MADD GOOD ADDITION TO WAR ON DRUNK DRIVING

There's a group of people who are mad, and they're venting their energies into forming a MADD (Mothers Against Drunk Driving) community action team in Cape Girardeau County.

The organization is a welcome addition in the fight against drunk driving in our county. MADD's goals are really two-fold: to offer support to victims of drunken or drugged drivers, and to reduce the number of deaths and injuries from drunk-driving wrecks. Our county will certainly benefit from both these efforts.

The group's first meeting last week drew 16 people, nine of whom were drunk-driving victims. A victim is anyone who has been injured or has a family member who was injured by a drunk driver. Included were several mothers who have lost children or a spouse in drunk driving accidents. Volunteers and advocates will also be part of the team. This new organization will gather the last Thursday of each month at 7 p.m. at the Community Counseling Center, 402 S. Silver Springs Road. Concerned citizens are encouraged to attend.

This MADD chapter can build upon key services already available in our community, such as the Cape Girardeau Police Department's victim assistance and community traffic safety programs.

The fledgling organization will also look at other ways to have an impact on sobering drunk-driving statistics. For example, members can utilize their own experiences to give individual and advocate support to drunk-driving victims at the time of the crash, and through the court system. They also plan to promote public awareness, and become more politically aware of pertinent legislation.

Increased knowledge about the hazards of drunken driving has already helped curb the number of alcohol-related accidents locally in the last decade. Also helping to reverse the numbers in the city of Cape Girardeau were sobriety checkpoints a number of years ago, and DWI overtime patrols that now operate each Friday and Saturday night.

In the early 1980s, alcohol-related accidents each year numbered well over 100 in the city of Cape Girardeau alone. The number in the last five years indicate a continuing, but gradual, decline: 70 in 1987; 71 in 1988; 66 in 1989; 66 in 1990; and 63 in 1991.

These alcohol-related accidents often involve high speed and sheer recklessness, and result in serious injuries and deaths.

MADD membership is not limited to mothers, or even victims of drunk-driving tragedies. Through MADD's community action plan, we can all do our part to learn more about the dangers of alcohol and driving. The injury or death we might prevent could even be our own.