In late June, 4 young women died in a horrific beltway crash. Then, I prematurely blamed alcohol for the crash and the resulting fatalities. Many corrected me that there was no evidence of drinking, only alcohol in the car. Today, the toxicology report was released, with a .02 rating for the driver, as well as positive for marijuana. It does strike me that there was careless action, either by the person who sold her the alcohol and couldn’t recognize her fake ID, or by the driver herself who’d had at least one drink before getting behind the wheel.
The Post uses the phrase “a sad coda” to the story, and I think they’re spot on. I’d even titled this entry with that, before reaching that phrase halfway down. Right before that phrase is used, the families of the deceased passengers raged against youthful irresponsibility and the failure of the system to protect their children from underage drinking. Might as well rage against the wind for blowing or the rain for its wetness. Tragedy? Surely. Avoidable? Possibly. Enough to make one hug their friends? Definitely.
This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs
I live and work in the District of Columbia. I write at We Love DC, a blog I helped start, I work at Technolutionary, a company I helped start, and I’m happy doing both. I enjoy watching baseball, cooking, and gardening. I grow a mean pepper, keep a clean scorebook, and wash the dishes when I’m done. Read Why I Love DC.
