As 2012 approaches, the Rutland Area Prevention Coalition would like to take this opportunity to remind everyone that as they celebrate the start of the new year, to please do so in a safe and responsible manner, especially regarding the use of alcohol.
Alcohol use often increases during the holidays due to increased availability at parties and family functions, but unfortunately, the amount of drinking and driving fatalities also increases.
New Year’s Eve is the second deadliest holiday for alcohol-related vehicle crashes, after Thanksgiving. In fact, nearly half of all traffic fatalities that occur during these times are alcohol-related.
In addition, the amount of underage drinking increases as children under the age of 21 are offered celebratory glasses of wine, champagne, and other alcoholic beverages as an “exception to the rule” during holidays. Please remember, there is no “exception to the rule” according to the law. There is also no exception to the damage that alcohol causes to young brains that have not finished fully developing.
If you wish to include your underage family members in your celebration this year, a glass of non-alcoholic sparkling cider is just as effective and much safer, not to mention legal.
So please remember, providing alcohol to minors is illegal and carries severe penalties regardless of the occasion, not to mention that it is harmful to their young minds. As for those who are of legal age, if you do choose to drink, please don’t drive.
Let’s all enjoy a safe and happy beginning to 2012.
-Emily Knapp, RAP Assistant Director
|
