Back in the day, as I recall, we blamed (or tried to blame) el Niño for pretty much everything, but now it seems to be swine flu – I mean, the H1N1 virus.  At least, blaming H1N1 is apparently all the rage in New Zealand, where a woman recently blamed the virus for her legal troubles when she appeared in court to answer a DUI charge.

According to this report, the woman "blew 130 micrograms above the legal 400mcg per litre of breath," and I don't know what the hell that means but it's apparently against the law in New Zealand.  She admitted she had had three glasses of wine, and her lawyer then deployed the H1N1 Defense.  "She had swine flu," the woman's lawyer told Judge Kevin Phillips.  "She was just getting over it . . . and she thinks because she had the flu [the drinks] may have hit her harder."

Forget it, said Judge Phillips, who is apparently tired of the virus getting a bad rap.  "Swine flu seems to be the 'in' submission for everything at the moment," he said.  "I reject all that."  Phillips fined the woman several hundred New Zealand dollars and suspended her license for six months.

Looks like those of you planning to blame "swine flu" for DUI, missing work or being dead may need to find a new excuse.

Link: Sydney Morning Herald