Retorts

Drunken Dads

It was interesting to read the comment in Niki Harre's article [Young Highway Cowboys, July] that most youngsters had been the passenger of a drinking driver, a driver who was their father rather than a peer.

Much of our road safety focus has been on the perceived bad 'uns of young males, yet there seems to be good evidence (anecotal and otherwise) that older males create a fair swag of the havoc.

One has only to think of the tragedy a few Christmasses ago when a carload of youngsters was wiped out by a sole, older male (drunk, if I recall correctly). Yet like many people on first hearing of the accident, I assumed that the young people were to blame.

We should be more careful about basing public policy on perceived stereotypes.

K.Kerr, Huntly