Alcohol News: May 2005

Alcohol and Drug Addiction Costs Nearly Equal to the Federal Budget Deficit
PR Web, May 31, 2005
Dr. Nora Volkow is the director of the National Institute of Drug Abuse (NIDA) under the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. She recently stated that the total cost of alcohol and drug addiction to society was estimated at $500 billion, which is more than the gross domestic product of over 200 countries in the world.

The overall costs to society include categories such as emergency medial care, crime, corrections, law enforcement, lost productivity, research, treatment and prevention.

A publication from the Office of National Drug Control Policy examining costs of drug abuse from 1992 to 2002 stated that one of the largest percentages of increase in spending was for treatment research. The amount of money allocated more than doubled in a ten year period. Much of the research in the last decade has been focused on the areas of co-occurring disorders and other brain chemical theories, yet the problem seems to have gotten worse in many areas.

See full text of article
Our Solution: Environmental Prevention
More on the Cost of Alcohol Abuse

The research suggests that a simple screening question - "In a typical week, how many days do you get drunk?" - may help identify at-risk students.

"Each year approximately 1,700 college students die from alcohol-related injuries," said Mary Claire O'Brien, M.D., assistant professor of emergency medicine and public health sciences at Wake Forest's School of Medicine, which is part of Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center. "Our goal was to develop a simple tool to tell which student drinkers are at highest risk of getting hurt, as a result of their own drinking and the drinking of others."

See full text of article
Preventing Alcohol Problems on College Campuses

Alcohol forum proposes split bars: Concept offered as compromise on 21-only ordinance
Press-Citizen, IA, May 26, 2005
A city ordinance that would allow bars to split people older than 21 and those under the legal drinking age into separate sections may be pursued after Wednesday's student-sponsored alcohol forum.

University of Iowa student government leaders invited community representatives to continue discussion about excessive alcohol use while pitching their ideas for change.

The forum was composed of members of Stepping Up, the Alcohol Awareness Working Group, the Alcohol Advisory Board and other city and college officials.

See full text of article
"STOP" Underage Drinking

Stadium beer sales should wait
Denver Post, CO, May 27, 2005
Colorado State University president Larry Penley is correct when he says banning beer at Hughes Stadium won't solve student binge-drinking. But since that problem still hasn't yet been fully addressed - a list of new initiatives was released only Thursday - we have to wonder about the rush to start tapping kegs at football games.

We think CSU would be better off getting its campus alcohol problem under control before lifting last year's ban on beer sales at games. Not that we're necessarily opposed to selling 3.2 beer at football games over the long run, but the school seems to going through an awful lot of unnecessary trouble - and expense - just to make sure the suds are flowing sooner rather than later.

See full text of article
More on Responsible Beverage Service

Bar Tabs Going Up As States Tax Alcohol
Wired News (Associated Press), May 24, 2005
If Doug Petkovic has to charge more for a cold one, running his upscale restaurant in this blue-collar city is going to get even tougher. But that's what Petkovic will have to do if the Legislature decides to double the beer tax to help ease the state's money crunch.

"Any type of price increase makes it more difficult for people to come here and dine," said Petkovic, who owns Theory in the up-and-coming Tremont neighborhood. "In my eyes, that sort of taxation amounts to almost persecution." The plan, however, does have supporters: Gov. Bob Taft, who proposed it to help balance the $51 billion two-year budget, and those who point to the social and economic costs of alcohol abuse. More and more states are considering higher alcohol taxes after years of raising cigarette rates.

See full text of article
More on Alcohol Legislation

Alcohol Promotional Items: Invitation to the Drink?
Contemporary Pediatrics, May 15, 2005
Adolescents who own an alcohol promotional item (API), such as a tee shirt or baseball cap, are one-and-a half times as likely to try drinking alcohol than peers who don't sport such brand-imprinted items, according to a limited study by Dartmouth Medical School researchers. But if such a rise in risk is real, a solution is readily at hand, they say.

Kids, beer, movies are sticky mix for OLCC: Regal Cinemas asks to join McMenamins and others in selling alcohol, spurring the liquor agency to revisit its rules
The Oregonian, OR, May 23, 2005
For years, Oregon liquor regulators have allowed children to sit near drinking adults as they watched movies in darkened theater brewpubs.

But now, with Regal Cinemas hankering to serve beer and wine at its Pioneer Place multiplex in downtown Portland -- and with additional requests for movie pubs each year -- Oregon Liquor Control Commission director Teresa Kaiser says the state has to develop a clear policy for denying and approving such requests.

It's a tricky endeavor, with the agency sandwiched between a popular homegrown brewpub tradition and rising pressure to protect minors from innovative business plans that could make alcohol easier for teens to obtain...

See full text of article
More on Responsible Beverage Service

Court upholds conviction of parents who supplied beer
Wavy.com, VA, May 18, 2005
The Virginia Court of Appeals has upheld the convictions of a former couple sentenced to more than two years in prison for supplying alcohol to teenagers at their son's 16th birthday party.

In the 2-to-1 decision, the judges dismissed George and Elisa Robinson's argument that police conducted an illegal search of their August 2002 party.

The now-divorced Earlysville couple were originally sentenced to eight years in prison in 2003. The sentence was appealed and a Circuit Court judge sentenced them to 27 months. A prosecutor had suggested jail terms of only 90 days.

See full text of article
More on Social Host Liability Laws and Teen Party Ordinances

Senate OKs ban on 'power hour' drinking
Star Tribune, MN, May 18, 2005
People turning 21 would have to wait eight hours before they could legally drink under a bill the Senate passed 48 to 15 that's aimed at preventing binge drinking.

The legislation to combat the so-called "power hour," between midnight and closing time on a person's 21st birthday, was included as part of a Senate bill making a number of changes to regulations governing the liquor sales.

Free Subscription Required: See full text of article
Alcohol and Youth Facts

Company's Latest Celebrity Responsibility Ad Sends Strong Message to Parents
PR Newswire Entertainment, May 17, 2005
Anheuser-Busch is striking a chord with parents on underage-drinking prevention by collaborating with hip- hop artist Nelly on a new ad that emphasizes the important role parents play in helping teens make smart, responsible choices about not drinking. In the :30 ad titled "Who Am I?", Nelly admits that, at first glance, some of the parents watching may not recognize him as a hip-hop icon, so he helps them eliminate what his profession might be by humorously pretending to be a chef, a boxer, and a golfer. After failing in those roles, he notes that contemporary adult fans know him as one of America's hottest music stars, but when it comes to teens, he reminds parents, "Your kids are your biggest fans, so talk with them about underage drinking." Created by DDB Chicago, "Who Am I?" will debut Wednesday, May 18 during Law and Order on NBC.

See full text of article
More on Corporate Profiles
Thumbs Down to Allied Domecq Spirits

"Through neglect, Congress has allowed effective rates of tax on a substance that does more harm than any illegal drug to fall dramatically, even as the federal budget has sunk far into the red," said Henry Aaron, senior fellow in economic studies at the Brookings Institution. "As our elected officials deliberate on how to deal with our fiscal woes, they would be well advised to increase a tax that would both help close the federal deficit and discourage the continued epidemic of alcohol abuse."

See full text of article
Alcohol: The Problem

The survey was conducted earlier this year at 12 Marin high schools, both public and private, by members of the Marin Youth Health Advisory Council in association with the Youth Leadership Institute.

The 2003-04 California Healthy Kids Survey showed binge drinking is higher among Marin's young people than the state and national averages. Thirty-seven percent of polled 11th-graders in Marin reported binge drinking in the prior month for the state-sponsored study, while the state average was 23 percent and the national average 32 percent.

See full text of article
More on Youth Programs

Cal bans alcohol at campus fraternities sororities also affected after spate of rowdy parties
San Francisco Chronicle, CA, May 10, 2005
UC Berkeley has indefinitely banned alcohol from campus fraternities and sororities and all events they sponsor in response to recent incidents involving alcohol, fights, hazing and rowdy parties, campus officials announced Monday.

The moratorium, approved by Chancellor Robert Birgeneau, comes more than two years after the campus lifted a similar ban and after police this month arrested fraternity members following a fight-filled boat party on the bay and another fraternity was suspended when a pledge was shot 30 times with pellets during a hazing.

"This campus has a zero-tolerance policy when it comes to hazing and alcohol abuse," UC Berkeley Dean of Students Karen Kenney said in a prepared statement. "Fraternities and sororities need to take these issues much more seriously."

See full text of article
Preventing Alcohol Problems on College Campuses

Moderate alcohol use linked to increase in breast cancer risk
EurekAlert Public News , May 16, 2005
Postmenopausal women who consume even moderate amounts of alcohol may face an increased risk of breast cancer, particularly if their cancer is fueled by the hormones estrogen or progesterone, according to a data analysis by researchers at Boston's Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Brigham and Women's Hospital, and Harvard School of Public Health.

Dana-Farber's Wendy Chen, MD, PhD, will discuss the study's findings (abstract 515) at the annual meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology on Sunday, May 15, 8 a.m. Level 2, Hall A2.

"Women need to consider the possible effects of alcohol on breast cancer risk when weighing the risks and benefits of alcohol consumption," Chen comments. "Our findings indicate that in some postmenopausal women, even modest levels of alcohol consumption may elevate their risk of breast cancer."

See full text of article
Breast Cancer and Alcohol
Alcohol and Women

Supreme Court: State to Decide Question of Internet Alcohol Sales: Coalition for a Safe and Responsible Michigan Says Internet Sales are Unsafe
Yahoo.com, May 16, 2005
The Supreme Court decision handed down today reaffirmed Michigan's right to regulate the sale and distribution of alcohol within its borders -- but said the state must ban in-state alcohol producers from selling over the Internet if it will not allow out-of-state producers to do the same.

In a 5-4 ruling, the Court struck down laws in Michigan and New York that restricted out-of-state producers from bypassing the state's regulations and selling over the Internet. Michigan currently allows for in-state wine producers to ship and sell wine directly, while forbidding out-of-state companies from doing the same. Today's ruling effectively says that states must decide whether everyone or no one can sell alcohol over the Internet.

"This decision puts the ability to protect our communities and youth back in the hands of the Michigan citizens," said Betty Mercer, director of the Coalition for a Safe and Responsible Michigan. "It is the intention of the Coalition to continue to support efforts to keep our communities safe from the unregulated sale of alcohol."

See full text of article
Supreme Court Considers Internet Alcohol Sales

Starfish Coalition teen group aims to fight alcohol, drug use
Goffstown News, NH, May 12, 2005
A group of Goffstown High School students is making a change in their community by helping their fellow students get help.

The Starfish Coalition includes a dozen Goffstown High students, guidance counselor John Webb, Rev. Charlie Ford of the Congregational Church of Goffstown, Laurie Hambleton from Crispin's House, school resource officer Chris Krajenka, substance abuse counselor Tom Nagel and several local parents.

The coalition, which meets every Wednesday morning at the school, finds ways to show high school students that there are alternatives to high school partying. The focus of the Starfish Coalition is to prevent teenage drinking, though the aim is to help any student with substance abuse, including drugs and smoking.

The group has been in existence for about a year and, in that brief period, has made a great impact on the school, said Webb.

See full text of article
Get Involved! Become a Youth Activist

Cinco de Mayo, once a Mexican militia victory, now an excuse to party in U.S.
Florida Sun Sentinel, FL, May 5, 2005
Elizabeth Martinez noticed a strange scene unfold in her modest Mexican restaurant: a large crowd gathered.

"We were going to close early but we just had so many [Anglos] coming in all day," said Martinez, who grew up along the U.S. Mexican border but has spent the last 32 years in Florida. "I couldn't believe how busy we were so finally I just asked them: `I didn't know you [Anglos] celebrate Cinco de Mayo?' And they all said yes, it was a good excuse to party and drink beer."

But almost 150 years later, the memory of the courageous battle has faded, replaced with slick marketing campaigns and novel alcohol-related items ranging from coasters to the ever-popular inflatable beer can.

"What was once a source of cultural pride has been reduced to a binge drinking holiday, thanks to the alcohol industry," said Amon Hoang-Rappaport, a spokesman for Marin Institute, a California-based alcohol industry watchdog.

See full text of article
Latinos Say "Hands Off Our Holiday"

Training goal: Serve liquor properly
The Herald News, IL, May 8, 2005
Liquor license holders in Homer Glen will enroll with their employees in an educational program developed by a nearby police department.

On Tuesday, the village board heard from John Hanke, crime prevention officer for the Joliet Police Department. He outlined the department's Safety Training to Encourage Profitable Service.

The program was developed four years ago to prevent alcohol-related disturbances by teaching owners, managers and servers the proper way to serve alcohol, Hanke said.

The program, which is licensed by the state and focused on local regulations, reduced incidents considerably, and the Joliet department is offering the program to other communities, he said. A growing town like Homer Glen is "in a good position to incorporate something before you get a lot more boom," Hanke said.

See full text of article
More on Responsible Beverage Service Training
Reducing Alcohol Problems at Community Events

Red Sox step up policing of alcohol use: Respond to recent ballpark incidents
Boston Globe, MA, May 8, 2005
Boston police officers are patrolling Fenway Park's busiest beer stands. The Red Sox have nearly doubled the number of alcohol compliance supervisors at the ball yard. And video announcements are reminding fans to follow the park's nine-rule code of conduct that instructs them, among other things, to drink responsibly.

These changes in enforcement, which went into effect on Friday, were made after two liquor license violations, a recent scuffle between a fan and New York Yankees right fielder Gary Sheffield, and reports that the volume of beer sold was up sharply at Fenway.

A team spokesman said yesterday that the Red Sox and Aramark, the park's concessionaire, are beefing up enforcement to help preserve Fenway's family environment.

See full text of article
Alcohol and Sports - An Unhealthy Mix
Making Players and Fans Safer with Responsible Beverage Service

T-shirts that glorify teen drunkenness
San Francisco Chronicle, CA, May 5, 2005
The story sounded matter of fact, almost flat, as if the father had worn it smooth from turning it over in his head every day for several weeks now. His 16-year-old daughter, a sophomore at a Marin public school, was in Texas last month visiting her sister, a college student. The girl chugged herself into a drunken, self-destructive hysteria, threatening suicide, lashing out.

So when a friend told me about the latest T-shirts at Abercrombie & Fitch, I figured she was exaggerating. As exploitive as this company is, with its history of employing whatever slithery tactics necessary to hook young customers, the T-shirts my friend described seemed too ignorant and irresponsible even for Abercrombie.

Yet there they were on a table at the San Francisco Centre store, just as she had said: Stacks of adorable, "high-quality'' T-shirts for the pre-teen and teen set, each one celebrating the pursuit of drunkenness. Well, not only drunkenness. Some celebrate the pursuit of sex and drunkenness.

See full text of article
Teen Fashion Mimics Beer Brands
Alcohol and Youth Facts

Measure would crack down on teen drinking
Record-Journal, CT, Monday, May 9, 2005
The old saying of "My house, my rules," may soon be a thing of the past when it comes to providing minors a place to drink alcohol.

A proposed state House bill would make it illegal for parents or legal guardians to allow minors to possess and consume alcohol on their property. It would also make it illegal for minors to possess alcohol on private property.

The proposed bill unanimously passed the Judiciary Committee and successfully passed the General Law Committee with an 11-3 vote.

"This bill intends to close an existing loophole in current law," said Craig Turner, the vice chairman of the Connecticut Coalition to Stop Underage Drinking and the director of Wallingford's Youth and Social Services Department. "The current law states that minors cannot drink on public property. We're trying to take that ruling and extend it to private property as well."

See full text of article
More on Alcohol Legislation

AMA Asks NCAA to Ban Booze From the Airwaves
MedPage Today, April 27, 2005
The American Medical Association has asked the National Collegiate Athletics Association to ban beer and other alcohol ads from TV and radio broadcasts of college sporting events, including bowl games and March Madness.

The AMA's "no booze" campaign is aimed at "combating under-age drinking," said AMA president John Nelson, M.D., a Salt Lake City obstetrician/gynecologist.

NCAA Division I officials, at a meeting Thursday in Indianapolis, are to review the organization's policy on beer ads during radio and television broadcasts of NCAA events.

See full text of article
Basketball Without Beer Ads?

Alcohol industry gives big donations: Groups will give lobbyists up to $4 million this year
Austin American-Statesman (subscription), TX, May 2, 2005
At the Texas Capitol, booze means big money. Beer, wine and liquor manufacturers, distributors and retailers will pay lobbyists up to $4 million to sway legislators in 2005, according to state report totals compiled by The Associated Press.

"We think the current Texas alcohol code is antiquated and is in need of modernization," said Nate Hurst, public and government relations manager for Arkansas-based Wal-Mart, whose principals gave more than $100,000 to key Texas officials.

Of those contributions identified by The Associated Press, industry donations last year were more than $330,000 combined to Gov. Rick Perry, Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst, House Speaker Tom Craddick and four legislators overseeing alcohol bills.

Dewhurst received the most. His $152,735 from alcohol-related interests amounted to slightly less than 3 percent of his total. Spokesmen for the three top leaders said the donations will not affect their decisions this session. Suzii Paynter, lobbyist for the Baptist General Convention of Texas, said the "whiny baby" alcohol industry has deep connections at the Capitol.

See full text of article
More on Alcohol Industry Campaign Contributions

in the May issue of the American Journal of Preventive Medicine.

See full text of article
Health Care Costs of Alcohol