Listen and Learn

To which the second boy replied, "Yeah, and your mom would never let you use the car again."

What an aha moment! And one that would serve fundraisers well. Public-service announcements and parents of young drivers preach the consequences of drunken driving mainly in terms of human tragedy. And of course that's essential. But can young people — many of whom don't really know that kind of loss, and who by the very nature of their brain chemistry feel 10 feet tall and bulletproof — really comprehend those consequences? Can they really internalize a lesson that hinges on something they've never experienced and don't believe for a second could happen to them? Or are they more in tune with the possibility of having their licenses taken away and their freshly minted freedom curtailed? If the guys on the bus are any indication, it's the latter.