No more happy hour in Britain?

[IDrinkaRum]

No more "happy hour" as drink deaths rise

Because of younger and younger people dying of liver-related death, there is a proposal in Britain to ban "happy hour" discounts to encourage less binge drinking, among other options.

[crazylegs]

This seems like a good plan to me. Our culture promotes drinking soley to get drunk, rather than drinking to enjoy the drink. By removing the cheaper (time restricted) drinks this may assist in the change of culture that is required to overhaul the issue.

However, it is not merely legislature that will solve the issue, rather a complete overhaul in the way we treat alcohol.

[IDrinkaRum]

America could argue the same thing. I know of 21 year olds when I was in college who would drink to excess every weekend. They'd go to class either completely hung over or still drunk.

Before I started dating my husband, he & his friends would drink all weekend. They'd always be passing out at each others houses. That's what they did for fun. And these guys weren't young - they were in their mid-20's to 30's.

[McDreidel09]

I honestly think that if laws stop restricting drinking alcohol, young kids won't feel the need to drink.

In countires where the culture is more open to drinking (wine at dinner, social drinking,etc), there are less binge drinkers and people dying because of alcohol poisoning. If other cultures were a bit more open about, maybe young people won't feel the need to explore the taboo.

My dad is very open about drinking. I could drink with him. If I got drunk,that was my fault, but I learned that I don't need to get drunk to have fun. It really sucked. Now, when I am offered booze, I either turn it down or have very little. I don't feel the need to drink and drink and drink.

Now, I'm not condoning that little kids drink or anything. I'm just saying that some cultures need to loosen up a bit.

[Greenday]

America could argue the same thing. I know of 21 year olds when I was in college who would drink to excess every weekend. They'd go to class either completely hung over or still drunk.

I've drank DURING class. Lil bit of Bacardi 151 mixed with blue Gatorade.

It's fun and all, but I don't see why people do it so much. I enjoy it but damn. I don't want to kill myself at the same time.

[vanima]

8 drinks (shots, beers, etc) in an hours time can put a full grown man into a blood alchohol range that is deadly...and think.. people take a shot and chase it with a beer ALL THE TIME... guzzle the beer down...

or the whole CHUG CHUG CHUG beer after beer after beer that happens at a lot of parties..

i really don't see the need to drink so much... it drives me insane to see that kind of behavior

[Lace Neil Singer]

I may be a dissenter here, but I think it's bullshit. Why should the people who like a drink or two be punished along with the idiots who can't drink without causing trouble? Arrest the idiots, fine them or lock them up; problem solved. It's the whole taking responsibility for your own actions thing that needs fixing; any kid who tries to buy alcohol should be punished in some way, not just the retailer who sells it to them. Any kid who drinks and causes a ruckus should be arrested and charged, just as any adult. It just smacks of the ridiculous nanny state that's around in Britain at the moment, pandering to the fussy busybodies who need to mind their own damn business.

[Slytovhand]

I don't know what your current liquor laws are over there, but over here, it is illegal to sell alcohol to an intoxicated person. IF that was enforced more stringently, then perhaps there wouldn't be as great a problem?? And Lace's thoughts would be more practical, than at the moment where they are more idealistic (not taking a shot at you Lace, just talking about the way society and laws work... or don't).

[crazylegs]

It already is an offence to serve alcohol to someone that is drunk.

Enforcing it however... We just don't have the staffing levels to arrest, process and charge that many bar staff.

How about this... There is an offence of Drunk and Incapable. Sounds all very well and good doesn't it? However if you're so drunk you're incapable the custody staff won't accept them into the custody suite, instead you get shipped off to hospital. The hospital will say 'congratulations, he's pissed' then palm them back off to the police.

We have a huge raft of legislation that isn't being properly used at the moment, perhaps we should be...

[MadMike]

Because of younger and younger people dying of liver-related death, there is a proposal in Britain to ban "happy hour" discounts to encourage less binge drinking, among other options.

Right, because those bars are grabbing people off the streets, shoving funnels in their mouths, and pouring liquor into them.

I thought that the issue of people not taking responsibility for themselves was strictly an American problem, but it looks like that's not the case.

[AFPheonix]

Meh. It's cheaper to buy my own alcohol and drink it at home. Bonus, I occasionally get someone to hold my hair in the bathroom if I overdo it

[DrT]

The issue with alcohol drinking is not the fact that the person his hurting himself. You're free to do that in western society (somewhat)

The issue is that after you drink, you take the wheel or you car and end up killing innocent people. That is why there's such a crunch on bars and alcohol dispensers in general, and not on stores or people.

The fact that alcohol is a poison and that young people tend to hurt themselves with it will probably go the same way the cigarette does: make sure they do it only to themselves. Tis why it's forbidden to smoke in so many places. When you are at that point, the government doesn't care.
The gov't job is to protect its citizen from other citizens, not themselves. And as long as they haven't found a way to make sure that when you drink alcohol you'll only hurting yourself and not taking the risk of hurting others, they'll keep on restricting it.

And I can't really blame them.

[Evandril]

I've said quite often that restricting drinking to an 'adult' activity makes it more attractive to anyone who still cares about being thought an 'adult'. If they want to cut down on the binge drinking and the like, drop the drinking age, don't do away with happy hours and the like. The more of a big deal drinking seems to be...the more it will appeal to 'kids', no matter their age.

[lordlundar]

There seems to be a misplaced assumption here that this is banning all drinking. No. This is banning the small window of time where (usually crappy) drinks are being sold for dirt cheap, which promotes heavier drinking. The idea is to make people more responsible by hitting them in their pocket. Not so inclined to get wasted when the beer is three pounds a pint as opposed to 50 pence a quart.

My city recently invoked similar bylaws, setting a minimum price dependent on the drink to help curb the idiots getting plastered and hurting themselves or others.