There is a saying about the stress of a job leading a man to drink. While that may certainly be the case for some, it is no excuse to get behind the wheel and endanger the lives of innocents. I say this because one of our nation’s greatest foreign diplomats was just arrested for driving under the influence.
The situation is especially tense for former U.S. ambassador Ryan Crocker who is facing hit-and-run and drunken driving charges in Washington state after striking a semi-truck when he tried to make a right turn from the left lane. As reported in news.yahoo.com.
The 63-year-old Spokane native registered a .160 blood-alcohol content — twice the legal limit — and a .152 in successive breath tests when was arrested on the spot. Crocker, who was driving a 2009 Ford Mustang convertible which collided with a semi. Crocker's car spun out, but he kept driving. A witness followed him to a nearby bank and called police.
Crocker retired from the foreign service last month after serving three decades in some of the world's most dangerous hotspots, most recently Afghanistan.
An Arabic speaker and six-time ambassador, he came out of an earlier retirement last year to take the helm of the embassy at President Barack Obama's request. This year, Crocker announced he was retiring due to a serious health issue that he previously had while ambassador to Iraq.
I hope he is mandated to an alcohol class and decides to quit drinking alcohol. He has done a lot of good in his life and it would be a shame if he was remembered more for his drinking than his diplomacy.