Drinking and driving: Should laws get tougher?

Interesting article today that's not directly GPS-related:
http://www.bergen.com/page.php?qstr=eXJpcnk3ZjczN2Y3dnFlZUVFeXk1JmZnYmVsN2Y3dnFlZUVFeXk2Nzk5MDk1JnlyaXJ5N2Y3MTdmN3ZxZWVFRXl5Mg==

It is, however a subject near and dear to my heart ... and it often relates to my business because many clients use GPS tracking as part of an overall risk management program that includes monitoring driving that indicates a high risk for DUI. One client in Denver found one of his supervisors spending night after night with his company-furnished truck parked at bars until the very wee hours of the morning and then driving in to start an early shift .. sometimes with apparently no sleep at all.

In general I think this is one of those national debates that shouldn't be a debate at all. I've been a pilot for 40 years now and the FAA rule is very simple .. no alcohol at all. The general pilot's rule of thumb is 12 hours, bottle to throttle. There are many cases where the case could be made that it's easier to fly under the influence than drive .. in the world of aircraft there are not nearly the number of critical situations per hour of operation than there are with driving a car in traffic, yet the rule makes perfect sense and I have never violated it, nor do I ever intend to.

If I take a gun and walk down the street and shoot someone, I'm going to be caught and charged with a felony, for sure. Almost certainly, assault with a deadly weapon. If the person dies, I'm going to be charged with manslaughter at the least, most probably some degree of murder.

Why have we spent the last 80 or 90 years or so arguing about various degrees of intoxication while driving a deadly weapon ... an automobile?

This situation would be laughable if it wasn't so deadly serious. if, as an example, I somehow slipped the bonds of sanity and decided to murder someone, there's no doubt in my mind how I'd do it. I'd have a few drinks to get some alcohol in my system, lie in wait for the victim and run them down. When i was sure they were dead I'd chug-a-lug some more booze so that by the time the police got there I'd be well and surely drunk.

What would I get? In many states, with no prior record perhaps a fine and probation .. maybe six months in jail as the worst case. is there any other method of murder one can think of where the potential penalties are anywhere near as low?

I thought the statistics for DC were especially interesting. look at the reduction in deaths with their .01 BAC law. I drove for some years in Japan where they take things even more seriously .. the police have a wand that measures the presence of alcohol in the air .. they stick it in your car window, it comes up positive, you're busted.

Do we want to save lives, or do we want to argue and make the lawyers rich?