Submitted by notme6197 t3_zzwhmo in massachusetts
And it’s on a Saturday and we’re not in quarantine so it’s the perfect night for a party.
PLEASE don’t drive home drunk
My 17yo has to work until 12:30am. We’re either going to let him drive the 30 minutes home or one of us will go get him. We want our child safe, I want your children safe. Pleasepleaseplease do not drive home if you’re drunk or stoned.
I think the point OP is making regardless of her kids age is she’d like for him to get home in one piece. If he was 18 and able to drive himself what’s being said still matters. There’s going to be plenty of people on the road after the ball drops just trying to get home after having to work, not party.
His parents will have to go get him, I’m sure he’d like to see his parents get there in one piece and be able to get home safely
I don’t think anyone is disputing that part of it, just the specific described scenario the OP mentioned with her son should be a non issue since it’s illegal him to be driving at that time unaccompanied.
Probably going to be a lot of random police check stops tonight as well. He might be sober, but will still get hemmed up. He should probably stay wherever he is until tomorrow if possible.
You're right about working, but if he got his JOL right at 16 1/2 then he could be good to drive after midnight at 17.
Your son is not legally allowed to work or drive alone at 1230am.
I agree with your sentiment about not driving after a few new years wobblypops. But there is also a reason the law states an inexperienced teen driver isn’t allowed to drive at that hour. Don’t be irresponsible and let your newly licensed teen driver get on the road at 1230am on New Years Eve near a major city.
Stay sober and wear your seat belt too. Not a DUI incident, but my 17 year old cousin passed away New Years Day 8 years ago, the 2 other people with him wore their seat belt and survived the accident.
I purposely don't go anywhere on NYE because people are fools
I'd drive your kid home but that's me. Also pretty sure at 17 he can't drive home at that time.
The T and all commuter rails are free after 8pm.
No excuse to drive drunk in the Boston metro
We live nowhere near public transportation
However, it is still a good comment!
And most of the trains will not be on fire after midnight.
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It’s 2023 there’s plenty of resources these days and zero room for excuses. Two clicks on your phone and you get chauffeured straight home from the bar with Uber which is Lowkey fun as hell and beats risking your life and others. Splurge the money and live another day. Pick up your car tomorrow
Especially when you’re coming from Boston and many Ubers up there are Tesla model 3s. Like hell yeah do I want to ride in a spaceship home rather than drunk drive
FYI: Working until 12:30 a.m. as a 17 year old is a Child Labor Law violation in Massachusetts.
Son shouldn't be working or driving at that hour anyways.
Exactly this, regardless of the night a 17 year old who is a new driver shouldn’t be driving at that time and no way they should be working till then. While I agree with OP’s sentiment there is an easy solution to the problem and that is don’t be on the road on NYE, that goes double for a 17 year old. A 17 year old’s job is not worth them being on the road past midnight on NYE, I’m over 40 and I’m home by 9PM on NYE or taking public transportation. You can’t control other people actions and the risk is just too high for me to justify driving around with my family on New Years Eve.
Where does your child work that he has to stay past midbrain? He is not supposed to work past that time.
Edit: midnight!
Midbrain? Are you a neuroscientist or something? That's a strange autocorrect lol
LMAO no I seriously don’t know where that came from
I love the term lol.
What is your 17 yo doing working till 12:30, on new Years Eve no less.
Don’t ruin your 2023 and beyond or rob someone else of their future - free T if that works for you. Safe New Year everybody!
No public transportation where we live and where his job is
So pick him up like a responsible parent…driving outside the parameters of a JOL is treated the same as driving without a license. It’s a crime - don’t expose your kid to that possibility at 17
These posts are always so weird to me. Like the type of people to get drunk and drive at 1 am in NYE are the same people who are on Reddit reading these posts
I really hope you do right by your child and help them find a job that doesn't break child labor laws.
I hope everyone has an amazing time tonight, whether out or at home. Be safe and plan ahead for drunk/high you!
I'll be doing my part by staying on my couch. Happy New Year!
Totally agree. Also, be careful of the morning after. You might not even realize you're still intoxicated and think you're just hung over. Many DUIs can happen the morning after.
“please don’t break the law.” (meanwhile son is breaking the law).
To ease your mind today is statistically one of the safest nights to drive because everyone knows they may be getting drunk and makes plans ahead of time. We all just assume it’s the opposite
Source: https://www.autoinsurance.org/deadliest-holidays-to-drive/
Thanks to this post no one in Massachusetts will drive drunk.
Especially because we aren't in quarantine, damn covid. If only the pandemic was still a thing maybe drunk drivers wouldn't be on the road.
Sounds like a perfect chance to let the boy drive home and to stress his caution. While the amount of impaired drivers will certainly be higher, anyone of us could get hit by a drunk driver at any point on the road.
We can’t control other people’s actions, only our own. Best of luck to you this New Years.
What? Your message is “parents, Don’t be concerned about an increase in drunk drivers on NYE?”
That’s a weird take.
I think he is, in a very round about way, trying to say that if the concern is other drunk drivers, then he drives himself home or the parents driving him home, the danger is mostly equal. Neither driver is going to be able to do anything about a drunk driver blowing through the red at an intersection and t-boning your car.
As others mentioned though, he may not be legally able to drive after 12:30am and his work should not be scheduling a minor to work a second past midnight. That is an irresponsible work place.
Ya, this was my thinking reading this post as well. It doesn't matter if your son drives himself home, OP picks him up, or Jesus himself takes the wheel. If there are drunk drivers on the road, the risk is equal regardless of whose in the driver's seat.
Dude, Jesus lived 2000 years ago, he is my lost choice to drive,a car.
Sounds like a perfect chance to let the boy drive home and to stress his caution.
Literally the 1st sentence… ;)
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Sounds like the perfect chance for partygoers to take responsibility for themselves. Sounds like the perfect chance for people to understand that when you put your drunk ass behind the wheel you’re putting not only yourself but so many others at risk. He could drive at 2mph all the way home but how will that prevent some drunk ass from doing 100 and plowing into him?
It’s a risk we all take getting behind the wheel. You reiterated my point of “we can’t control other people’s actions, only our own”.
For the record I don’t wish harm on you or your son. I’m just being realistic.
iamthedargon t1_j2e386i wrote
MA labor laws prohibit minors from working after midnight, and a Junior Operators License prohibits driving after 12:30. Regardless of what night of the year it is, please pick your child up and drive them home.