Police State Minnesota: The Land of No Fun

The Twin Cities' police departments are engaged in an ongoing war with it's citizens who make the unfortunate misstep of deciding to go out for an evening of fun. An aggressive campaign was initiated, stating that DUI enforcement has been stepped on Minnesota roads and that "buzzed driving IS drunk driving". It could be argued that this crusade is just in the interest of public safety and it's an easy argument to blindly make if you are a police officer, a state representative or an avid supporter of either, but this is all steadily resulting in a counterproductive breakdown in state revenue aggregation. Once you have turned a municipality into a ghost town, where is this bulk of the government wealth to be generated?

Now, saying that it's all in the name of 'public safety' is completely ignorant and if you truly feel that way, I strongly pity your naivety. It's nowhere near as "honorable" a mission as you would wish to think. I'm all in favor of people resisting the urge to get behind the wheel whilst intoxicated for my own safety as a potentially accompanying motorist who doesn't want his life cut short by the alcohol-soaked stupidity of some poor-judgment making individual. However, I can attest that not everyone leaving a bar is debilitated to the point of being incapable of operating a vehicle. What the "buzzed driving IS drunk driving" statement so boldly implies is that having any bit of alcohol in your system is not only a danger, but illegal. State law declares that a BAC reading of .08 or over is illegal. Whether or not you are personally affected by a .08's worth of alcohol swimming through your bloodstream or are a "lightweight" who feels drunk around the .03 mark is entirely irrelevant in regards to Minnesota state law unless, of course, you are unfit to drive in such a condition and clearly show it on the road. Also, common sense SHOULD, no doubt, come into play, as well. Now that concludes the "armchair lawyer" segment of the article...

So, by threatening the people of Minnesota through television PSA's (certain ones actually getting so "clever" as to show troopers painted into the walls of buildings to catch those enjoying an evening out) and setting up 'stings' around the busier pubs, the police and the MN government are hurting businesses, clearing out the streets at night (namely, weekends) and further proving to the rest of the country that we, here, are definitely NOT a 'hot spot' as far as night life is concerned. Take New Years Eve for instance. DUI enforcement is upped so drastically that nobody dares go out and enjoy it. Just stay home and watch people in New York and Hollywood enjoy the festivities because they aren't repressed to the point of chasing their citizens off the streets, brandishing the impedance of arrest.

Because the state of Minnesota squanders it's financial resources (ie. tax payer money) on impractical luxuries like massive, futuristic football stadiums and "bicycle friendly" advances for the mere sake of bragging rights, alcohol use is, in turn, demonized in favor of revenue collecting. The most ironic part: a state that has to endure harsh winter hurdles 9-months out of the year has their options further suppressed by the unsympathetic iron fist of the law. In my mind, Minnesota should reinvent itself as the Indoor Night Life Capital of the Country. I can't think of a better way for MN to "embrace" the frigid, winter temperatures AND draw in tourism than to erect the best, most hip bars, night clubs and music venues in the U.S. Try to pull in some L.A. socialites and the Vegas crowds who would be willing to brave the unfamiliar, unforgiving climate to have a good time. Instead, Minnesota chooses to go the complete opposite direction and repel anyone from ever crossing the state's boarder by discouraging fun to the absolute extreme. Good job. So during the miserable peak of winter, all you're allowed to do is go to work, then go home.

Again, I'm not encouraging drunk driving, but it has gotten to the point in Minnesota where you are almost guaranteed to be pulled over after dark, regardless of how stone-sober you are or how well you are driving because of the state's jarringly oppressive "crack down" on fun. It's all due to one of the most asinine procedures an authoritative entity can employ: zero tolerance. Hence, "buzzed driving IS drunk driving". Zero tolerance grants a governing body the excuse to treat you unfairly, as well as the freedom to rule out judgment calls when approaching certain situations. It allows for laziness in determining the extent of ones "crime" and how it should be handled justly. They're basically rewriting laws in their favor.

In all, Minnesota needs to get their priorities straight and lighten up on fun restrictions. Yeah, if someone is driving erratically then bust them, but these sneaky police tactics and overall trepidation toward alcohol they are attempting to instill in Minnesotans is much too archaic and tyrannical.

-Flotsam