I wrote this blog at 37,000 feet as I travelled home from a large legal tradeshow on the west coast. Sitting for five hours gave me ample time to reflect on the challenge of transforming communities through informed consumption and the nature of social change.
Like 50% of the social drinking population, the participants of the tradeshow we attended were a little unsure of what to make of Ladybug’s participation in their event. If we heard it once, we heard it a hundred times….“why would anyone buy a breathalyser?” Now you’d think that the learned folks of the legal community would be quicker to make the connection than the average social drinker, however, the reasons for purchasing a breathalyser are soooo personal that having them publicly displayed as they were was, I’m sure, unsettling. “What will people think?” is usually the over-riding concern. Nonetheless, a few brave souls jumped at the opportunity to purchase and, I know, if I reach out to them in a couple of months, will be so thrilled with themselves that they’ll wonder how they ever got along without one. And, by the time I reach out to them, a couple of their friends will have purchased one as well. That’s the nature of social change.
If, for just one minute, you let yourself flirt with the idea of buying a breathalyser, what would your reasons be? I’ve heard things like, “it takes the argument out of whether someone is really okay to drive or not.” Just as prevalent, “I can’t afford to make a mistake, my career is too important”….the other 50% at the legal conference! And more recently, “I worry when I entertain in my home that someone is going to leave and be over the limit.”
It doesn’t really matter what your initial motivation is, what’s important is that more and more social drinkers are starting to realize that drinking alcohol puts us in the vulnerable position of having to guess what our, or our friends’, BAC is and make a decision that could change your, or their, life forever. I’m not talking doom and gloom stuff here; I’m talking about real life. The kind of real life that happens when you let someone leave your home when they’ve had one too many and the guilt you feel for having done so. Or even the slightly dizzy feeling you wake up with when you’re blowing high BAC on the morning after the night before….the night before when you did everything right by cabbing out to the bar and home from the bar. All those good intentions won’t help you the next day. Of course there’s always getting sucked into that “between friends” argument as you try to talk someone out of driving when there’s a perfectly good bed just waiting for them to fall asleep in.
One of the things that buying a breathalyser will do for you, and has done for all of our clients, is teach you about the things you don’t know. Yes, I know those of you who don’t believe you need a breathalyser really do believe that you already know. But you don’t. And those of us who have made the decision to become “informed drinkers” know that the knowledge you acquire from the simple act of buying a breathalyser, is powerful. In fact, it’s so powerful, that once you understand what you don’t know…you can’t unknow it!
For example, I now know that I can’t rely on my internal “alcostat” to make good judgements even at low levels of BAC. I also know that when I don’t have a breathalyser on me to confirm what my BAC is, I always err on getting a cab. I know that getting a DUI is the only criminal act for which most people don’t have the tools to avoid. I know that most people don’t even know where to get a good quality unit or why they should care. Which is why we need you! Even if you don’t think a breathalyser is for you, share our information with your friends and social networks.
I know that the greatest challenge in transforming social drinkers into informed drinkers comes from the stories in our head. Stories that tells us that “responsible” drinkers don’t need a breathalyser or people who buy them have a drinking problem. If you’ve already bought a BAQ Tracker breathalyser, you’ll know that the most responsible social drinkers are the proud owners of this technology. If you haven’t, just remember that our laws do not require full abstinence and, as long as that is the case, all social drinkers must make a decision when they drink. “Am I ok to drive or not?” If you don’t have the tool, how can you know….
