> and someone tried to bring it to market today it would never fly

In a regulatory domain? Perhaps not; however, we did try prohibition. It didn't go well.

> Should have skull and crossbones on it.

Which didn't work. So some people go the idea to poison it. Then people learned to re-distill it to avoid the blindness it would otherwise cause.

> Makes about as much sense as huffing gasoline

Most people don't regularly drink to the kinds of excess that would make this an apt comparison.