DR. WALLACE: I'm 19 and was recently convicted of driving under the influence of alcohol. I admit I had a few beers, but I wasn't really drunk. In fact, when I got home, my parents couldn't even tell that I had been drinking.

Last week I went before the judge and he gave me a $300 fine and suspended me from driving for three months. Don't you think I was unjustly punished because I was a teen? - T.J., Halifax, Nova Scotia.

T.J.: Canada has a tough law against driving under the influence. It is illegal to operate any type of motor vehicle, boat, or aircraft while impaired by alcohol or drugs. The judge gave you the minimum sentence. I hope you learned your lesson. A second conviction results in a minimum 14-day jail sentence and loss of driving privileges for six months or longer.

I contacted the Department of Justice in Canada and was informed that alcohol or drugs are involved in three out of every four driver deaths in single-vehicle crashes and nearly half of the drivers' deaths involving two or more vehicles.

T.J., you were not punished because you were a teen, but because you were driving a motor vehicle after having a "few" beers. You deserved the punishment.

I LOVE YOU, MOM AND DAD

DR. WALLACE: I am a 16-year-old girl and faithfully read your column. Many of your letters are from teens who have problems with their parents. Well, this has spurred me to write about my parents — not to complain, but to give praise.

I love and appreciate my parents with all my heart. They are absolutely the perfect parents. My father is an excellent provider for our family of six. Mother is a great homemaker and both Mom and Dad constantly share their love with us kids. They have set down rules and regulations, but we kids were asked our opinions first.

They expect good grades, but do not put pressure on us. They allow us to pick our friends and they welcome them to our home regardless of their background.

We have our spats, but they are quickly forgotten. I love you, Mom and Dad, and I hope someday to repay you for all the wonderful things you have done for your children. - Sissy, Moline, Ill.

SISSY: Great parents all have two things in common - wisdom and the ability to make their children know they are loved!

LUNG CANCER IS OFTEN FATAL

DR. WALLACE: I smoke and so do my parents, who are in their 50's. Both have been smoking for nearly 40 years and neither of them has ever been ill because of smoking. My grandfather died of lung cancer and no one in his family smoked except my dad, and he never smoked in the house. I believe that a person will die whenever his time comes, whether he smokes or not. - Nameless, Mishawaka, Ind.

NAMELESS: The only thing wrong with your reasoning is that the smoker's time usually comes earlier than the nonsmoker's. Because lung cancer is difficult to detect early, it is very difficult to treat successfully, according to the American Cancer Society. That's why it is so often fatal.

It's true that a person who has never smoked or been subjected to secondhand smoke can be afflicted with lung cancer, but if tobacco suddenly disappeared from the face of the earth, so would 83 percent of all lung cancer cases!

Dr. Robert Wallace welcomes questions from readers. Although he is unable to reply to all of them individually, he will answer as many as possible in this column. Email him at [email protected]. To find out more about Dr. Robert Wallace and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate website at www.creators.com.