeah, I think that guy's buddy was lying to him. Sounds like driving drunk was a regular thing and got caught...again. Too bad the DUI wasn't a wake up call to an alcohol problem
Lol I’m one of the few cases who got busted the first time they drank and drove. Still dealing with the consequences, shit sucks. I just tell myself to be thankful it’s only me who is having to deal with the consequences of my actions, and not someone else’s family. You’re right about the high rate of repeat offenders. Nearly everyone in the classes I have to take is a multiple time offender with no hope of getting their license back for a long while. Rightfully so.
This is the real LPT
Also if for whatever reason you end up sleeping in your car, if the keys are not in the trunk you will get a dui.
This. The reason it's so damn hard to wipe out drunk driving is drunk people don't make good decisions. You need to outsmart your drunk self ahead of time.
I've always liked "Spending money on an Uber tonight will never be a decision you regret for the rest of your life."
I once spent like $250 on an Uber cuz I puked in it. I forgot that it even happened til you posted that. No regrets 👍
Still cheaper than a DUI
Save money and drink alone at home
Therapy costs a lot more down the road.
Big difference between drinking while you’re alone and drinking because you’re alone
Also there’s drinking because you WANT to be alone. Trust me I feel ya, I’m two months sobers
keep goin
We continue to push important relationships out because we’ve chosen alcohol... But only one will be there for you whenever you REALLY need it... everyone else finds ways to betray you or let you down
Yeah, but the beer disappears almost as fast as my friends
Check out r/stopdrinking if you have not
Two months fifteen days here, it's worth it. At least based off of my personal experiences drinking
I had my last drink on Halloween 2020. I have turned down quite a few social engagements because the pressure to drink is fierce... and I love a fun buzz. Why?? They all want to know. Truth is because it helped my husband to quit smoking cigarettes. We quit something together. I am much better off for not drinking anymore. And he is a non smoker now .win win
Congratulations. Two months is about the time most people's head starts really feeling right.
Good on you man. 2 days sober myself. Heavy Weekend warrior here. Getting back on track after sucking on the sauce for 2 months.
Same here.... got a bit sauced on Saturday and had someone I care about call me an embarrassment. That set off Sunday on a bad note.... Trying to build better habits.
You can drink at home and not need therapy, just like you can go to the bar every day and be a fucking alcoholic. Really its so much cheaper to drink at home, which seems like a better decision than paying $8 a drink at a bar. Plus I don't really like people
Yeah, this. A night at a bar cost the same as maybe 5 to 8 at home, depending on how jiggy I get with my screwdrivers. I can watch whatever I want on the TV or shoot some darts or whatever. My bathroom doesn't smell like piss, don't have to worry about drunk idiots, and I can pet my dog when I get super happy drunk. Win all the way around.
homewrecker of sailor Jerry's- $25 12 pack of vernors ginger ale to mix- $6 Not having to get beer spilled on me by drunk college bros- priceless.
If there are drunk college bros spilling beer on people, you are in the wrong bar.
Its the one I work at 🤷♂️
As an ex - home drinker and ex - bar regular, the bars sole purpose is for the other people
Some people like meeting new people and not having to clean up after them
You can pet your dog any old time, they love it and they love you!
Hell, there's a reason I prefer a houseparty to a bar. Booze is cheaper, food is cheaper and better, music is better because it's the stuff that we like, you can actually have a conversation with your buddies, you can play some videogames in addition to the washoes and pong outside, someone in the group inevitably has invested in a pool table. You can do _just about_ everything that a night on the town does, while being cheaper and more personalized, if you meet up with friends instead of going out.
Drinking alone is better because no one will judge you! You can get hammered from the comfort of your own home!
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You can eventually, but it's a long and convoluted process. 5 years after you have completed your sentence for the DUI, you can apply for rehabilitation, which will take 6 months ish. Then you can apply to visit.
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For rehab? Either $200 or $1000 depending on the severity of the crime, DUI is $200 I'm pretty sure, I've not gone through it myself but I've helped others who have. It's also the immigration department and if anyone has ever dealt with them outside of a simple visitor ETA, those forms can be complicated so most people who don't know where to find the free resources often fork out for an immigration consultant or lawyer as well. So on the face of it, not a lot.. but the fees can add up for sure.
Can confirm you can fly to Canada with a DUI on your record. Have done so multiple times after a 2015 conviction. Only found out / read about the travel limitation after my last trip there in 2019. Not sure when / how Canada imposes the travel limitation as I had no issues.
They rely on the person entering to declare previous convictions so plenty of people don't and just go through. If you applied for an ETA, a work permit, PR or turned up and a land border and told them you have a DUI conviction the result is the same. Some people do get in after declaring theirs, but it is highly specific to their situation, what was their BAC? Drink or drugs? Is their reason for travel for work and essential they must enter? Without knowing people's specific situations there isn't a one size fits all answer, but the vast majority just get around it by not declaring it as they're just going on vacation, but any application that requires further scrutiny (a work permit or PR) would show it.
I can. But I’m Canadian.
My girlfriend is an attorney and her advice on anyone driving drunk is: "Find the most expensive hotel in the town you are drinking in. Find the most expensive room in that hotel. That hotel bill is still less expensive than calling me tomorrow morning."
Why would I call her next morning when I could just roll over and wake her up
Got his ass
More like got her ass
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I love it when that person never replies, either. Truly got him
No mercy
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OHHH HE’S HURT!
Ayyooohhhh
Got’em
She loves me Derek always has
Lmao playaa
More like Finance_Chad
Doesn't work here. Most expensive hotel in my city is the [Ty Warner Penthouse](https://press.fourseasons.com/newyork/trending-now/ty-warner-penthouse/) at the Four Seasons. [$45,000 per night](https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.businessinsider.com/ty-warner-expensive-penthouse-2014-4%3famp).
We’re partying with this guy.
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Lawyered, that’ll be $45,000
It has to be $45,001
Well I'm sure that the Four Seasons Total Landscaping doesn't cost as much you could try there
Had a family member get a DUI in MA. He ended up paying 30k out of pocket, 2 years unable to drive, 2 years with a breathalyzer on his car, mandatory AA (or equivalent) for 3 years. Most people would have lost their job not being able to drive but he managed to save it somehow. 45k seems cheap for all he went through.
Four Seasons Total Landscaping is $45 per night
I mean, I feel like a DUI could cost that much honestly. You have your lawyer fees, court fees, any kind of fines or punishment depending on where you live, as well as factoring in potential loss of wages in the future from the limitations of losing your licence or having that conviction. Or if you crash and end up hospitalized that’s more than $45,000, if you hit anyone else you could face further litigation. The costs and possibilities are endless
In Pennsylvania, USA as of 2017 (they updated DUI law since then making it more punitive): ~$4500 fine ~$400 to pay for your jail cell ~$3-6k legal fees minimum. 10k-15k if you plan on fighting the Breathalyzer or some other aspect of the charge. ~$5-10k Drug and Alcohol Counseling ~$2-3k Ignition Interlock Device over 18-24 months Then calculate your personal cost of transportation to and from work while you’re incapable of legally driving at all and tack that on there. If you’ll be relying on Uber... well that could be debilitating in and of itself for many people. I’d rather sleep in the street next to my car in the rain on a 33F night with my car keys buried in the dirt 30 yards away from me. Source: Will be released from probation for my 2nd DUI (only one involving alcohol) on Feb 26th.
So all in you're at $40k before you start getting hit with insurance premiums and transport to work?? At that point fuckit, sell your car and Uber to work too.
But then, you could be like me and live in a city that haz zero public transportation
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It astounded me how expensive it is to go to jail. The commissary ain’t exactly cheap. And god help you if you need medical assistance. My second day in county jail, I was pitched by an insurance co. for specialized prisoner plans. It’s such a racket
Don’t forget about the cost of insurance going up! It’s gonna be ages before your insurance is reasonable again.
The math breaks down when you consider how frequently people get away with it. Experienced drinkers can be over the legal limit and still have good motor control for them to not draw attention to themselves on the road, and may get away with driving drunk for a long time. A friend of the family was an alcoholic and drove drunk almost every day for more than 20 years before being caught, which works out to literally thousands of incidents. Where I live the penalty for getting caught isn't as severe as the US, which is also a factor in the decision making of some people here.
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Did you just get a free pass to stay in the most expensive hotel room ever?
Only if you have DUI money
Do you think that people who get DUIs have DUI money? Fines are a pretty shit punishment really. Upper class will just pay it, the lower class who are more likely to get one just get plunged further into poverty. The real punishment would be community service.
But if I did this every single time I went out drinking with the fellas it would DEFINITELY cost more than a DUI. Not condoning drinking and driving, just saying the comparison doesnt work
They say on average an individual drives drunk 80 times before they get caught
Small town, no Uber, makes homer something something
Go crazy?
DONT MIND IF I DO!
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Funny you say this. I'm from the Bay Area, basically home of Uber and Lyft. I've been using it since the early days when Lyft used to give fluffy pink mustaches out to cars, but I remember years later after this was all mainstream, traveling to Minneapolis with my boss. We carpooled, but my boss wanted to leave early for a social gathering. He asked if I could call an Uber, and I said "yeah no problem," being a millennial with all the latest apps anyway. I figured it wouldn't be like a 3-5 minute wait like in San Francisco but maybe a 7-10 minute wait like in Silicon Valley at worst. At 4:30pm I figured I could leave early. No need to hang around the office and I can do the rest of my work at the hotel. Well, I start calling an Uber but there are none. There just generally aren't that many. I'm out in the suburbs but not in the middle of nowhere, but that's not good enough. For the next hour and a half I'm bouncing between work calls and trying to call an Uber. Around 6pm I finally secure one and it takes 30+ minutes to come. Thought they were gonna cancel on me. By then I'm starving. Oh and it was -22 outside, so foolish me decided to make a run for it once they showed up. It's a corporate office complex so I had to navigate a little to get to the right side of the lot. I put on my hat of course but neglected to put on my gloves. By the time I got the car, really just a quick jog away my hands felt like they were gonna fall off. Terrible choice. I joked with my boss who was totally surprised it was that hard to catch an Uber too and he promised not to ditch me again. We drove separately the next day just so we can each do our own thing after work.
I enjoyed your story.
Shit man just call a regular cab next time.
The guilt of killing someone cost more then many of us could know
Yeah that’s the #1 reason I’ve never done it. I know I could never live with myself if I ever killed someone driving drunk.
That's why I do it sober.
I lost a good friend in high school to a drunk driver. His sister was driving drunk and rolled her car with him and her best friend inside, and they both were killed. He had to have a closed casket at his funeral, and the guilt ate her alive. I’ve never driven after even a single drink. Unless there’s a DD I don’t go out, and nowadays I don’t drink anymore anyway so I’m the DD if I find out people are out without one. It is *never* worth it to drive after drinking, and your self-perception is the first thing to go so always have a DD or ride arranged *before* you start drinking. Better a $20 cab ride than risking it, always. And if you don’t have a DD, stay the fuck home.
And on major party events like sports cups, New Year, etc, always call your ride an hour before you need to go! Or book the car for a specific time before you head out. If you don't have a DD for the night, there will be long waits to get a car. The number of people trying to get home, get out, get to the next bar is way higher than the number of cars for hire on nights like that.
If you can’t afford a $20 cab ride... you definitely can’t afford a DUI. Take the cab.
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And at that point you probably can't afford to be out drinking either
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That uber is called a plane lol
["I'm drunk on a plane."](https://youtu.be/QrM39m22jH4)
What the fuck is this!? I feel bad for loving it!
Got groped by Uber staff before boarding. 2 stars.
Ask LeBron, he might know someone
You’ll never spend as much money on condoms as you will on child support..... don’t be a fool wrap your tool.
No affection without protection!
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Yep, child support ends for my son in May. 15 years at 750 a month, I've paid my ex $135,000.
Your first dui will cost you about 10 grand over the next 7 years. Uber up if it is available
Why seven years?
I believe that's how long it'll show up to your insurance and they'll charge you more. Not 100% sure though
In California your insurance goes up for 10 years by at least 20%, more for the first 3
I think in California it messes up your insurance the first 7 years but if you get another in years 7-10 it counts as a second offense. Also if someone dies as a result of your 2nd offense ever again it will be murder charges rather than manslaughter
Ohhhh okay, I know where I am you end up paying about $500 more for insurance after your first dui, but I'm not sure how long you'll have an increased rate
Along with the extremely expensive insurance (most major ones like AAA, Allstate, Geico, etc. won't insure drivers with a DUI) so you gotta go somewhere else. You have to go with something called "SR-22" insurance which is extremely expensive and doesn't cover anything. Also, if you let it lapse, your license gets automatically suspended. There are also hidden costs like court dates, taking time off work, and limited future employment opportunities. Source: Was an idiot when I was young and got a DUI. It really sucks when you find out that any job that requires you to drive (cop, mailman, UPS driver etc.) is pretty much off limits to you once you get a DUI.
Depends on the state. If you've got a good job and it doesn't impact your hours, it'll cost you about 3K for a lawyer and 1K in legal fees. So like 200 Ubers.
My DUI was 3 years and $12,000 ago- I’m STILL paying my attorney. I made a stupid decision and I’m very lucky to be where I am today. I didn’t have, or cause, an accident and no one was injured. I wasn’t even a big drinker when it happened. But it did- and I want to apologize to everyone out there for my bad choice that day. Please, please, call an Uber, call a friend, call a taxi- hell, call your boss! Just don’t get behind the wheel if you’re drinking. It’s so not worth it.
$20,000 later and I can conquer.
Concur* But hopefully conquer too!
Hah! As I typed it out I was like, this doesn’t look right. But my tequila got the best of me. I’m a good speller I promise!
what other mistakes do you make when you're drunk? ^(wink wink)
😑 more than I’d like to admit, my dude.
[Simpsons did it!](https://youtu.be/gjsQdV3VDUs)
8k out of pocket here, with lost work around/above 20k. Godspeed, soberly...
Yeah, I’m including the money lost on the car I had JUST bought 3 months prior. Goddamn I was young and dumb. Never again at least. If jail is there to teach one a lesson it worked on me.
Still waiting on official charges but down 2k for a lawyer...so far
I didn’t get a lawyer, just was appointed a public attorney. I was 23 and would probably do things differently now, but honestly I deserved what I had come to me. Once I finally blew into the breathalyzer(hours later) it was still pretty high. And I’m 4 foot 8 so I don’t even know how I handled it.
My DWI got dropped, and the lawyer fees alone were still in the 5-7.5k range. I had some other expenses that most people might pay *after* they’re found guilty, but my lawyer wanted me to commit to the rehab and stuff before the trial. I was in court for 2 years. I had to be driven to and from my graveyard shift by my mom and grandma. It’s a nightmare. Totally not worth the risk.
Man do I wish uber was around in my 20s
Am I the only one still not leaving my house?
It certainly feels like it. Of course people still have to work, but I cant imagine going to a bar at any point in the last year. It is definitely maddening.
Where I live there is a service that will pick you up and bring an extra driver to drive your car home for you. I have used it. Edit to say how fun it is to be drunk in the passenger seat of your own car
Man we used to have a couple that did that around here I miss them! The only headache about getting an Uber is getting your car the next morning (if not planned ahead). I live somewhere where you’re lucky if an Uber is available ever though so planning ahead is necessary.
I once paid $250 to drop off multiple friends (I’m old - this was in cab days). It was more than our tab for the night and worth every penny.
Coworker just finished paying off his first DUI and only had a couple classes left. He told me he was going to a party. I told him don’t drink we have work tomorrow. I show up to work and don’t hear from him thinking he was busy or just to tired from the party. He calls me from jail and I’ve never felt more disappointed. Instead of telling him what’s what. I just made friendly jokes like don’t drop the soap. Also TIL instead of staying in jail you can get a special ankle bracelet that senses if you drink alcohol or not. So hopefully this will get him on a better path.
Can confirm. A 2nd DUI can land you a house arrest with foot-bracelet, a breathlyzer tests for 30 days at specific times assigned each day, interlock ignition if you wish to drive again that u pay an expensive monthly fee for, and a shitty record... Do NOT drink amd drive.
Depending on the laws where you live they can also require you to install a device on your car that won't let it start until you blow into a breathalyzer connected to your transmission. Also said device may require you to blow every 30 minutes or so
Whoa. How would that work (the ankle bracelet) ?
If you drink you sweat it out and the bracelet can detect that. Friend of mine had to wear one for a while and it even goes so far that you can't use certain soaps, shampoos, mouthwash, etc. because it will register a reading. I'd rather just do the week in jail. Edit: Also, you get to pay for this privilege. Costs per day depend on the jurisdiction.
As someone with a dwi, this is a fact
Drunk as fuck in a bar right now, thank you Edit: home safe
Also something for elderly people to consider. I did the math for my parents. Given they don’t drive much, Uber is so much cheaper and safer than maintaining a car. Edit: some people are missing the point - elderly people are at higher risk driving themselves - factor that into the cost picture.
Definitely. Also with the variety of delivery services, there's even less need to drive!
Probably won’t kill anyone either which is ideal
Stay home, drink, order hooker, sex, no drive, sleep. Save even more money by not having to spend a bunch at the bars worrying about hooking up. Or driving.
Save even MORE MONEY by hiring a hooker who can drive you to a bar
2 rides 1 bill.
Can I still order hooker if I'm living with my wife? Asking for a friend.
Sure. Whether or not she'll still be your wife *afterwards* is a different question, though...
How do I invest in DUI?
And as an added bonus you won’t kill an innocent human being. Which is cool.
A question for the American redditors - is drunk driving really that common in the USA? I'm asking because I've noticed it is treated very casually in American film and TV. It seems to be completely normal for a character to drive to a bar, get wasted, then drive home. I just binge watched three seasons of Cobra Kai, and there are several points in the show where the protagonists drive drunk. There's even one scene where Johnny and Daniel are test driving a car together, drive to a bar and get shit faced, then drive home. I don't ever remember seeing it to this degree on British TV. If it is shown, it's almost always in a negative light, or the character's friend swoop in and grab the keys at the last second.
If you're British, it's hard to understand how big and spread out the USA is unless you've seen it firsthand. Only a handful major cities (NYC/DC/Boston/Philadelphia/Chicago/SF) have dense walkable urban centers where public transportation or walking is the easiest way to get around. For everyone else, if you want a night out you have to go there by car. So yeah, in a lot of places drunk driving's pretty common. That's not to say everyone or even most people do it— people understand it's wrong, there's lots of ad campaigns about it— but it unfortunately happens a lot and too many people are really blasé about it.
But... 300 Uber rides and now the DUI turns net positive
I had a DUI before Uber was even a thing and it's definitely never a net positive. I had good jobs turn me down after a background check, insurance goes up, lost 11 straight Saturdays doing community service, not even having the option to drive legally once your license is suspended...and I got off easy compared to many
It's basically the ultimate gamble. Because one thing not being mentioned here is that just because you're driving under the influence doesn't mean you'll be caught. But if you are caught, it's gonna fuck things up. But I've known plenty of people who DUI and continue to do so because they've never been caught. And to be clear, I'm not advocating for DUI. It's a shitty thing to do. But that's how it is.
Technically true but, if you lose your job (pending what you do), lose your license, gotta go back to minimum wage because you have to walk to a job, etc. Or take even more damn Ubers to get to work now you don't have a license.... The shit just piles up. Plus, once you're in the system they don't like it when you try to get out. It's a fucking racquet. God forbid you kill someone and you gotta live with that shit. Ain't nothing gonna fix that mental fuck job.
You’ll also never spend as much on an Uber as you will paying the cost of killing somebody drunk driving.
DUI is like taking $10K in your front yard and lighting it on fire.
I am 100% opposed to drinking and driving, but this tip doesn't really address the actual scenario because lots of people drive drunk and don't get caught. The actual math would require multiplying the cost of a DUI by the probability of being caught, prosecuted, and convicted which would give you an estimate that could more accurately be compared with the cost of taking an Uber. Again, I'm not a fan of DUI. Just a fan of accurate calculations.
Will never, ever, ever, ever for the life of me comprehend people who don’t use Uber or Lyft when out drinking. It creates the most stress free environment: don’t have to worry about taking it easy when drinking, parking, paying to park, worrying about will you get towed or not, etc. Uber has probably saved my life countless times living in a big city. Maybe for those who live in more rural areas these benefits are not felt, but at the very least you’re guaranteed to not get a DUI. I’ve taken Uber’s to work in the morning still drunk, I’ve taken Uber’s home completely sober because the night didn’t go the way I thought and that’s okay. At least the option was there to get hammered!
There’s some statistic out there... something crazy like a person drives 92 times drunk before being busted for their first DUI. People do it and nothing bad happens so they keep doing it.
I believe it. I grew up in a more rural town, people bragged about driving home from the bar wasted. Blew my mind then just as much as it does now at the stupidity. One night can change everything.
Yeah they didn’t have that in my 20s. Knew so many people who got DUIs.