Alcohol + Drugs a Factor in Interstate 70 Double Fatality

This is serious stuff. It makes me sad -- and it makes me mad.

Two men died in a single-car accident Monday on Interstate 70 near Rifle, and according to the Post Independent, the Garfield County coroner has confirmed the driver of the vehicle had a blood alcohol content of .226 - nearly three times the legal limit. In addition to alcohol, the coroner identified the presence of meth and benzodiazepines.

Over and over again we see stories and we hear reports of death on the highway related to drugs and alcohol. How many people have to die before we wake up and stop this craziness?

Is there any hope? Is there anything we can do to stop drunk driving fatalities? (How about stop driving drunk!!) How long will our "don't drink and drive" messages fall on deaf ears?

Would stricter drunk driving laws to help? Would stiffer penalties cause people to think twice before getting behind the wheel and driving?

How about one offense and you lose your license for a year; two strikes and you can't drive for five years, and three strikes  you never drive again for the rest of your life. Extreme? Maybe so, but maybe extreme is the only thing that will get people's attention.

How about breathalyzers on every single car that would require the driver to submit to a test before the car would even start? Not practical you say? I wonder if that's what people said back in the 1950s when they started making seat belts standard equipment in new cars?

I have written about this before, and I feel like a broken record, but I just want to scream at the top of my lungs to people "Stop driving drunk!"

How many people have to grieve over the loss of a child, a spouse, a parent, a friend before we get serious about drunk driving and the problem of alcohol abuse in this country? What will it take to save thousands of people every year from needless deaths? As the song says, "the answer my friend, is blowing in the wind."