Alaska gets low grade; shame on us …

Frontiersman editorial board

When your child brings home a D-minus on his report card, do you say, "Nice work, son. At least you didn't fail?" Let's hope not. A D-minus is just what Alaska brought home on a report card recently released by the national Mothers Against Drunk Driving organization (MADD). On the bright side, Alaska isn't at the bottom of the class -- Montana claimed that dubious distinction. Alaska tied for second worst with Massachusetts. "Nice work, son. At least you did better than that other kid." We can do better. We have to do better.

Each state was rated in eight areas ranging from state political leadership to fatality trends. While Governor Knowles hauled in the best grade on the report card with a B-plus. The state failed in two areas including underage drinking and fatality trends. Other weak areas were laws and state law enforcement programs.

In terms of law enforcement, especially in the Valley, one serious problem is that the entire system is overburdened. When an area is growing as fast as the Valley is, it is difficult for all services to keep pace. The Valley Hospital Association has recently voted to approve a joint venture with a large Outside health care organization in order to build a hospital that will better serve people in the Mat-Su. As hard as DOT has worked, it remains difficult to meet the growing transportation needs in a community with more drivers every year. Law enforcement, from the officers on the street to the prosecutors and judges in courtrooms are stretched thin and overburdened. While some laws should probably be stiffened and one or two added, there are many laws in place that could be effective in dealing with drunken-driving violations if every case was prosecuted to its proper end.

Unfortunately, because of the heavy case load, many of the arrests made by police do not end in convictions, and many drunken drivers are not punished sufficiently to keep them from repeating their unacceptable behavior. It's certainly not the fault of police or prosecutors, but it is the product of an overburdened system. It is popular here in the Valley to do more with less -- less government, less red tape, less regulation. At some point less becomes not enough, though. It's time for the good citizens of the Valley to stand up and demand more -- more resources for law enforcement and for the justice system; more responsible behavior from drivers and from parents and more peace of mind when driving in our own community.