CONGRESS DUCKS ITS DUTY ON BOOZE

America is a nation of inalienable rights. Driving drunk isn't one of them.

Try telling that to Congress. A team of House and Senate negotiators --
including Rep. Tom Petri (R-Wis.) -- has shamelessly scrapped a plan to
punish states that fail to adopt a reasonable national drunken-driving
standard.

Mothers Against Drunk Driving and others had been pushing for a measure
that would cut federal highway money to any state that failed to lower the
blood alcohol limit at which a driver is legally considered drunk to 0.08%.
Petri opposed the requirement, saying he favored an incentive plan.
Wisconsin is one of more than 30 states that use a threshold of 0.10%.

That's too high. Medical studies show driving skills are noticeably
impaired at 0.08%.

Some critics claim the reduction would penalize social drinkers. Baloney.
Studies show a 170-pound man reaches a blood alcohol level of 0.08% after
downing four drinks in an hour on an empty stomach.

If Petri or anyone else thinks that's social drinking, let him or her hail
a cab after the 170-pound driver has tossed back four drinks without
eating.

Checked-by: jwjohnson@netmagic.net (Joel W. Johnson)