Fight Hangovers

Don't Mix Drinking and Driving

noreply@blogger.com (Smart Partyer) — Sun, 08 Nov 2009 09:59:00 +0000

I went to a party Mom,
I remembered what you said.
You told me not to drink, Mom,
So I drank soda instead.

I really felt proud inside, Mom,
The way you said I would.
I didn't drink and drive, Mom,
Even though the others said I should.

I know I did the right thing, Mom,
I know you are always right.
Now the party is finally ending, Mom,
As everyone is driving out of sight.

As I got into my car, Mom,
I knew I'd get home in one piece.
Because of the way you raised me,
So responsible and sweet.

I started to drive away, Mom,
But as I pulled out into the road,
The other car didn't see me, Mom,
And hit me like a load.

As I lay there on the pavement, Mom,
I hear the policeman say,
"The other guy is drunk," Mom,
And now I'm the one who will pay.

I'm lying here dying, Mom....
I wish you'd get here soon.
How could this happen to me, Mom?
My life just burst like a balloon.

There is blood all around me, Mom,
And most of it is mine.
I hear the medic say, Mom,
I'll die in a short time.

I just wanted to tell you, Mom,
I swear I didn't drink.
It was the others, Mom.
The others didn't think.

He was probably at the same party as I.
The only difference is, he drank
And I will die.

Why do people drink, Mom?
It can ruin your whole life.
I'm feeling sharp pains now.
Pains just like a knife.

The guy who hit me is walking, Mom,
And I don't think it's fair.
I'm lying here dying
And all he can do is stare.

Tell my brother not to cry, Mom.
Tell Daddy to be brave.
And when I go to heaven, Mom,
Put "GOOD BOY " on my grave.

Someone should have told him, Mom,
Not to drink and drive.
If only they had told him, Mom,
I would still be alive.

My breath is getting shorter, Mom.
I'm becoming very scared.
Please don't cry for me, Mom.
When I needed you, you were always there.

I have one last question, Mom.
Before I say good bye.
I didn't drink and drive,
So why am I the one to die?

Someone took the effort to write this poem. To spread the message not to drink and drive... Hoping to spread the same.

US: PA: Penn State Trustees

noreply@blogger.com (Smart Partyer) — Sun, 08 Nov 2009 08:20:00 +0000

Link:http://www.centredaily.com/news/local/story/1613852.html
Anne Danahy
UNIVERSITY PARK — Penn State trustees discussed efforts to curb binge drinking, elm yellows disease and other topics during their meeting at the Nittany Lion Inn Friday.

While they had planned to consider an appropriations request to the state for 2010-11, that measure was postponed because the university hasn’t received its 2009-10 funding yet. In other business …

•Chairman Jim Broadhurst said he and several other trustees will go downtown late at night over the weekend to observe the activities, in light of the ongoing discussions about binge drinking.

Student leaders, administrators and community officials have been discussing student drinking and possible ways to address it. The recent efforts follow the death of a student who had been drinking before falling to his death in a concrete stairwell earlier this semester.

Penn State spokeswoman Lisa Powers said going downtown late at night is usually “an instructive experience.”

“It’s one thing to hear about the challenges associated with high-risk drinking, but it’s entirely another thing to actually see some of the behaviors that high-risk drinking can create,” Power said in an e-mail.

“The more people (are) talking about this issue, the more likely we are to have meaningful changes in behavior,” she said.

•Trustees set the room and board rates for 2010-11, approving a 2.45 percent increase in the rate for a double room and meal plan. Students will pay $4,185 a semester, a $100 increase over this year, for room and board.

Gail Hurley, associate vice president of Auxiliary and Business Services, said the 2010-11 budget will be $172 million, an increase of 2.9 percent over this year. The department is self-sustaining, Hurley said.

It will be the smallest rate increase in more than a decade, according to PSU.

•President Graham Spanier announced the appointment of Henry C. “Hank” Foley as the new vice president for research and dean of the graduate school.

The current dean, Eva Pell, was appointed undersecretary for science for the Smithsonian Institution in Washington. The board recognized Pell, who starts the new job in January.

Foley is currently dean of the College of Information Sciences. He earned a doctorate in physical and inorganic chemistry from Penn State in 1982. He was a professor of chemical engineering at the University of Delaware in the 1990s before becoming a head of the department of chemical engineering at Penn State in 2000. From 2004 to 2006, he was associate vice president for research and director of strategic initiatives.

•Gordon Turow, director of campus planning, said the university has lost 54 elm trees to elm yellows, a fatal disease spread by elm leafhopper insects.

Turow said that “is actually very comforting news” because most of the elms on campus are safe. He said they seem to be responding to the techniques being used. Most of the elms lost were on the road to the Schreyer House off Park Avenue, along with 14 on campus. He said the trees will be safe in the winter and the university will continue to monitor them in the spring.

US: NY: Binge definition varies, is not written in stone

noreply@blogger.com (Smart Partyer) — Sun, 08 Nov 2009 08:18:00 +0000

Link:http://www.timesunion.com/AspStories/story.asp?storyID=862888&category=OPINION
Some sobering numbers on college drinking," reports that:

"Nationally, seven out of 10 college students, or 1.4 million, under age 21 consumed alcohol in the past month, according to Karen Carpenter-Palumbo, commissioner of the state Office of Alcoholism and Substance Abuse Services. A million of them met the criteria for binge drinking, generally defined as consuming four or five drinks in a two-hour period."
Carpenter-Palumbo also said, "That would mean 28,000 Capital Region college students under age 21 drank in the past month, and 20,000 of them have been binge drinkers."

The term binge drinking is used as if it were written in stone. It is not.

In a 1998 letter to the Journal of the American Medical Association, several researchers said it is counterproductive to brand as pathological the consumption of only five drinks over the course of an evening of eating and socializing.

A study in Italy found that consuming an average of eight drinks a day was considered normal drinking; in the United Kingdom, binging is commonly defined as consuming 11 or more drinks on an occasion.

But in the United States, some researchers have defined it as consuming five or more drinks on an occasion (which can be an entire day), even though many "binge drinkers" remain legally sober.

The editor of the Journal of Studies on Alcohol describes a binge as an extended period of time (typically at least two days) in which a person repeatedly becomes intoxicated and gives up his or her usual activities and obligations to do so.

Carpenter-Palumbo strongly opposes a proposal to drop the 21-year-old drinking age, so it's in her interest to cling to an unrealistic definition of binge drinking.

However, the Times Union has a responsibility to present an objective report, not to parrot the state Office of Alcoholism and Substance Abuse Service's talking points.

Walter F. Wouk

US: FL: Deputies: Valrico man gave grain alcohol to nephew

noreply@blogger.com (Smart Partyer) — Sun, 08 Nov 2009 08:16:00 +0000

Link:http://www.tampabay.com/news/publicsafety/crime/deputies-valrico-man-gave-grain-alcohol-to-nephew/1050183
By Jessica Vander Velde
A 14-year-old boy was taken to the hospital for alcohol poisoning Friday night after his uncle gave him grain alcohol, according to the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office.

The uncle, Tyrone Hamilton Oliver, 38, of Valrico, was charged with assault and two counts of child abuse. This is what the Sheriff's Office says happened:

On Friday night, Oliver gave his nephew grain alcohol and cigarettes. Shortly after 11 p.m., the child's father returned home with his younger son.

Oliver asked the younger boy to hide his brother, who was passed out, in a bedroom so his father wouldn't find him. When the boy didn't obey, Oliver burned his leg with a cigarette.

The boys' father confronted Oliver, and Oliver charged and tried to fight him. The father pinned Oliver and was holding him down when sheriff's deputies arrived. Oliver told deputies that he gave the boy alcohol.

Paramedics took the teen to Brandon Regional Hospital. His blood-alcohol level was 0.267. A level of 0.3 can be lethal, according to the National Institutes of Health.

The boy was treated and discharged from the hospital today.

Oliver was booked into the Orient Road Jail and is being held without bond.

US: MA: Local underage drinking the target of county plan

noreply@blogger.com (Smart Partyer) — Sun, 08 Nov 2009 08:14:00 +0000

Link:http://www.berkshireeagle.com/local/ci_13734375
By Jenn Smith
Across Berkshire County, efforts to curb underage drinking and substance abuse are gearing to become more visible in the community.

"We want kids to be healthy," said Alan Bashevkin, executive director of the Northern Berkshire Community Coalition.

This week, the Mount Greylock Communities Mobilizing for Change on Alcohol held its first event in a four-part lecture series called "Encouraging Life Above the Influence."

This Sunday, a "Sticker Shock" campaign will be launched in Adams and Williamstown. On Wednesday, it will take place in Lanesborough. In a "Sticker Shock" campaign, adults and student visit participating area package stores and alcohol vendors and place stickers on packages of beer and alcohol to remind adults it's illegal to buy booze for minors. The Pittsfield Prevention Partnership will also soon be launching a similar campaign.

On Dec. 1, the South Berkshire Youth Coalition will hold a public forum to present findings and statistics from the 2009 Prevention Needs Assessment Survey in relation to South County youths.

"We'll be unveiling a two-year action plan in response to this, and we'll be looking for feedback from the community," said Kathleen Jackson, director of the Youth Coalition.

The survey, which was administered to nearly every eighth-, 10th- and 12-grader in Berkshire County in June, details both startling and positive data on youth alcohol and drug use, and other risky behaviors. It also details student-identified interventions that work and don't work.

In South County, the 12th-grade students who report they had consumed more than five drinks in one sitting, within two weeks at the time of the survey, was 43 percent. The national average is 26 percent.

In North County, 32 percent of 12th-graders reported that they drank alcohol provided by an adult family member or friend within the past year.

"The survey isn't 100 percent accurate. No survey is. But it caught a lot of trends that people were talking about," said Jackson.

This fall, the Northern Berkshire Community Coalition, South Berkshire Youth Coalition and Pittsfield Prevention Partnership have been analyzing and sharing their region-specific data from the survey with various stakeholders like schools and other youth service groups.

"My goal is just to get people talking about it," said Jenna Dickinson, who coordinates the Communities Mobilizing for Change on Alcohol at the Northern Berkshire Community Coalition.

Karen Cole, the new coordinator of the Pittsfield Prevention Partnership, said the group has been trying to get more parents involved in the process of prevention by offering an online program with The Counseling Center in the Berkshires called Parenting Wisely. The partnership also teamed up with Berkshire Children and Families this summer to offer a second program, Guiding Good Choices.

Overall, agencies say they're looking to work with youths, adults and organizations to develop cooperative solutions to the county's drug and alcohol problems.

"Our initiative is community based. If the approaches we're taking are not welcome, we're not going to take them," said Jackson.

Jackson said it's also important for communities to be aware that drug and alcohol abuse is not just a youth issue.

"We don't live in a community where youths are using and adults aren't," she said. "The theory is that people are going to do what is perceived as socially acceptable. The idea is to change the social norms on substance and alcohol abuse."

UK: Student pub crawls face ban amid backlash over drunken disorder

noreply@blogger.com (Smart Partyer) — Sun, 08 Nov 2009 08:12:00 +0000

Link:http://www.guardian.co.uk/education/2009/nov/08/philip-laing-carnage-binge-drinking
Amelia Hill
The outrage after undergraduate Philip Laing urinated on a war memorial has led many student unions to bar Carnage, the firm that runs the drinking events

Participating in at least a modicum of alcohol-induced mayhem is an integral and, some might say, a formative part of the modern undergraduate experience. But the company that tried to turn the formula into business gold is this week experiencing a backlash so fierce it has caused it to be banned from student unions across the country.

Carnage UK is an organisation that organises drinking events for an estimated 350,000 undergraduates in 45 towns and cities every year. National outrage against the group was provoked last week when 19-year-old Philip Laing was found guilty of ending a seven-hour drinking binge, during an event organised by Carnage, by urinating on a wreath of poppies at a war memorial.

Laing, who now faces a jail sentence, was one of more than 2,000 students who attended the marathon bar crawl last month. He told a court in Sheffield that on the night of the incident he had been "the drunkest I have ever been at uni" and had no memory of his actions.

This week Carnage will run 10 identical nights in cities across Britain. At each event, teenagers pay £10 for a T-shirt for free entry to around 10 bars and a nightclub, many of which offer cheap drink promotions to mark the occasion.

But when the Observer contacted the student unions in the cities where the events are to be held, more than half said they had urgent concerns and were doing all they could to disrupt or ban the drinking marathons. The unions were not alone – the Observer also spoke to local authorities, MPs and police who confirmed that they too were doing all they could to ensure the binge-drinking extravaganzas did not take place.

"There is an acute and real danger to students who get caught up with these nights, not to mention the danger to members of the local population, and the harm done to town and gown community relationships," said Richard Budden, vice-president of the National Union of Students (NUS). "An increasing number of campuses want to see the end of these events and are doing all they can to stop them by prohibiting ticket sales and banning all publicity.

"They take students on pub crawls that degrade the participants, put students' welfare at risk and lead to antisocial behaviour. They make their money and then disappear, leaving student unions, police, and sometimes even the hospitals to pick up the pieces."

The judge presiding over Laing's case has led the way for the retaliation against Carnage. District Judge Anthony Browne had harsh words for Laing's "disgusting and reprehensible" act. But he also held the organisation itself to account.

Browne said Carnage should be up in the dock alongside the sports technology student from Sheffield Hallam University. "Carnage is the name of the organisation I believe promotes this activity, and some might say somebody [from the company] should be standing alongside you this morning," he said.

Opprobrium for the company and its events have spread since Laing's case hit the headlines. The NUS has launched a campaign to stop the company holding any further events, writing to local authorities and MPs, spelling out its concerns and asking for support. According to an Observer poll, at least 17 student unions have already barred Carnage and all its advertising from their premises and others are expected to follow.

In addition, pubs, clubs and students in Bangor, north Wales, have combined forces to stop Carnage events. Their boycott came after a local man was allegedly attacked during an event that necessitated a doubling of police and ambulance resources, and led to the local MP raising concerns with the Home Office.

Bangor was not the first city that found itself having to record a violent incident linked to a Carnage event: Gethin Bevan was just 20, a brilliant student at the University of Bath who, according to his friends, was "always smiling". At the inquest into his death last year his friends were at a loss to explain why the apparently happy biology undergraduate had hanged himself by a belt behind a nightclub during a night out.

The coroner, Terence Moore, was also confused. There was no evidence to suggest the keen rugby player wanted to take his own life, he said. Equally, there was no suggestion it was a prank or an accident. His death occurred after five hours of extraordinarily heavy drinking during a Carnage bar crawl.

Carnage insists it doesn't encourage irresponsible drinking but those who have attended the nights say it is almost impossible to do otherwise.

"The expectation of a bar crawl is that everyone will have at least one drink in each bar on the route," said 19-year-old Jo, who attended an event in the north of England last year. "But because there are up to 2,000 people on the same route at the same time, there is a massive crush at every venue, which leads to people mass purchasing drinks so they don't have to queue again. Carnage might not explicitly encourage binge-drinking but the impact of these factors is inevitable. It is pretty much what the name of the organisation promises."

This week, Carnage will stage events in locations including Bath, Lincoln, Swansea and York. So alarmed are the student unions in those cities that they have threatened to withdraw their endorsement from any bar that agrees to take part. Loughborough's student union has also waged a largely successful anti-Carnage battle. A spokesman said: "We got the night cancelled two years ago but, last year, Carnage tried to hold the event for Loughborough students in Leicester. Again, we campaigned against it. This year Carnage is not being held for Loughborough students in either Loughborough or Leicester."

Bath Spa University has been in talks with the council to ban the event. But, said Daniel Leigh, the student union's vice-president, the union's promotion of sensible drinking might have played into Carnage's hands: "The union has stopped organising any specific university-led bar crawls, and this might suggest why Carnage is so popular," he said.

Varsity Leisure Group, which owns Carnage UK, denies it encourages irresponsible drinking. "This is completely untrue," said a spokesman. "Student unions do not like Carnage UK events because they clearly compete with their own, less well-resourced events."

On its website, the company states: "At the forefront of our mindset is student safety." It cites measures such as free soft drinks at all venues and on-site medical services.

But those who experience the events disagree. "External medical teams attend Carnage events as a matter of course," said Ben Whittaker, vice-president for NUS Welfare. "Any organised bar crawl that has an ambulance following behind it clearly has something deeply wrong."

UK: Alcohol watchdog warning over free CeltFest drinks

noreply@blogger.com (Smart Partyer) — Sun, 08 Nov 2009 08:10:00 +0000

Link:http://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/wales-news/2009/11/07/alcohol-watchdog-warning-over-free-celtfest-drinks-91466-25111397/
by Gareth Evans
THE Welsh Council on Alcohol and Other Drugs has condemned the decision to give thousands of party-goers two free pints each as “irresponsible”.

Headline acts including Max Boyce and Rhydian Roberts will perform at the CeltFest event at Cardiff International Arena today.

Former Royal harpist Jemima Phillips, currently awaiting retrial for burglary, will also perform.

CeltFest runs from midday to midnight and organisers are hoping to attract around 4,500 people to the event, which will show the Wales v New Zealand game on a giant screen.

Shane Williams will also take part in a question and answer session after the game.

But Welsh Council on Alcohol and Other Drugs chief executive, Wynford Ellis Owen, said the free drinks promotion encouraged the misuse of alcohol.

“We are in danger of turning Cardiff into a huge binge-drinking city,” said Mr Owen.

“It’s a gimmick and when something is given away free – that is when it becomes dangerous.

“The consequences of alcohol misuse are always at the top of the news agenda, but people continue to be taken advantage of.”

Transport tycoon Clayton Jones, one of the men behind CeltFest, rebuffed the claims, saying: “Our first CeltFest went off without a bit of trouble, and as a licence holder myself, I know the people we attract will be tidy and clean.

“We’ve managed to persuade many Welsh companies to be involved in the CeltFest and two pints of local produce over 12 hours is nothing. Most people will be looking to find somewhere dry to watch the rugby. Drinking is always up to the individual.”

UK: Drink shame of mum who headbutted woman on dancefloor

noreply@blogger.com (Smart Partyer) — Sun, 08 Nov 2009 08:10:00 +0000

Link:http://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/news/s/1181295_drink_shame_of_mum_who_headbutted_woman_on_dancefloor
by Stan Miller and Dan Thompson

Sharon Kennedy, 28, who admitted headbutting another woman while drunk in a Manchester nightclub
A DRUNKEN quantity surveyor headbutted another woman in a trendy nightclub - days after posing for a photoshoot about binge-drinking professional women.

Mum-of-two Sharon Kennedy, 28, left her young victim covered in blood on the dancefloor of Moho Live and carried on dancing as though nothing had happened, a court heard.

Days earlier, Kennedy posed for photographs showing her preparing to down a shot of sambuca for a newspaper feature.

Kennedy was given a suspended sentence when she admitted the assault at Manchester magistrates' court - but the judge said she had only been spared jail because of the impact on her children.

She appeared before magistrates on the same day two female nurses were convicted of drink-driving - prompting concerns about the rise of alcohol-fuelled offences involving professional women.

Traumatised

One of Manchester’s top judges spoke out about the amount of women appearing in the court on drink-related offences.

District Judge Alan Berg – who did not sentence Kennedy but has overseen a string of similar cases in his court – said: “The number of alcohol-fuelled cases coming before me is getting beyond my comprehension.

"You probably watch the same TV programmes as me of young women who lose all control of their senses and behave in a horribly drunken and drugged manner. They are like wild animals – and I am fed up with it.”

Kennedy, of Lord Street, Middleton, headbutted 22-year-old Hollie Capewell in the Northern Quarter club.

Gareth Hughes, prosecuting, said prior to the butt, Kennedy, who was drunk, had punched Miss Capewell several times about the head and face.

Miss Capewell suffered a swollen nose and two black eyes, which took weeks to heal. She said the attack, in May, left her feeling traumatised. In a statement read out in court she said: “It was totally unprovoked – I feel I have lost two months of my life."

Kennedy, who has a previous conviction for benefit fraud, was sentenced to a 12-week suspended jail term.

Madness

She was ordered to undertake 200 hours unpaid work and pay £500 compensation to Miss Capewell. District Judge Diana Baker told her she would have gone to jail but for her children.

Gavin Clarke, defending, said Kennedy was at a loss to explain her behaviour. He said: “It was a moment of madness”.

In the same court on the same day, nurses Eleanor Riley and Helen Longden admitted drink-driving. Riley, 22, of Hadfield Close, Victoria Park, drank two pints and crashed her car in the city centre. She wept in court as she was fined £235 with £85 costs and banned from driving for 16 months.

Longden, a psychiatrist nurse, was arrested twice in six days for driving her father’s mobility car while over the limit.

On one occasion, she had ploughed into the back of another car in Longsight.

Longden, 41, of Chiltern Drive, Swinton, was given a five-month jail sentence suspended for a year and banned from off the road for four years.

District Judge Wendy Lloyd told her: “You have disgraced yourself.”

Australia: 'Drunk' chief inspector's wild night out

noreply@blogger.com (Smart Partyer) — Sun, 08 Nov 2009 08:06:00 +0000

Link:http://www.news.com.au/story/0,27574,26317988-421,00.html

Chief inspector Shane Cribb under investigation for a boozy night on the town.
A HIGH-ranking police officer and champion of responsible drinking is under investigation for allegedly flashing his police badge and urinating into a hand-basin during a boozy night out in Port Macquarie.

Chief Inspector Shane Cribb, 38, was allegedly refused service and ejected from two popular bars during the wild night out on October 9.

The officer, who has previously spoken harshly about the dangers of binge-drinking, is understood to have told superiors that his drink was spiked. He is on leave and will be the subject of an internal investigation when he returns to work.

"Statements have been taken as part of the investigation, including a statement from a licensee," Mid North Coast Local Area police commander Peter Thurtell said.

"The investigation includes an allegation that the officer failed to quit a licensed premises."

NSW Police Commissioner Andrew Scipione, a teetotaller and devout Christian, has been informed of the investigation.

The alleged drunken indiscretion began unfolding at the VB Gold Port Macquarie Cup - the premier horse-racing event on the Mid North Coast calender.

The Sunday Telegraph has been told Inspector Cribb began drinking as an invited guest while at a trackside marquee. He was reportedly later seen cutting a long queue to use the toilets and, when there was no space available to relieve himself, allegedly urinated into a hand-basin.

His drunken behaviour later saw him refused service at Finnian's Irish Tavern, where he was asked to leave in the presence of fellow officers on a licensing operation.

An imposing 195cm rugby player, Insp Cribb allegedly then used his police badge to demand service from staff, before being physically removed by general duties police.

He told his colleagues he had a room booked at the Port Macquarie Hotel where, allegedly after they left, he was refused entry because of his drunken state.

He then allegedly went to the back of the pub where he again flashed his police badge and ordered a security guard to allow him inside. Several security guards and police, including the local crime manager, were called to wrestle him back out of the venue after he again refused to leave.

One officer told The Sunday Telegraph Insp Cribb was witnessed on the street outside the Port Macquarie Hotel, holding his police badge in the air, yelling: "This is war - this is the NSW Police versus the Macquarie Hotel."

The alleged incident has embarrassed police officials who worked closely with race organisers to curb problems with alcohol on the day.

Warnings were also issued to revellers via the media about curbing their alcohol consumption.

Insp Cribb has long campaigned to reduce alcohol-fuelled violence and teenage binge-drinking on the Mid North Coast. He could not be contacted for comment.

He was quoted last year in a Coffs Harbour newspaper, pushing the message of responsible drinking to the local community.

"The responsibility for maintaining safe alcohol practices rests with everyone in the community, and should be taken seriously," he said.

"Alcohol-related crime and violence will not be tolerated by police within the Coffs/Clarence Local Area Command and all offenders will be dealt with accordingly."

Insp Cribb previously made headlines after being charged and cleared over a shooting incident at Abbotsford in 2001. Then a detective sergeant, he fired at a ram-raider who later pursued legal action against the NSW Police Force, which ended with a settlement.

India: Street play on alcohol abuse

noreply@blogger.com (Smart Partyer) — Sun, 08 Nov 2009 08:04:00 +0000

Link:http://www.expressbuzz.com/edition/story.aspx?Title=Street+play+on+alcohol+abuse&artid=|BjoE2FErsU=&SectionID=lMx/b5mt1kU=&MainSectionID=lMx/b5mt1kU=&SEO=&SectionName=tm2kh5uDhixGlQvAG42A/07OVZOOEmts

A still from the street play.
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The Centre for Gandhian Studies, University of Kerala, has come up with a new street play against alcohol abuse. By portraying the deadly effects of alcohol in a family where the sole bread-winner takes to it, the play conveys a strong message to be floated in the society.

The street play, named ‘sabko sanmathi de bhagvan’ will be staged at the Thycaud Gandhi Bhavan auditorium on November 8 at 5 p.m. The first show was held at the University Students Study Centre in October.

It is as part of the anti-drug, anti-alcohol campaign of the Centre for Gandhian Studies that the street play has been done. The play is performed by Amma Group of Entertainments based at Poojapura in the city.

Praveen Raj Kilimanoor, who had bagged first prizes in acting, direction and scripting in university-level competitions, has done the direction and script work of the play. Kannan R.Nair has done the music. The half-an-hour play will be open to public. For details, call 9387018695.

US: Emory Educates on Alcohol Safety

noreply@blogger.com (Smart Partyer) — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 08:30:00 +0000

Link:http://www.emorywheel.com/detail.php?n=27631
By Alice Chen

Alice Chen/Asst. News Editor
Freshman Anna Zhang celebrates a victory in last night’s Alcohol Trivia Night in the Few Multipurpose Room. The event was part of National Collegiate Alcohol Awareness Week and was moderated by Vice Provost Santa Ono and College junior Alec Fox.
Student Health Counseling Services (SHCS) and the Faculty Staff Assistance Program (FSAP) collaborated to host the annual National Collegiate Alcohol Awareness Week (NCAAW) during the first week of November.

In a series of events ranging from panel speakers to game nights, NCAAW at Emory aims to increase awareness in the college environment and in the overall Emory community, according to SHCS health educator Alyssa Lederer, who said that the week held four key messages including awareness, resource availability, stigma elimination and providing options.

“We want to make sure the community knows about the resources available,” she said. “We’re here to be here for students and employees.”

The University’s second annual NCAAW kicked off on Monday with “Real Talk with Gini and Willie,” where students submitted anonymous questions online. Lederer said about 50 students attended the session with questions about what alcohol-free events are available on campus and how to help a friend in trouble.
Topics this year differed from those of last year’s, Lederer said. Last year’s panel discussion focused on Amethyst Initiative, a collaboration of presidents of universities across the United States who advocate rethinking the current drinking age of 21.

“It was really a big part of the press last year,” Lederer explained and added that the panel explored different approaches to keeping the community safe. “It was a call for dialogue on the drinking age, and [University] President [James W.] Wagner was open to what people were saying.”

Lederer said that because Amethyst Initiative is not as prevalent in the media as it was last year, NCAAW did not put as much emphasis on the controversial topic this year.

Instead, students and faculty discussed topics such as safety and where to go for help. A workshop led by members of rehabilitation program Richfield Institute educated faculty and staff on how to help someone who may be abusing alcohol.

“We want to really destigmatize talk about alcohol,” Lederer said.
Interactive events such as last night’s Alcohol Trivia Night aimed to inform students and open discussion.

Wagner opened the night, addressing about 60 participants.

“Having knowledge on this kind of a subject is a good power to have,” Wagner said.

Senior Vice Provost for Undergraduate Academic Affairs Santa Ono and College junior Alec Fox lead the trivia event with questions concerning the difference between a “black-out” and a “brown-out” and where to go for help.

Lederer emphasized the importance of knowing what resources are available on campus and that students should be familiar with substance abuse counselors Virginia Plummer and Willie Bannister.

To keep the atmosphere of the event engaging, not all of the questions were as serious.

“What song is this?” Ono asked, reading lyrics to the students who requested that he sing them instead.

“I’d rather be at home with Ray/I ain’t got 70 days,” Ono rapped Amy Winehouse’s “Rehab” among laughter, “There’s nothing you can teach me/that I can’t learn from Mr. Hathaway.”

Lederer said that the goal of NCAAW is to reach out to all students and faculty, wherever they stand on the issue of alcohol awareness.

“We want to meet people where they’re at,” she said. “We want to make sure students who don’t drink are happy with that choice and that those who do make low-risk decisions.”

NCAAW was a joint effort, Lederer said. She said that this year, SHCS and FSAP met with leaders on campus representing organizations such as Student Government Association and Interfraternity Council to plan the week’s events.

“What’s most important to your constituency? What kind of information should we present, and what’s the best way to get the information out?” Lederer said of the questions the group leaders were asked.

The events, she said, were based off of suggestions made during this meeting, and were targeted toward both students and faculty.
SHCS and FSAP will be evaluating the week with participant feedback in order to plan for future events.

Overall, Lederer said that she hopes this year’s NCAAW was able to educate the Emory community on the issue of alcohol, that people are aware of the resources available on campus and that students and faculty are open to discussion.

“Alcohol is an issue that has a lot of attention, but also carries a stigma,” Lederer said. “[Discussion] can be challenging, so we want to make sure people know there’s a forum for that here.”

US: PA: Public drunkenness everyone’s problem

noreply@blogger.com (Smart Partyer) — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 08:28:00 +0000

Link:http://www.centredaily.com/public-issues-forum/story/1612374.html
FOCUS ON EXCESSIVE DRINKING

This letter was sent to Penn State President Graham Spanier on May 25. It is reprinted here with the author's permission, along with a column by Spanier.

These are published today in hopes that they spark a community dialogue on the impact of problem drinking locally. A Public Issues Forum on Thursday, as detailed on Wednesday's Views page, also will tackle the excessive drinking issue.

Readers are welcome to share their views in 200-word letters and 500- word columns for publication in the Centre Daily Times and on CentreDaily.com in coming weeks. Send them to cdtletters@centredaily.com or mail them to us.
Dear President Spanier, I am writing to inform you of an incident that occurred at our house Friday, May 1 involving a Penn State student. It was terribly traumatic and my hope is that after hearing about it you will be spurred on to action to address the widespread nature of extremely excessive consumption of alcohol by students as well as the relationship of students with the community in which they reside during their years in State College and University Park.

At 1 a.m. we were awakened by a noise that turned out to be an extremely drunk student who had come into our house, into one of our bathrooms, and was in the process of taking a shower, even though he had completely pulled down the shower curtain and rod in his drunkenness.

He was naked from the waist down. The bathroom he was in is our oldest daughter’s, and her room is a mere few feet away. My husband and I wrestled him out of the house amid much screaming, but not before our daughter was awakened and witnessed the incident.

We managed to get him out the front door and he took off running down the street. We called 911 and the police tackled him a block and a half away and took him to spend the night in jail. He was charged with many crimes, including indecent exposure.

This event has been extremely traumatic for our daughter. Even though she is remarkably intellectual and a dedicated and high-achieving student, she now claims she does not want to go to college, “if that’s how college students are,” and is completely disillusioned with Penn State (even though my husband is a professor and I am in graduate school here).

We live in the Holmes-Foster neighborhood and since that night we have talked with many of our neighbors and residents in other neighborhoods and the police about this sort of crime.

The sad news is how prevalent it is. Literally every family we spoke with had a story of a drunken Penn State student coming into their house thinking it was their own — even arguing with the owners about whose house it was!

Scarier still are the stories of drunk students climbing into bed with strangers and, in some cases, trying to have sex with them. The police have informed us that they have found students out walking on the highway convinced that they were right by their fraternity house.

And this brings us to the crux of the matter: It is all too common for Penn State students to get so drunk that they have no idea where they are or what they are doing. It may seem funny to think of a drunk person coming up to your porch banging on the door crying to be let in, but it quickly becomes unfunny when that person has their pants off and is near your young daughter.

Yet the general attitude around town is that extremely drunken college students are the norm. One neighbor, after hearing our story, even said, “Welcome to State College. Most places send cheese trays. Here we send drunken college kids.”

The acceptance of this kind of dangerous over-consumption is unacceptable on every level. Let me be clear. I have no problem with legal-age people drinking and maybe even drinking a little too much. I am also aware that young people will make mistakes. However, that understanding is very different from an acceptance of the attitude that one’s undergraduate years are to be spent in a blackout two or three nights a week, which is not uncommon on college campuses.

The idea that there is some rite of passage that American college students have to go through by binge drinking needs to be debunked — and fast. Do we really need to wait for that rape or accidental murder or death to happen before we realize what a problem this is?

This kind of extreme drinking is not only dangerous for the drinker and the local residents but it drastically changes the community. Dana Mitra, a professor in the department of education policy studies surveyed students at Mount Nittany Middle School, asking them what was the biggest change they would like to be able to make about their lives.

Their answer? College drinking, because the middle schoolers’ parents will not let them downtown alone even in the early evening to go to a coffee shop with friends or to shop because they are too worried about what may happen to them around the drunk college students.

This is one of the “safest” communities in America and yet our 13- year-olds cannot spend time in town because of fear of drunken college students’ behavior? Not only is this completely ridiculous, it is unjust.

We should not have to live in fear of binge drinking and its consequences. Nor should we have to tolerate the petty crimes associated with it. Yet every year — every week, in fact — property damage happens to private residents at the hands of these drunks.

There is a sign for a preschool at the corner of Sparks Street and Beaver Avenue that is wrecked every year by college students. Everyone I have talked to who lives anywhere near students can leave nothing in their yards — no children’s toys, nothing, because it will be damaged or stolen by drunk college students.

Neighbors have told me of practically being run down in the streets by students literally running for bars after the Ohio State game (were the students really that worried that there wouldn’t be any alcohol left?) and being afraid to take their children downtown on St. Patrick’s Day.

Why do we have to go on accepting this kind of abuse? Why does this have to continue as the American way to get through college?

I am aware of attempts to curb college drinking through education about the ill effects of alcohol as well as providing alternatives to parties focused only on getting extremely drunk.

These actions are important but I believe there is a component missing in all of this. College students must stop seeing themselves as disinterested transients aloof to the community in which they live during their years here. They need to see and understand that they, too, are residents.

This is where community and local action come in, but I strongly believe that it needs to be spearheaded and supported by you (and other university presidents in their towns).

I believe that a much greater effort must be exerted by the university to develop students as good citizens and stewards of their community. They need to view themselves as part of something that is larger than themselves and their search for a good time. They need to realize that their actions really affect other people.

Getting so drunk that you barely know who you are, where you are or what you are doing is the very epitome of irresponsibility. It is as if these binge-drinking students really think nothing they do matters. It does matter. It not only matters a great deal to all of us who have to witness and bear the brunt of their actions, but it matters to their development as responsible adults.

Students need to learn one of the most important lessons of life: You need to be responsible for yourself and your behavior and it is unacceptable to go around trashing your local community.

The sad truth is that most of these types of crimes go unreported or are not criminalized because the police are overwhelmed and because of the level of acceptance of drunkenness.

My husband has a goal of starting a Web site where people can describe their stories of their homes and families being violated by drunken students. That way people will be able to see how prevalent this problem really is.

I hope it is apparent that I am not against students in any way. In fact, it is just the opposite; I want our community to become even more integrated. We love the vibrancy and diversity the university and its students bring to the community. But I hope that it is equally clear that something needs to be done about excessive drinking and the irresponsibility that goes along with it, and that we are very angry, scared, frustrated and upset by the whole experience.

This issue needs to be brought right out into the daylight and addressed. I urge you to be a leader in the process of confronting this issue and to begin perforating the myth that to make your way through college drunk is acceptable, cool and necessary.

I imagine you would rather be a president of a university whose students drink responsibly and are upstanding members of their community rather than one who heads one of the biggest, most notorious party campuses in the U.S. At least, I hope you would.

I also want to make it clear that I realize that this is a long-term problem and that change in students’ behavior will not happen right away. But that does not mean action to address this issue cannot happen right away.

Our daughter, as well as many other community members who have been hurt by binge drinkers, needs to know that the adults with power and influence in State College and University Park take this matter seriously. I hope you will act swiftly and decisively to begin the process of change. Sincerely,

A State College resident

The defendant in this case pleaded guilty to indecent exposure, was suspended from Penn State and is expected to be sentenced this month. The writer’s name has been withheld due to the nature of the case.

US: IL: Top 3 cheap beers to try during college

noreply@blogger.com (Smart Partyer) — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 08:26:00 +0000

Link:http://www.northernstar.info/article/8982/
By ALAN EDRINN
College should be full of bad decisions, and bad decisions should be full of cheap alcohol.
To set the record straight, I am not condoning binge drinking, driving under the influence, starting bar fights or any type of public indecency. But if you’re going to get stupid drunk, save money and do it the classy way.

MD 20/20: Whether you know it as Morgan David or Mad Dog, this individual “bottle” of “wine” will knock down even the most veteran drinkers. Mad Dog combines the taste and after effects of communion wine and morphine: you get knocked down, numbed up and put in a stupid happy mood for any neighborhood priest.

King Cobra: A very gentle and rewarding creature despite its primal animal name, King Cobra is by far the King of the 40 kingdom. Like most 40s, the king doesn’t have a typical beer taste, but it does go down smooth and even has an intimidating picture of its namesake. King Cobra gives you a nice mellow drunk, without a hangover or projectile vomiting.

Sparks: Part energy drink, part malt liquor, 100 percent hilarious experience. Not a drink you want to take to a party, but for hanging around your own dwelling, it makes for a delicious adventure. One minute you’re awake, the next you’re stumbling, and then the whole process repeats for about an hour. This is the drink for you if you like energy drinks, booze and the effects of both.

If you’re looking for a fun time on a cheap budget, and you have the resources to manage the effects listed above, I recommend trying all three of these during your college experience. Save money, be safe and be merry.

US: CA: Teenager arrested in Boulder Creek DUI crash

noreply@blogger.com (Smart Partyer) — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 08:24:00 +0000

Link:http://www.pressbanner.com/pages/full_story/push?article-Teenager+arrested+in+Boulder+Creek+DUI+crash%20&id=4347149-Teenager+arrested+in+Boulder+Creek+DUI+crash&instance=home_news_lead_story
by Michelle Camerlingo
Samuel Zehr, a 19-year-old from Ben Lomond, suffered major injuries when his Ford Mustang flipped on its side while he was driving on Love Creek Road.

According to the California Highway Patrol, Zehr was under the influence of alcohol at the time of the crash.

Zehr and his passenger, a 17-year-old Brookdale boy, had to crawl out of the wreckage after Zehr’s car crossed the double yellow lines, crashed into a dirt mound and rolled onto its right side, the CHP said. He was driving south on the mountain road at about 7 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 31.

Zehr and his passenger were flown to Stanford for treatment, CHP officer Sarah Jackson said.

Zehr has been charged with a felony DUI because his passenger was injured. He could be charged with child endangerment, as well, Jackson said.

Zehr was arrested but not booked into Santa Cruz County Jail because of his injuries. Preliminary tests three hours after the crash showed his blood alcohol content at 0.13, significantly over the legal limit of 0.08 for those 21 and older.

The crash followed less than a week after the release of results from the California Healthy Kids Survey, which discusses alcohol and drug use.

The survey showed that teenagers in Santa Cruz County have higher levels of alcohol use and binge drinking than at their peers across the state. The results also showed that alcohol may be easier for young people to obtain now than two years ago.

US: WI: Rethink our alcohol culture

noreply@blogger.com (Smart Partyer) — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 08:22:00 +0000

Link:http://www.wausaudailyherald.com/article/20091106/WDH06/911060303
BY PETE HOOVER
After hearing too many sad stories about the devastating wake left by alcohol abuse in Wisconsin, it's quite clear that the badger state has become comfortably numbed into submission. Many of us are no longer in control of our own lives, so instead we let drinking decide for us. It's easier that way and then the blame isn't our own.

Despite law enforcement's efforts to crack down on drunken driving, the police blotter is still full of third, fourth and even eighth or ninth-time DUI violators. Many drunken drivers continue to get away with driving impaired and are never caught, and only when their risky choices result in a death or serious injury do we bother to stop and take note. Even sadder, when faced with sentencing drivers who cause the death of innocent others, judges seem to offer softer prison terms, almost admitting that they, too, have become numbed by our "drunk culture."

Something has to give. If we, as adults, can only model partying to get drunk to our youngsters, how can we expect them to behave any differently? By providing the booze for our underage young people, we're not only telling them that they should start drinking, but are also encouraging future generations to ignore the laws designed for their safety.

With alcoholism running on both sides of my family, I fear that the choice might not be made by my kids, but rather by genetics, peer pressure and societal apathy.

Wisconsin's legal response to drunken driving is equally ineffective. When an alcoholic has gotten quality substance abuse treatment and still refuses to quit driving drunk, our laws provide very little incentive to avoid repeat offenses. Our focus seems so intent on the welfare of the alcoholic and his family, we forget about our own well-being.

Our legislators need to start by getting serious about DUI fines by pushing hard for dramatic revisions to the law. Stop making a first offense a misdemeanor. Double or triple fines for repeat abusers, increase jail time and get serious about deterring drunk driving. Require ignition locks on convicted driver's vehicles. Provide significant financial incentives for bartenders to reward designated drivers. We should explore the establishment of sobriety checkpoints to send a clear message that driving drunk is unacceptable. Otherwise we may never live to see the rights we seek to protect.

Moreover, we might just have to start embracing the idea that driving is actually a privilege rather than a right. If you abuse it, you lose it. Some would say it's like Big Brother at work, but the state should ensure our collective safety by impounding and selling the vehicles of flagrant repeat offenders, then taking the proceeds to pay for their treatment and jail costs.

If we continue as aimlessly as we are now, the preventable body count spirals tragically higher. What's more important, however, is what our inaction is saying to those families devastated by alcohol abuse. How do we face them and tell them their loved ones are "acceptable losses?" We owe it to them and to ourselves to reeducate Wisconsinites, reinvent how we view alcohol, rewrite our laws and finally say enough is enough. Contact your legislators and demand that they toughen up the law now.

Pete Hoover is a reader from Mosinee

US: OH: Survey: 1 in 4 seniors admit using alcohol

noreply@blogger.com (Smart Partyer) — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 08:21:00 +0000

Link:http://www.middletownjournal.com/news/middletown-news/survey-1-in-4survey-1-in-4-seniors-admit-using-alcohol-388033.html
By Marie Rossiter
LEBANON — Approximately one in four Lebanon High School seniors have consumed alcohol within a 30-day period, according to a recent drug and alcohol use survey.

Findings from the Pride Survey, sponsored by the Coalition for a Drug-Free Cincinnati were shared with parents and students Thursday, Nov. 5, by community leaders at an open discussion forum at the Lebanon Junior High School. A total of 1,760 Lebanon students in seventh through 12th grades participated in the survey in January 2008.

“Drugs and alcohol are out there,” said Lebanon High School Principal Sam Ison. “It’s important to acknowledge it is an issue and we have to raise awareness in order to help reduce the numbers.”

Survey findings show approximately 25 percent of seniors admitted to drinking within 30 days of taking the survey. Marijuana was the most popular drug for high school students, with 7.6 percent of ninth-graders, approximately 13 percent of 10th- and 11th-graders and 16.5 percent of 12th-graders saying they used the drug.

Mike Sheehy, a local parent on the discussion panel, said drug and alcohol prevention start with the parents.

“We have to take the lead and hold ourselves accountable,” Sheehy told the crowd of at least 50 parents and students. “We can’t expect teachers, police and pastors to be the only ones responsible. We have to learn the effects of substance abuse and talk with our children about it.”

Warren County Assistant Prosecutor Bruce McGarry said there were about 2,800 juvenile cases prosecuted last year. Of those cases, he said many of them were tied to drug use.

“Our numbers of young people using drugs is lower than the national average,” McGarry said. “But, this is still a problem in Lebanon. We can’t change the number of cases already brought to court, but we can work with students to prevent them from happening in the first place.”

McGarry said that success rates for young people with drug rehabilitation is typically higher than adults, which can lead to fewer repeat offenders in the future.

The survey did show that overall drug and alcohol use was down about 33 percent since 2006, but officials said that is enough.

“Any number is a high number,” Ison said. “We are continuing to be proactive in our approach with our students to bring that number down.”

Panelists said talking to children openly about the hazards of drug and alcohol use can be the most powerful prevention tool. Keeping students active in school, community and church activities is another way to help students resist the temptation of drugs and alcohol, according to Ison.

Julie Crago, a mother with three students in Lebanon schools, said she was surprised by the number of students who admitted drinking alcohol at a friend’s house.

“It says up to 43 percent of kids are doing this,” Crago said. “Now that I’m more aware of it, and will keep a closer eye on what happens at friends’ homes.”

Kathy Hilyard, who has two sons in the district, said she was concerned with how young many students are when they first try drugs or alcohol. The survey said 11 percent of the students were in seventh grade when they started drinking alcohol.

“I have a fifth-grader and I’m worried that maybe we’re not doing enough in the earlier grades,” Hilyard said.
“They need to learn early on how dangerous this is and what it can do to them. I hope the schools will start talking about it more when they are younger. I think that would help bring the numbers down.”

UK: Alcohol units on pint glasses

noreply@blogger.com (Smart Partyer) — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 08:20:00 +0000

Link:http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/top-stories/2009/11/06/pint-guide-on-alcohol-115875-21801293/
Britain's biggest beer maker is launching a "new weapon" in the battle to beat binge-drinking.

Scottish & Newcastle is spending £2million on new pint glasses showing how many units of alcohol are in its drinks.

The scheme will start later this month, with 1.8million new-look Foster's pint glasses in pubs and clubs by March.

They will be seen in TV ads and extended to the group's other beers and ciders, including Strongbow.

S&N spokesman David Jones said: "People need to make informed choices."

UK: 'Drunk' social worker struck off

noreply@blogger.com (Smart Partyer) — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 08:18:00 +0000

Link:http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/south_yorkshire/8347073.stm
A social worker from Sheffield who offered a client with alcohol issues a double whisky has been struck off.

When challenged by customers, Craig McLoughlin, 54, who admitted being drunk at the time, shouted that he was the man's social worker.

A committee of the General Social Care Council (GSCC) ruled that McLoughlin's actions amounted to misconduct.

The panel did not uphold allegations that McLoughlin had offered his client, known as Mr A, magic mushrooms.

The GSCC heard how Mr A, who had issues with psychosis linked to substance and alcohol abuse, was helped onto a detox programme by McLoughlin.

'I'll be your dad'

Andrew Swan, representing the GSCC, said McLoughlin had been on his own in a city centre pub on a day off in May 2005 when he bumped into Mr A and his girlfriend.

McLoughlin admitted that he had been very drunk and had consumed a bottle and a half of wine and several pints of beer, the panel heard.

The committee heard how McLoughlin invited the couple, who had gone to the pub for a meal, to sit with him.
McLoughlin then produced money and offered to buy whisky for Mr A.

"He went on to express his view to Mr A that nobody could be without alcohol and that was despite the fact that Mr A had recently undergone detox", Mr Swan said.

Mr A refused the drink.

Further distress was caused to Mr A, whose father died when he was 13, when McLoughlin said "Don't worry about your dad, I'll be your dad", the tribunal heard.

After McLoughlin had shouted to customers "I'm his social worker, this is our social work session", Mr A telephoned his grandmother to tell her what was going on.

She then reported McLoughlin to his bosses.

'Committed chap'

The GSCC committee did not find proof for allegations that McLoughlin offered Mr A some magic mushrooms, or that he asked Mr A to provide him with cannabis or sleeping tablets.

McLoughlin was employed by the city council to work for the Sheffield Care Trust in mental health services from September 2004.

He had been working on a temporary contract but resigned on the day of a disciplinary hearing in September 2005.

Elizabeth Johnson of the Sheffield Care Trust, said: "He [McLoughlin] was a genuinely nice and committed chap, but with an alcohol problem.

"The outcome for Mr A was devastating. He was lucky he had his grandmother for support."

UK: Church fights for alcoholics centre

noreply@blogger.com (Smart Partyer) — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 08:16:00 +0000

Link:http://www.pressandjournal.co.uk/Article.aspx/1471321?UserKey=
Highland Council plans to slash inverness Beechwood House funding by £200,000 next year

Church leaders yesterday joined the fight to keep open the only 24-hour centre for alcoholics in Inverness.

Inverness Presbytery is calling on the agencies involved in Beechwood House to work together to allow it to continue.

It came as a Highlands and Islands MSP urged the Scottish Government to help projects like Beechwood House, which is run by voluntary organisation CrossReach, if they want to tackle alcohol misuse.

The Designated Place unit is under threat of closure, with the loss of 10 jobs, because Highland Council plans to slash its funding by £200,000 next year.

The local authority wanted NHS Highland and Northern Constabulary to contribute towards the funding, but attempts to persuade them have failed.

In a report to the presbytery, its social responsibility committee convener, the Rev Ricky Reid, said 75% of those who use Beechwood House are among the “most vulnerable and at-risk alcohol abusers”.

He urged that funding be maintained until a proposed investigation into the consequences of closure was available for consideration.

He also stressed that consideration be given to the 2008 HM Inspectorate of Constabulary for Scotland report, which argued that police cells were not the best place for those who are intoxicated.

Mr Reid demanded “a commonsense appeal to slow down what appears to be a kneejerk reaction to the general funding crisis in Highland Council, and try to get the various agencies talking together”.

Yesterday, during a debate on minimum pricing in the Scottish Parliament, Labour MSP Rhoda Grant called for a “a joined-up approach to tackling alcohol misuse in our communities”.

She said: “Minimum pricing has yet to be tested, but facilities like Beechwood House have a proven track record and need proper levels of support maintained.

“If the government is serious about tackling harmful drinking and saving lives they have to get real about the facilities such as Beechwood, not only ensuring that they are funded but ensuring that there is increased capacity.

“If minimum pricing was the only avenue to tackle alcohol abuse most would support it, however my concern is that steps that would make a difference are being ignored, possibly because they are more complex.”

Australia: Alcopops still flow despite tax rise

noreply@blogger.com (Smart Partyer) — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 08:12:00 +0000

Link:http://www.theaustralian.com.au/business/industry-sectors/alcopops-still-flow-despite-tax-rise/story-e6frg98o-1225795200239
Christain Kerr and Matthew Franklin
ALCOPOP sales have returned to double-digit growth, despite last year's 70 per cent tax hike, amid signs the overall market for alcohol is growing, industry research obtained by The Weekend Australian shows.

The figures emerged yesterday as Kevin Rudd launched a fresh attack on binge drinking, sparking opposition accusations he was resorting to the issue to divert public attention from anger about his border security failures. But the Citigroup beverage trends analysis for last month reports sales of ready-to-drink, pre-mixed spirits -- RTDs, in industry speak, or alcopops -- "have returned to their pre-tax-hike double-digit growth trajectory".

"Beer doesn't appear to be losing out, suggesting overall alcoholic beverage market growth," the analysts added.

Beer sales grew notably in the wake of the alcopops tax, but Citigroup says the rebound in the RTD category "has had minimal impact on beer consumption to date . . . combined beer and RTD volume growth is currently trending 6 per cent ahead" of sales 12 months ago.

Earlier yesterday, the Prime Minister moved to put binge-drinking back on the agenda in an interview with his hometown newspaper, Brisbane's Courier Mail, in which he foreshadowed hard-hitting, anti-binge-drinking advertisements and a rethink on liquor licensing laws.

The comments came just days after a Newspoll published in The Australian revealed a dramatic seven-point slump in Labor's primary-vote support in the previous fortnight.

Malcolm Turnbull scoffed at Mr Rudd's latest promises, saying the Prime Minister was using binge-drinking as a smokescreen.

However, Public Health Association president and health policy professor Mike Daube backed Mr Rudd's approach yesterday, saying the alcopops tax had reduced teenage binge-drinking and that the Prime Minister seemed intent on tackling the big issues of opening hours, hard-hitting advertising and the price of alcohol.

"The Prime Minister is talking about real measures that will work," Professor Daube said.

Celebrating the completion of a major university project with a drink yesterday, four friends who also work in Adelaide's hospitality industry said they had noticed a drop-off in sales of ready-to-drink alcopops.

Claire Flood, 23, said she knew many people who would now buy a bottle of spirits and mix their own drinks instead of buying alcopops, "which I think is probably more dangerous than the standard drink . . . because it's not a standard measure".

US: Researchers Push For Ban On Alcohol Ads on T

noreply@blogger.com (Smart Partyer) — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 08:30:00 +0000

Link:http://www.wbur.org/2009/11/05/alcohol-ads
By SACHA PFEIFFER

Boston University Professor Michael Siegel says alcohol ads on the T, like this one for Absolut vodka, clearly target college students, most of whom are under the legal age for the sale of alcohol. (Courtesy Michael Siegel)
BOSTON — Boston University researchers who studied how many alcohol ads young people see on the MBTA on a typical day are calling for a ban on alcohol advertising on the T.

To do their study (PDF), the researchers rode each of the T’s four subway lines and counted the alcohol ads in every car. They found that the average train has two alcohol ads per car, and that almost 10,000 Boston Public School students take the T each day.

Professor Michael Siegel of the BU School of Public Health led the study and said there’s a proven link between alcohol advertising and teenage drinking.

“The state should not allow its property to be used by alcohol companies to recruit, entice and eventually convince youths to start drinking,” Siegel said, “especially when the legal age for purchasing alcohol is 21.”

Siegel said the state Legislature should pass a pending bill that would ban alcohol advertising on state property, including on the T.

The study appears in the American Journal of Public Health.

US: CA: DUI-related collisions, arrests pile up in Amador County

noreply@blogger.com (Smart Partyer) — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 08:26:00 +0000

Link:http://ledger-dispatch.com/news/newsview.asp?c=262502&topStory=1

A crane truck sits overturned after it was struck by a 1998 Dodge Intrepid on Sept. 1. The driver of the Intrepid was arrested on suspicion of DUI.
Photo by: Bill Lavallie
More than 56 people have been arrested in the last two months in Amador County for the same charge: Suspicion of driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol.

That total comes from arrests made in September and October between the area's three city police departments, the Amador County Sheriff's Office and the California Highway Patrol.

The first day of September started on a dark note when 27-year-old Christina Wise died from catastrophic injuries sustained in vehicle accident on Ridge Road. Wise and her fiance, 43-year-old Todd Castaldi, were returning to their residence in Pine Grove from the Jackson Rancheria Casino when Castaldi turned directly into the path of a 40,000-pound Sterling Crane truck, causing the collision that injured him and killed Wise. CHP officers arrested Castaldi on suspicion of DUI. The investigating officer, John Harding, confirmed last week that his department was urging the Amador County District Attorney's Office to prosecute Castaldi for vehicular manslaughter.

After Wise's death, September saw 25 more DUI arrests in Amador County. October saw 30, including two crashes involving children.

The first accident occurred Sept. 28 in Sutter Creek. As noon rolled around and streets through Martell were filling with lunch-time traffic, a school bus came to a stop at the intersection of Highway 49 and Ridge Road. Seconds later a 2003 GMC slammed into the back of it. Though the bus driver and children aboard were unharmed, CHP officers arriving on the scene quickly arrested the driver of the GMC, 48-year-old Catherine Rios of Amador City, for DUI.

Just four days after Rios drove into the school bus, CHP officers found themselves arresting 33-year-old Tiffany Nurse of River Pines for crashing her truck on Sutter-Ione Road. Officers said Nurse was "extremely intoxicated" as she drove her 9-year-old daughter to a soccer game. It was 10:40 a.m. Nurse was also arrested for felony child endangerment.

CHP officer Craig Harmon feels it's difficult to know what direction the fall DUI numbers are trending toward. "Right now I think the amount of DUI arrests is about equal to last year, overall," Harmon said. "We are expecting to see the DUIs in December climb above what we had in September and October. The Christmas season is always busy in terms of drinking and driving. However, they may not be higher than last December. It's hard to say."

US: UT: Fetal Alcohol Prevention Campaign Begins In Utah Liquor...

noreply@blogger.com (Smart Partyer) — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 08:24:00 +0000

Link:http://connect2utah.com/content/fulltext/?cid=60571
by: Rod Decker
Drinking while pregnant is America’s leading preventable cause of mental retardation.

Every three to six days a baby is born in Utah brain-damaged because his mother drank during pregnancy.

Thursday, Utah’s Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control launched a campaign against drinking while pregnant.

Liquor will be sold in sacks with the message "Alcohol and Pregnancy Don't Mix" printed on them. Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders education cards in English and Spanish will also be placed in all state liquor stores throughout Utah.

Utah Attorney General Mark Shurtleff becomes emotional when he talks about fetal alcohol spectrum disorder. He has a 17-year-old adoptive daughter with emotional problems because her birth mother drank. He dropped out of the United States Senate race this week to help his daughter.

He chokes up when he speaks publicly of her troubles.

Fetal alcohol spectrum disorder is entirely preventable. If women refrained from drinking while pregnant, the disorder would go away, said Dr. Susan Lewin of the U. of U. Department of pediatrics.

Officials hope the new awareness campaign will reduce drinking by pregnant women.

US: TX: Downtown alcohol ban lifted

noreply@blogger.com (Smart Partyer) — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 08:20:00 +0000

Link:http://galvestondailynews.com/story.lasso?ewcd=81cf261dfca47dd8
By Laura Elder
FRIENDSWOOD — Breaking a 46-year dry spell, voters Tuesday overwhelmingly approved the sale of alcohol at restaurants and grocery stores in the city’s downtown.

Proposition 1, which would allow convenience stores and wine shops to sell beer and wine for off-premise consumption, passed with 2,505 votes — 68 percent — for, compared to 1,163 — 32 percent — against, according to complete, unofficial returns.

Proposition 2, which would allow restaurants to sell mixed beverages, passed with 2,648 votes — 72 percent — for, compared to 1,021 — 28 percent — against.

Both propositions allow alcohol sales in a corridor along FM 518 between FM 528 and FM 2351.

The city, founded by Quakers, banned alcohol sales in April 1963, the year Friendswood was incorporated.

Businessman and developer Tony Buzbee, who led a group that argued lifting the ban would lure new business, said the overwhelming victory proved residents were ready for change.

Opponents had argued lifting the ban would undermine the city’s heritage.

“The issue is dear to many people in town; they care deeply about it and I am one of them,” said Janis Lowe, a resident who opposed both propositions.

“Now, all interested parties have spoken. Friendswood will still be here in the morning, but will just be a bit different than it was yesterday.”

Alcohol sales downtown would not drastically change the character of Friendswood, Mayor David Smith said.

“We will still be a family-based, faith-based, education-based community,” Smith said.

US: IN: DUI suspect to cop: 'Dude, I do this every night'

noreply@blogger.com (Smart Partyer) — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 08:20:00 +0000

Link:http://www.chicagobreakingnews.com/2009/11/dui-suspect-to-cops-dude-i-do-this-every-night.html
A northwest Indiana man was arrested early this morning near Portage for driving with a blood-alcohol level almost four times the state's legal limit of .08 percent.

"Dude, I do this every night; I'm straight up and not drunk!" Zachary R. Duis told an Indiana state trooper after he was pulled over, police said.

Duis, 24, of Portage, was arrested for operating a vehicle while intoxicated. He was also wanted on two warrants out of Porter County for resisting law enforcement and furnishing alcohol to a minor, both misdemeanors.

About 2:20 a.m., the Porter County sheriff's department received a call about a 1995 Chevrolet S-10 pickup truck driving erratically, state police said. A sheriff's deputy pulled the truck over on State Road 149 and 1000 North.

Shortly thereafter, the trooper arrived on the scene. Duis failed field sobriety tests and was taken to the Portage Police Department for a certified breath test, state police said.

Duis was later taken to the Porter County Jail.