THE STORIES LEFT UNTOLD

It’s important to explain what is missing from this week’s series on drinking and driving, entitled What Are We Thinking? Reporters from the Star Phoenix and Leader-Post asked dozens of people, and made requests through numerous social media posts, but could not convince anyone to step forward and speak about the fact they chose to drive while impaired.

When we approached people — even those whose experiences had been documented publicly, and those whose mistakes were decades in the past — they all declined.

To be charged with drinking and driving is not a unique experience in Saskatchewan. Reading Statistics Canada’s most recent report on the subject is cringeworthy. Saskatchewan had the highest impaired driving rate among the provinces in 2015, at 575 incidents per 100,000 people.

“This rate is considerably higher than that of any other province; Alberta ranked next with a rate of just over half that of Saskatchewan (314 per 100,000 population),” the report reads.

Driving after drinking and not getting caught widens the net further for people who could speak on this topic.

The shame evidenced by the people we spoke with was overwhelming. They felt they had put their families through enough. They were afraid it might impede their chances of employment. They simply want to leave their mistakes in the past.

Interestingly, all that shame does not appear to be enough to change our collective habits in Saskatchewan.

All that shame does not appear to be enough to change our collective habits...

Shame is not top of mind when the moment comes, when judgment is impeded by alcohol and someone has to decide whether to get behind the wheel.

What we did take away from our conversations with people who drove after drinking is that we must make good decisions before consuming alcohol, not after. Many said they can’t remember making the decision at all. A ride home — from a designated driver, a cab or public transit — has to be arranged in advance.

There was clear support for the government’s plan to get ride sharing programs up and running in rural areas. Perhaps this will affect the statistics in a way pure embarrassment has not.