Cinematical

They're a menace to the roads, and I figure they must love getting DUIs since there is a continuing stream of celebrity/actor arrests. (Do they frame their arrest photos and place them next to their awards?) It's gotten so bad that I'm sort of glad that when I visited LA, my friend and I didn't drive around a lot. Playing bumper cars with drunk celebs while riding in a small, pink Mini Cooper might be stylish, but I doubt it would be fun.

The thing is -- young and old, men and women, filthy rich or just well-off, they're all doing it. There's the sickening number of younger stars who are already racking up multiple offenses -- Michelle Rodriguez (and how many others from Lost), Nicole Richie, and Lindsay Lohan all have 2 DUIs and are all in their 20s. The double-doers also come in the older male variety -- there's Mel Gibson with his 2 offenses and slurring rant, or Kiefer's 2 -- the second of which came less than 5 years after the first. Not to mention -- Vivica A. Fox, Lane Garrison, Rip Torn, Shemar Moore, Gary Collins, Chris Klein, Yancy Butler, Ray Liotta, Nick Nolte, Mischa Barton, Edward Furlong, Ty Pennington, Rebecca De Mornay... And this is just in the last handful of years -- and the ones who were caught. If you think about how many times you speed, and how many times you get speeding tickets...

What kills me is that:

1 - They all have the money for a cab, limo, bus, or other form of transportation.
2 - This happens in areas where there IS available no-drive transportation. We're not talking about the middle of the desert or middle of farmland.

This is just a blatant disregard for anyone but themselves, all in the name of a few drinks and a good time. When Paris Hilton got her DUI and claimed that she'd worked all day without eating, and thus, that margarita hit her harder than expected... Gee, what a surprise. Does she really think that's a reason? When you weigh about the same as a toothpick, don't eat, and your blood is pumping, of course it will take less alcohol to affect you, and it will hit you faster. This isn't rocket science, this is Alcohol 101.

And that's just it -- I don't care if actors are smart, do-gooders, or if they drink/drug themselves into an oblivion. I'd love to admire their skills and know that a great person lies behind them, but I'll settle for great performances and safety. It doesn't take extreme intelligence to make this happen. You have some drinks, grab a cab, get a hotel room, or have a sober friend pick you up. There is no excuse for drinking and driving. When you can afford to keep the roads safe, it just adds insult to injury.

On the bright side, I'm glad that at least some are seeing more than a stiff fine, "community service," or a ridiculously time-wasting jail time (Richie's hour in the slammer springs to mind). They should all, at the very least, get what LiLo got -- punishment that shows what their actions would lead to. There's no better way to cut thoughts of "I only had a few..." than bloody, morbid pictures from DUI accidents. It's been twelve years or so since I've seen Barbara Babb's presentation, and I still remember the story of the girl whose face shimmered from the broken glass embedded into her skin, and all those pictures of the people who didn't survive.

Is it too much to ask that actors and celebrities use just a small portion of their money to keep themselves, and the road, safe? There is nothing more selfish than thinking that your right to drive home is more important than another's right to live. People with much less money and much less resources are able to drink responsibly, so it's not just possible -- it's simple. This trend is just plain selfish and infuriating, and there is no reason for it. I can only hope that actors come to their senses, but I'm sad to say -- I think it's just wishful thinking.