Unlike driving a car while intoxicated, there is no social stigma associated with driving a pwc with a 150 HP engine at 60 miles an hour, 30 feet from shore after a day of partying.
I think Kevin as usual has got to the core of the issue
40 years ago it was acceptable for people to drink and drive cars. 20 years ago you could drive without a seat belt. As streets got busier and traffic faster, this changed and there is a lot of peer pressure to conform.
Although the law may be there, the public is barely there in the case of boating. I for one have faith it will change however our waters are getting faster and more crowded as well. Those changes occur in small but cumulatively important matters. Let me offer illustrate some
1) some jurisdictions won't let you drive anything motored with an auto DUI. Others ignore it and allow boating with two DUIs
Those will be the first wave of change
2) some jurisdictions allow drinking underway and others do not - look for the second wave here
3) for automotive and trucks there are graduated and specific licensing protocols - for boats, maybe look for something based on power to weight ratio - insurance already does it - the regulators are far behind
The problem is that legislators only have one tool which essentially is containment and punishment. Outside the government there are a number of tools like peer pressure and skill transfer.
My preference is fixes outside of government as they are faster and more powerful Again an example - if the manufacturers want to sell water rockets maybe they should institute mandatory certification with or before delivery.
If it works in guns or industrial equipment - why not?
I am not the biggest fan of more enforcement. Frankly - officers cannot be everywhere nor would I want them there. The average decent boater is seriously pi$$ed at incidents that show stupidity and attract enforcement
My biggest hope is for peer pressure of fellow boaters or passengers so the potential parties nearby hold the driver to account prior to a problem.
Sadly the hard core is fixable only with punishment and there is a core which needs attention but I sincerely believe a little behavioural change in the mean time would help a lot.
I think it would be helpful to get a message to our legislators that boating issues need attention and resources but applied smartly - not just solely more enforcement
Some of the problem we can and should fix ourselves and with a little help I can see it happening.