
New California law allows liquor companies to pay for free rides - prostoalex
http://www.sacbee.com/news/politics-government/capitol-alert/article191357404.html
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gnicholas
Fun fact: at Giants Stadium in SF, you can get a wristband for a free soda if
you are a DD. Just swing by Guest Services and they'll give you a wristband.

Not-so-fun fact: you cannot redeem the wristband for water. You literally have
to get soda.

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nugator
This is so US for me. Soda i easier and cheaper than plain good tasting water.

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rconti
At a place with a soda fountain you can usually get water cups for free, BUT
at a concession stand type setup, often the only water on offer is bottled,
which is probably why they'll give you free soda but not (more expensive)
bottled water. It ain't right, but.. it is.

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mikeash
Are they not legally required to offer water for free? I thought that was
pretty common.

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tudorw
In the United Kingdom, anywhere they serve alcohol it's the law they give you
free tap water. Which is nice.

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rconti
I've never been to any bar or restaurant in the US that wouldn't do the same,
although I'm not sure it's a law. However, the sporting event example strikes
me as different because they may have soda and beer dispensers but not
actually have a water tap at the concession stand.

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mikestew
I'm more surprised that it wasn't allowed to begin with. I mean, I see where
they were coming from with the original law, but we've had drunk driving in
the "bad" bucket for _how_ many decades now? Seems like it took them an
inordinate amount of time to catch up with the times.

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sithadmin
>we've had drunk driving in the "bad" bucket for how many decades now?

I think you'll find that outside of larger urban areas in the US, drunk
driving tends to fall into a gray area of morality, or in some cases (in my
experience, very rural locales with very little meaningful road traffic), an
accepted norm.

Almost nobody I know that lives in an urban US area drives drunk or finds it
acceptable. This becomes more lax among my suburban friends and acquaintances.
For some of my more rural acquaintances, taking a 6 pack along for consumption
during a drive is typical behavior that nobody in their community even bats an
eye at.

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bmelton
I think this has a lot to do with a lot of things.

If I'm working in the city, it's easy for me to say "Well, I plan to drink
tonight, so I'll cab _to_ the place where I'm drinking so that I'll have to
cab _from_ the place after I'm drinking."

When that place is more than a $50 Uber/Lyft/Cab ride away from the suburbs
I'm coming from, the options are limited, leaving me to the effort of having
to curtail the amount that I drink such that it's safe to drive home. The
science I've heard mention is that you can metabolize something like 2 drinks
per hour, which is a handy guideline, but lacks so much. 2 drinks of what? 3%
Miller Lite isn't the same as 10% microbrews, which isn't the same as 40+%
scotch or bourbon. Does that 2 drink guideline cover hard spirits in assuming
the worst, or is it assuming the most common scenario of beer? I have no idea.

For me, I tend to prefer drinking at home, or at Uber/Lyftable distances from
my home, so that I can be safe, but yeah, everyone's guidance differs
slightly, and as someone downthread mentions, relying on choice of drinking
safely as judgement is impaired by the alcohol they're drinking is fraught
with peril.

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sithadmin
It's definitely a multifacted issue. I suspect that income distribution
between urban centers and other areas definitely plays a major role, as does a
person's risk calculus associated with performing the act itself.

As far as 'drinks per hour' guidelines go, that's usually standardized as a
single unit of alcohol (e.g. 1 1.5 oz shot of 80 proof liqour OR 12 oz of a
macrobrew lager OR 6 oz of a typical wine).

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brewdad
Yes. I've started using a "rule of 60" for estimating an alcohol drink's
impact. Alcohol % by volume x drink size in oz. A 5% beer in a 12oz bottle is
equal to a 1.5 oz pour of 80 proof liquor. That 8oz snifter of 10% beer is
worth 80 points. Same if you order a pint of the 5% beer instead of a bottle.

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runamok
Might want to remind people that 80 proof = 40%. Thus by your examples: 5% *
12oz = 60, 40% * 1.5oz = 60, 10% * 8oz = 80,

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kodablah
I've often wondered why this wasn't the case before, though I understand many
state alcohol agencies (i.e. TABC where I live) discourage drinking
incentivization.

Ride sharing companies should now be falling over each other to sign exclusive
deals with bars. "Come to Kodablah's Bar. We'll pick you up in a Lyft and send
you home in one at no extra cost. Restrictions apply: only applies to those
within 18 miles, minimum tab of $40."

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ArlenBales
> _It’s an all-too-familiar scene in Sacramento. A group of friends heads to
> midtown for a night of partying and drinking, but one friend has to miss out
> on the fun and stay sober to be the designated driver._

> _A new law that takes effect Jan. 1 may not only let everyone join in on the
> fun, but it’ll also mean more money for the bubbly._

The problem here is the whole party may be too drunk to make the wise decision
of getting a ride. The designated driver isn't just a driver but the overall
sober final say for the group.

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SilasX
Anyone else annoyed at the article’s title?

“Too drunk to drive? New California law could give you a free ride”

It wouldn’t “give” you a free ride, it would undo the previous law that
stopped the business from giving you a free ride. They’re framing it like “not
doing the stupid thing anymore” is some kind of gift from the state.

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freeloop3
I don't think it would help much.

If someone is considering whether to drive to an event or get a ride, a coupon
isn't going to sway them. They may want to show off their new car, or have the
ability to take someone home with them, etc.

For people who drove to the event and drank too much there, they'll worry
about their car. Also they'll take offense at being offered a ride. Alcoholics
often have a lot of arrogance and would rather risk it than use a coupon to
take a ride because they're "out of control", and take that hit to their
pride.

This would only work if the law would allow for free transportation _to_ the
event, as controversial as that may be.

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sundaeofshock
Depends on where you live. In a place like San Francisco, people will drive to
events because mass transistor starts to suck after midnight. A person who
knows they will get a free or discounted ride home may take Bart (as an
example) to the event.

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gumby
> Vouchers or codes can be given to alcohol sellers or directly to consumers,
> but cannot be offered as incentives to buy a company’s product.

How can you possibly tell the difference? And I’m sure the vouchers will
prominently feature advertising.

Don’t get me wrong, I think this is an excellent idea (though I only drink 1-2
drinks a month). But some of the rules around alcohol are fantastical.

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baddox
You wouldn’t be able to prove or disprove the existence of incentive, but I’m
sure the rule means that you can’t offer vouchers contingent on alcohol
purchases, as in “buy at least 3 drinks and we will give you a voucher.”

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sedtrader
> Thousands attending Super Bowl 50 in Santa Clara in 2016 didn't have options
> to get home safely after drinking

Pardon my humor, but do designated drivers exist anymore? or was that just a
fad that went out of style?

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djrogers
That’s a typical California politician’s comment. If someone else doesn’t
provide something free or heavily subsidized, they pretend it doesn’t exist.

Pretty dumb to ignore the fact tha buy cutting back on a few $12 beverages at
the game one could either drive home or afford a Lyft...

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jdale27
Or maybe it's just a reflection of the reality that there are probably a lot
of people who don't want to go to a football game and _not_ get drunk.

