On Capitol Hill, They'll Drink To That

It takes an agile mind to defend drunk driving and kids' smoking. Take the modest proposal to set the drunk-driving threshold at .08 blood-alcohol content nationwide--stricter than the .10 standard in 34 states. The liquor lobby long played on the fear that .08 would mean social drinkers who've had a few after work would all fail the Breathalizer. But research shows you can drink yourself silly before reaching .08: a 170-lb. man can guzzle four martinis inside an hour on an empty stomach before he gets there. He may not be sloppy drunk, but who wants to run into this guy...

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