:: Running from the Thought Police ::

:: Monday, January 23, 2006 ::

Stupid To Excess

The DI reports that Champaign will be keep the bars from opening until 11am on Unofficial, the dumbest excuse for binge drinking I've come across in my short lifespan. Of course, people more closely connected to the booze than I are not happy.

Scott Cochrane, manager of C.O. Daniel's, 608 E. Daniel St., and owner of The Clybourne, 706 S. Sixth St., and Firehaus, 708 S. Sixth St., said the change was excessive.

"I think it's tremendous overkill," Cochrane said. "Each individual bar has to be responsible for what it does, and I think the city overreacts. Kids are having a good time, and 99 percent of the time kids are responsible and have fun. It's that one percent that can't handle the situation, and that's just life. It's not going to change."

Joshua Reed, student representative to the Liquor Advisory Commission and graduate student, also disagreed with the new bar hours.

"It has been my position that the best way to get rid of binge drinking … is to try and get students into environments that are more controlled," Reed said. "By reducing the amount of time that students can spend in bars, they're just going to go to private parties instead."

Reed said the city and University should have put more effort toward regulating and enforcing private parties instead of restricting access to the bars.

"This is a case that the bars are easy to regulate," Reed said. "It'll give the appearance of being concerned about a problem but not really solve anything."

As some may know, the non-holiday was once spawned when St. Patrick's day habitually fell during spring break, and local students wanted an excuse to get smashed with their buddies at school. Since both St. Patricks and Unofficial now land during the school year, unofficial has become a redundant bit of bacchinalia that results in too many people trying to come to class drunk.

And for Monsieur Reed, my question is, "Who in their right minds needs to start drinking at 8am, and on a school day no less?" No one comes to my mind. Perhaps someone can enlighten me.

:: The Squire 10:19 AM :: email this post :: ::
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