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OPINION & EDITORIAL

Later bartime would prevent riot

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Also by Andrew Krueger:

by Andrew Krueger

Thursday, October 13, 2005

Mayor Cieslewicz's call for State Street bars to close down a hour-and-a-half early on Halloween may save the city a shekel or two, but does nothing to ease the perennial tenseness the city feels around Halloween. In fact, the suggested tactics will be creating an even more tenuous atmosphere for everyone. Contrary to public opinion, it IS possible to improve Madison's Halloween celebration by keeping both the law enforcement AND the party-goers happy.

Why Bars Cannot Close 1.5 hrs Early:

Imagine waiting in line for 20 minutes to get into a bar knowing that bartime is an hour-and-a-half earlier. What do you do? You drink more in a smaller amount of time: Moving the bar time up will only promote/increase binge-drinking, which I can imagine a one Chancellor Wiley would not be too keen on. Frustration that bars won't stay open late will give way to extended pre-partying, making police efforts more diffuse around campus.

The Halloween crowd peaks in numbers around midnight to 1 a.m. If people are forced out of the bars earlier, we have a massive drunken egress coupled with peak crowds. Usually most problems occur when the bars have closed and there is a mass exodus onto State Street of partygoers. With nothing to do but roam the streets, this kind of crowd gets creative quite quickly.

What Halloween On State Needs:

Not only should the bars be allowed to stay open until 2 a.m. (adjusted for daylight-saving time), but they should also have the option of staying open even later, perhaps until 4 or 5 a.m. As a result, festivities will not be rushed, and people will tend to go and leave as they please, guaranteeing a more gradual efflux of intoxicated SpongeBobs, Darth Vaders, and the occasional ghost onto State Street. In addition, I doubt that anyone would disagree that bar patrons are safer and more under control while under supervision of the bars. Bars deal with extremely drunk crowds on a nightly basis, and Halloween will be no exception. Having the bar space available for revelers would help alleviate some of the crowd-type that cause police problems. These establishments do not need to sell alcoholic beverages past 3 a.m., but could distribute non-alcoholic beverages as the party dies down.

Let us think rationally about this year's Halloween festivities and not let some financial excel spreadsheet cloud judgment regarding how to keep the parties safe and the State Street Halloween tradition alive.

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Anonymous (October 13, 2005 @ 9:59am):

Part of the problem that Madison is facing is the mentality of students who do not take collective responsibility for their actions. It is always the visitors' fault, or the cops' fault, or the mayors' fault that will determine the outcomes of Halloween. I have yet to see an article that puts the onus on the students. You need to start taking responsibility for your actions beforehand and realize that cops to not incite riots and visitors can be controlled by their hosts.

Anonymous (October 13, 2005 @ 11:41am):

seriously... it's a state law! i thought people knew that... there's nothing mayor dave can do about it (not that he would try).

Rob Deters (October 13, 2005 @ 1:36pm):

Bang on. This article is dead right. Leave 'em open until 4 am and there's no riot.

Anonymous (October 13, 2005 @ 2:25pm):

I agree with this article. Keeping the bars open until 4 or 5 AM will only help the prevention of riots. I do not understand how the mayor believes forcing everyone out of the bars early is going to ease any tention. The key to a riot-free Halloween is to let things die off naturally without any force. I believe part of the problem the last three years has been all the tension leading up to the event. Keep the bars open later, keep everyone occupied. I would like someone to explain to me how shutting the bars down early is actually going to help ease tension and fabricate a riot-free Halloween? It just doesnt' make any sense.

Anonymous (October 13, 2005 @ 2:47pm):

That logic makes sense to you? Keep the bars open later, serve obviously intoxicated people alcoholic beverages later in to the evening and all will be right with Halloween in Madison again? Looks like you just wanted a platform to whine about bar time in Madison.