The Tragic Cost of Sunday Drivers

Georgia is one of only three states that still has a Blue Law against selling alcohol on Sundays. After reading an op-ed piece by Governor Sonny Perdue about the issue, I wrote the following letter to the editor of our local newspaper, the Columbia County News-Times (registration required), which is owned by the Augusta Chronicle. You can also read Governor Perdue's original column on the state's official web site.

Update: The News-Times published my letter to the editor. (registration required) The full text follows:

Dear Editor,

You recently published an opinion column by Governor Sonny Perdue entitled "Tragic cost of Sunday alcohol sales" in which he opposes the repeal of Georgia's Blue Law prohibiting the sale of alcohol on Sundays. Governor Perdue cites a study which found that alcohol-related traffic crashes and deaths increased in New Mexico after they allowed alcohol sales on Sundays in 1995. His conclusion is that "We cannot afford to jeopardize people's lives ... even under the guise of letting people choose." But doesn't the force of the Governor's logic compel us to examine the danger of driving at all on Sundays? How many people must die before we conclude that driving is simply too dangerous in Georgia? The Governor says that he is expected "to do all that I can to make the people of this state as safe as possible." Banning driving on Sundays is a good first step toward making our roads safe for all citizens. The alternative would be to "to stick our heads in the sand", as the Governor puts it, by trusting people to drive responsibly.

Steve Miner
Evans, GA