From Thursday's print edition

Two significant news stories from last week should give everyone a jolt.

•  Among the 10 traffic deaths on Minnesota roads in a weeklong period, between April 17 and 24, nine of the victims were not wearing seat belts — and six were ejected from the vehicle.

“These tragic cases demonstrate what has been said for so long — seat belts save lives,” said Minnesota Department of Public Safety Commissioner Michael Campion. “These preventable deaths serve as a grim reminder of the need to buckle up, every ride.”Each year in Minnesota around 200 unbelted motorists are killed.When we read statistics like this, we continue to wonder: Why in the world would anyone drive without wearing a seat belt? Minnesota, Wisconsin and North Dakota should have red faces from embarrassment over a report last week that said the states were in the top three in the nation in the number of admitted drunken drivers.

• In a report released by the federal Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, 26.4 percent of drivers 18 or older in Wisconsin, 24.9 percent in North Dakota and 23.5 percent in Minnesota said they drove under the influence of alcohol at least once during the past year. The three states led the nation. The national average was 15.1 percent. Utah, at 9.5 percent, was the only state with less than 10 percent of motorists reporting a drunken-driving incident.

The study and its methodology raise some red flags. The information was self-reported, which makes one wonder about the accuracy. And Sarah Longwell, managing director of the American Beverage Institute in Washington, in a letter to the Star Tribune, wrote: “… a closer look at the survey reveals that this so-called ‘study’ doesn't actually tell us anything about how many people are driving drunk. The survey asked respondents: ‘During the past 12 months, have you driven a vehicle while you were under the influence of alcohol?’ For a ‘scientific study,’ that question is awfully subjective. It makes no distinction between whether the driver was impaired or simply drove after having a sensible amount of alcohol. Respondents may have driven responsibly (and legally) after a glass of wine with dinner, or a beer at a ballgame. But researchers wrongly assumed that respondents meant they were driving drunk when they answered ‘yes.’ ”

Perhaps. But if the numbers are accurate — or even if the actual figures are somewhat lower — it’s disturbing to contemplate that a healthy percentage of drivers are under the influence of alcohol at any given time.

No matter what, the two news items offer sober reminders: Wear seat belts while in motor vehicles, and if you’ve had too much to drink, don’t drive.