A good letter in the globe and mail today regarding the pot/tobacco dichotomy, from a police officer in Dallas.

I've always felt that drunk drivers are the biggest threat to my life on a daily basis. It is very unlikely that I will be killed by any other means. I think that the penalties for drunk driving should be approaching that of attempted murder. The trick though of course is enforcement. If the public views the penalty as too harsh, then they simply won't convict.

That said, I think that the public mood is ripe for a crackdown on drunk driving. As a society we recognize that drunk drivers are deadly and that it is a completely avoidable situation. A tough law should be prepared, and then when the next kid gets killed by a drunk driver, name the law after the kid and push it through. No politician would dare oppose it.