This week parliament is likely to consider changes to the laws governing the sale of alcohol.
I hope MPs read this before they make up their minds how they will vote:
Post rugby violence ‘sad reality’ – Police:
. . . Central communications shift commander Mark Oliver said it was the “sad reality” of New Zealand culture.
“There’s too much alcohol, people get on the turps on big game nights,” he said. . .
He said young people were often blamed for binge drinking but there were just as many adults. . .
The problem with the drinking culture and alcohol abuse is not confined to young people.
Raising the purchase age to 20 or splitting it so 18 and 19 year-olds can buy alcohol on licensed premises but not at off-licences will not change the culture.
The problem is the attitude not the age.
Any measures which don’t address that will be tinkering with the symptoms not solving the problem.
Changing the age would be a cop-out which would punish the many young people who drink sensibly and ignore the much larger problem of many older people who don’t.
Keep the age 18 but change the culture that licences drinking to excess, treats drunkenness as normal, regards intoxication as amusing and condones the behavioural problems which stem from all of that.
Huffing butane ‘killing our kids’
17 years old this girl was, two young to by cheap plonk at the supermarket but not to young to try and the obliterate reality of life in a cultural desert.
The split age will have an increased effect on rural areas too, MPs need to realise that 18/19 year olds in rural areas may be many many kilometres from a licenced premises, and under the new driving laws, at aged 18 it would be rare to have a full drivers licence under the new driving age. So if a group of 18 year olds want to go into town to have a few drinks, they will not be able to have a fully licenced sober driver to drive them to town. Instead they would all have to take separate cars- that they then are unable to drive home after drinking.
In addition to the absolute bounty of misinformation that’s being spouted about young people drinking, Once again MPs are not considering the impact of proposed changes on rural nz.
Meanwhile this entirely statist response will ignore the elephants in the room and continue to decline to make the perpetrator of public drunkeness an offender with meaningful repercussions for their disgusting performance.
The person who pours too much alcohol down their gob is “innocent”, HELLO it was the main course for every little courthouse in every little town every Monday Morning and a pathetic parade of wasters they were then also.
I recall a mate who on receiving a very late hour call from the constabulary that his son was in the cells, drunk, told plod to do what the law required and if said son needed a lawyer here is his phone number.
We have laws on underage sexual activity but when was the last time it was used.
Age is not the issue, never was and if making it older would work why not make it 70. LOL
Blind drunk, legless, incoherent, vomiting, violent, abusive, endangering personal safety and a disgusting mess are the problems and there is one point of activity that needs addressing, Alcohol by mouth by idjits.
Meg – very good point.
GD “alcohol by mouth by idjits” – love the description, but not the behaviour.