From the article:
Federal maritime law makes it illegal to operate a vessel in U.S. waters with a blood-alcohol content level above 0.04, which represents roughly what a 170-pound man might register up to three hours after consuming a 12-ounce beer.
Are we really talking about a "Drunken cruise liner captain"?
0.04? Damn, aftershave will do that. Or Binaca breath spray.
Might be a selectively enforced rule that the cruise line uses when they need to get rid of an employee for other reasons.
Bad headline, but the story noted that it was a Coast Guard inspector that started the inquiry. A ship's captain is responsible for a lot of lives, and the rules are very strict. If the regulations are "no drinking while in command of a vessel", the cruise line probably has no choice but to cut him loose.